Dr Baker is proposed for Fellowship on the basis of his leadership and achievements in the field of composite materials. He is presently a Senior Principal Rcocarch Scientist and Head of the Composites Group in the Aircraft Materials Division of the Aeronautical Research Laboratory.

Recruited to ARL from the Rolls Royce Advanced Research Group, U.K. in 1971, he had already established an international reputation in advanced fibre-composite materials research, particularly in the application of.graphite/epoxy composites in gas turbine engines and in the emerging science and technology of metal-matrix composites.

At ARL he conceived and verified the concept of using composite
"patches" for reinforcement and repair of aircraft structures.

After much development, he and his colleagues successfully applied this new technology to many RAAF aircraft including Hercules, Mirage, Macchi, Flll C and F/A-18. A cost benefit analysis has shown that the RAAF has been saved some hundreds of millions of dollars in maintenance costs and extensions of life of aircraft as a consequence.

Dr Baker has published widely and has received several prestigious awards including, in 1990, the Minister's Award for Achievement in the Defence Science and Technology Organisation.