Loïc Bigois (born 19 September 1960 in Aix-en-Provence,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

) is a French

Formula One Formula One (also known as Formula 1 or F1) is the highest class of international racing for open-wheel single-seater formula racing cars sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA). The World Drivers' Championship, ...

aerodynamicist Aerodynamics, from grc, ἀήρ ''aero'' (air) + grc, δυναμική (dynamics), is the study of the motion of air, particularly when affected by a solid object, such as an airplane wing. It involves topics covered in the field of fluid dyn ...

. He is currently the Head of Aerodynamic Operations at Scuderia Ferrari.

Career

After studying engineering at the

Conservatoire national des arts et métiers A music school is an educational institution specialized in the study, training, and research of music. Such an institution can also be known as a school of music, music academy, music faculty, college of music, music department (of a larger ins ...

, Bigois relocated to

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Pa ...

and began working in the

aerospace Aerospace is a term used to collectively refer to the atmosphere and outer space. Aerospace activity is very diverse, with a multitude of commercial, industrial and military applications. Aerospace engineering consists of aeronautics and astr ...

industry. He was recruited by the

Ligier Ligier (() is a French automobile and minibus maker created by former racing driver and rugby player Guy Ligier (1930–2015), specialized in the manufacturing of microcars. Ligier is best known for its involvement in the Formula 1 World Champ ...

F1 team in 1990 and for several years moved between the mid-field teams. In the late 1990s he returned to Ligier and remained as Chief Designer through the transition to

Prost Grand Prix Prost Grand Prix was a Formula One racing team owned and managed by four-time Formula One world champion Alain Prost. The team participated in five seasons from 1997 to 2001. History Purchase of Ligier As early as 1992, Alain Prost had ambitio ...

before being recruited by Minardi to become their Head of Aerodynamics in mid-2001. In 2003 he was recruited by Williams as Aerodynamicist. Bigois worked alongside

Jörg Zander Jörg Zander (born 15 February 1964 in Ratingen) is a German Formula One car designer. Zander graduated from Cologne University in 1990 before joining Toyota. After a brief period working in Touring Cars he returned to Toyota to work on the Formu ...

who replaced Gavin Fisher as Chief Designer in September 2005. Both Bigois and Zander worked under Technical Director

Sam Michael Samuel David Michael (born 29 April 1971) is an Australian motor sports engineer and designer, who held senior positions with Formula One constructors Williams and McLaren. He is currently employed by Supercar team Triple Eight Race Engineer ...

. On 2 July 2007, it was announced that he had agreed to join the

Honda Racing F1 The Japanese automobile manufacturer Honda has participated in Formula One, as an engine manufacturer and team owner, for various periods since 1964. Honda's involvement in Formula One began with the season, and in 1965 they achieved their fi ...

team and as a result, was suspended by Williams. In 2009, the team was reformed as

Brawn GP Brawn GP was a Formula One constructor which competed in the 2009 Formula One World Championship, with drivers Jenson Button and Rubens Barrichello. The team was formed in 2009 by a management buyout led by Ross Brawn of the Honda Racing F1 ...

but Bigois continued in the role of Head of Aerodynamics. Brawn GP subsequently won both the Drivers' and Constructors' championships, leading to Bigois being awarded the Dino Toso Racecar Aerodynamicist of the Year Award. Bigois was the Head of Aerodynamics at Mercedes GP which bought out

following their double championship winning season until he decided to leave the team in June 2012. Following his departure from the Mercedes team, rumours emerging in Italian (Autosprint) and French (AutoHebdo) newspapers linked Bigois with the Maranello-based team Scuderia Ferrari. Bigois would join Ferrari as Head of Aerodynamics before the end of the year, after a long period of

gardening leave Garden leave (also known as gardening leave) is the practice whereby an employee leaving a job – having resigned or otherwise had their employment terminated – is instructed to stay away from work during the notice period, while still remainin ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bigois, Loic 1960 births Living people Formula One designers Aerodynamicists French motorsport people Ferrari people Honda people Brawn GP