EAA, Others to Be Honored by San Diego Air & Space Museum

October 22, 2015 – EAA is proud to join a number of notable honorees being enshrined during this year’s International Air & Space Hall of Fame Induction Celebration in San Diego, California.

The San Diego Air & Space Museum will celebrate the honorees on Thursday, November 19, 2015, in the Museum’s Pavilion of Flight. Since 1963 the International Air & Space Hall of Fame has honored more than 200 of the world’s most significant pilots, crew members, visionaries, inventors, aerospace engineers, business leaders, preservationists, designers, and space pioneers, including Paul and Tom Poberezny.

The Museum has chosen to honor EAA overall, as well as highlighting our Young Eagles program, through which we’ve flown more than 1.9 million youth to date. Chairman of the Board Jack Pelton and Young Eagles Chairman Sean D. Tucker will accept the honor on behalf of EAA.

According to the Museum, the Distinguished Class of 2015 also includes: Alan Mulally, contributor on every Boeing commercial aircraft from the 727 through the 787; Bill Chana, flight test engineer for Convair and developer of the Wee Bee; Tom Cassidy, retired U.S. Navy rear admiral, and Frank Pace, leaders of General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI), a defense industry leader in UAVs; Bob Ferry, retired U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel, a profound contributor to helicopter flight testing, including the Apache AH-64; Fred Trapnell, retired U.S. Navy vice admiral, who was the first U.S. Navy pilot to fly jet aircraft and considered the most experienced naval test aviator of his generation; Kenneth and Jean Friedkin, founders of Pacific Southwest Airlines; and Texas Congressman Sam Johnson, retired U.S. Air Force colonoel, a decorated war hero and 29-year veteran of the U.S. Air Force.

“We’re especially pleased to honor this exemplary Class of 2015 because these pioneers have not only made significant contributions in air and space exploration, they’ve also become strong positive role models for today’s youth,” said Jim Kidrick, president and CEO of the San Diego Air & Space Museum. “Aviation and space exploration, as embodied by the honorees in the International Air & Space Hall of Fame, is a metaphor for the human pioneering spirit. November 19 is the evening of the year every guest will remember for the rest of their lives. We honor these legends on behalf of San Diegans, and really everyone in the world. People come from all over the globe to be at this celebration.”

The International Air & Space Hall of Fame is composed of hundreds of air and space pioneers, engineers, inventors and innovators, along with adventurers, scientists, and industry leaders. NASA Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo astronauts and Russian cosmonauts are honored in the Hall of Fame, plus famous legends such as the Wright brothers, Charles Lindbergh, and Chuck Yeager. Notable inductees include Igor Sikorsky, Wernher von Braun, Jack Northrop, William Boeing, Sr., Reuben H. Fleet, Glenn Curtiss, Walter Zable Sr., Fran Bera, Wally Schirra, Bill Anders, Jim Lovell, T. Claude Ryan, Jimmy Doolittle, Frederick Rohr, Waldo Waterman, Bob Hoover, Harrison Ford, Patty Wagstaff, the NBAA, and many others.

“Inspiring kids to undertake tough science and engineering challenges is only the first step,” Kidrick said. “We must also give them the resources they need to complete science education degrees.”

Proceeds from the evening benefit the Museum’s youth education programs.