Insights/News
Cignus Welcomes Neal Westlund as Associate Director of Airport Planning
January 28, 2026
Cignus welcomes Neal Westlund as Associate Director of Airport Planning in Leesburg, VA. Mr. Westlund brings 35+ years of expertise in airport master planning, airfield capacity analysis, and obstacle limitation surfaces, most recently as Principal Aviation Systems Engineer at The MITRE Corporation.
Cignus Consulting is pleased to welcome Neal Westlund to the firm as Associate Director of Airport Planning, based in our Leesburg, Virginia offices. Mr. Westlund brings more than 35 years of airport planning experience spanning large-hub commercial service airports, general aviation facilities, heliports, and emerging vertiport concepts across domestic and international markets.
Mr. Westlund joins Cignus from The MITRE Corporation, where he served for 15 years as Principal Aviation Systems Engineer and Leader of the Airport Design and Analysis Group within MITRE's Center for Advanced Aviation System Development (CAASD). In that role, he served as the FAA's primary subject matter expert in airport planning, airfield design standards, and obstacle limitation surface (OLS) assessment. He led data-driven analyses that enabled the FAA to update regulatory thresholds and modernize airfield design criteria across the national airport system, and co-authored revisions to key FAA Advisory Circulars governing airport master plans and Airport Layout Plans.
Among his most notable contributions at MITRE was the development of the OLS Assessment Framework — a 3D GIS-enhanced, data-driven methodology for evaluating and modernizing Obstacle Limitation Surfaces at airports worldwide. He led a landmark OLS engagement with the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore (CAAS) at Changi International Airport, assessing modifications to existing OLS to address Singapore's significant land constraints — work he presented to the ICAO ADOP/IFPP OLS Task Force in Cologne and Montreal. His project portfolio also includes benefit-cost analysis of high-speed exit taxiway improvements at JFK for PANYNJ, and capacity improvement and surface movement CONOPS studies at Dubai International Airport.
Prior to MITRE, Mr. Westlund held senior planning leadership positions at Reynolds, Smith & Hills, Inc. and Ricondo & Associates, directing planning services for commercial service and general aviation clients across medium- and large-hub airports. He holds a BS in Aerospace Engineering from Parks College of St. Louis University and is an active member of AAAE and Transportation Research Board committees on Airport Compatibility and Airfield Capacity.
In his role at Cignus, Mr. Westlund will lead the firm's airport planning practice — directing engagements in airfield capacity analysis, capital improvement planning, obstacle limitation surface assessments, and master planning for federal, commercial, and international airport clients.
"We are thrilled to have Neal join the Cignus team," said Vinayak Khera, President and CEO. "His decades of technical leadership at MITRE, deep relationships with the FAA and international aviation regulators, and hands-on experience at some of the world's most complex airports make him an exceptional addition to our growing airport planning practice."