Living Legends of Aviation
The Living Legends of Aviation is an award honoring achievements in the aerospace industry, bestowed by the 130 current title holders and owned and produced by the Kiddie Hawk Air Academy, a non-profit 501(c)(3).[1] The Living Legends have all made significant contributions to many areas of aviation including: innovators, record breakers, astronauts, aviation entrepreneurs, industry leaders and celebrity pilots.
Formation | December 17, 2003 |
---|---|
Founder | Jerry Lips |
Type | 501(c)(3) nonprofit |
Purpose | Recognition of Aviation Achievements |
Membership | c. 130 |
Executive Director | Jerry Lips (2016) |
Parent organization | Kiddie Hawk Air Academy |
Website | livinglegendsofaviation |
The 20th Living Legends of Aviation Awards, honoring the best in aviation for 2021-2022, was presented on January 20, 2023, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, where they have been held annually since 2007.
History
Jerry Lips, publisher of Airport Journals, came up with the idea of the Living Legends of Aviation at the time of the death of Michael Chowdry (founder of Atlas Air).[2] Airport Journals had been collecting and publishing biographies of various aviation personalities and Jerry regretted not having captured Chowdry's history. He began to compile a list of individuals that had made major contributions in the field of aviation, and had those people suggest more names until 70 were collected. These were the biographies that were to be recorded while the individuals were still "living". The list has grown over the years to its present number of 130. As Legends pass on, they are replaced by new inductees, selected by their fellow Legends.
Jerry Lips founded the Living Legends of Aviation in 2003 with the charter of celebrating the second century of aerospace. In 2008, Kiddie Hawk Air Academy acquired the rights to the organization and annual awards show from previous owner Airport Journals.
Inductees
- Chuck Aaron
- George F (Rick) Adam
- James Albaugh
- Buzz Aldrin
- William Anders
- Bud Anderson
- Siegfried Angerer
- Mark Baker
- Brian Barents
- Felix Baumgartner
- Laurent Beaudoin
- Jeff Bezos
- Tony Bill
- Linden Blue
- Ed Bolen
- Col. Frank Borman
- Maj. Gen. Patrick Brady
- Sir Richard Branson
- Jimmy Buffett
- Pete Bunce
- Julie Clark
- Danny Clisham
- Ray Conner
- Tom Cruise
- Gen. Jack Dailey
- Alvaro-Jaime de Orléans-Borbón
- Robert Dewar
- Iren Dornier
- Bonnie Dunbar
- J. Robert Duncan
- Walter Eichhorn
- Tom Enders
- Pat Epps
- Jack Erickson
- Alan Eustace
- Greg Evans
- Greg Feith
- Rick Fiddler
- Larry Flynn
- Edsel Ford II
- Harrison Ford
- Morgan Freeman
- Michimasa Fujino
- Kenny G
- Bruno Gantenbrink
- William Garvey
- Randy Gaston
- Stephen Grey
- Charles Gordon-Lennox
- David Greschke
- Charles Hall
- Brenda Halvorson
- Lon Halvorson
- Tom Haines
- Preston Henne
- Greg Herrick
- Sir Stephen Hillier
- Skip Holm
- Craig Hosking
- David Hurley
- Jared Isaacman
- Miguel Iturmendi-Copado
- Charles B. Johnson
- Michael Kendrick
- John King
- Martha King
- Joe Kittinger
- Alan Klapmeier
- Dale Klapmeier
- Sergei Krikalev
- Clay Lacy
- Amanda Wright Lane
- John Leahy
- Rod Lewis
- Jerry Lips
- Capt. James Lovell
- Kim Lundgren
- Shane Lundgren
- Robert A. Lutz
- Sheik Al Maktoum
- T. Allan McArtor
- Bruce McCaw
- Maj. Gen. Carl McNair
- Ulf Merbold
- Russell W. Meyer, Jr.
- Roy Morgan
- Elon Musk
- David Neeleman
- Steve Oliver
- Suzanne Asbury Oliver
- Eren Ozmen
- Fatih Ozmen
- Jack Pelton
- Ross Perot Jr.
- Bertrand Piccard
- Nick Popovich
- Jeffrey Puckett
- Vern Raburn
- Kenn Ricci
- Si Robin
- Frank D. Robinson
- Jean Rosanvallon
- Kurt Russell
- Burt Rutan
- Dick Rutan
- HRH Prince Sultan bin Salman Al Saud
- Richard Santulli
- Barry Schiff
- Sergei Sikorsky
- Craig Sincock
- Frederick W. Smith
- Chesley Sullenberger
- Lynn Tilton
- John Travolta
- Sean Tucker
- Louis Turpen
- Dieter F. Uchtdorf
- John Uczekaj
- Steven F. Udvar-Hazy
- Patty Wagstaff
- Kermit Weeks
- Mark Welsh
- Rainer Wilke
- Gregg Williams
- Treat Williams
- Martin Withers
- Daniel Wolfe[3]
Past inductees
- Paul Allen
- Neil Armstrong
- Hank Beaird
- Forrest Bird
- Gene Cernan
- Joe Clark
- Dick Cole
- Harry Combs
- Tom Danaher
- Hal Fishman
- Steve Fossett
- Charles Gates
- Elling Halvorson
- Hamish Harding
- Milan Haven
- Alfred Haynes
- Tex Hill
- Barron Hilton
- Bob Hoover
- Dee Howard
- Herb Kelleher
- Niki Lauda
- Bill Luckett
- George McGovern
- John Myers
- Zoe Dell Lantis Nutter
- Robin Olds
- Arnold Palmer
- Robert E. Petersen
- Paul Poberezny
- Tom Poberezny
- Sydney Pollack
- Bob Pond
- James D. Raisbeck
- James Ray
- Cliff Robertson
- Wally Schirra
- Carroll Shelby
- Delford Smith
- Murray Smith
- Ed Swearingen
- David Thatcher
- Paul Tibbets
- Al Ueltschi
- Emily Howell Warner
- Bruce N. Whitman
- Carl M. Willams
- Sam Williams
- Chuck Yeager
Event
Beginning in 2003, an awards show has been organized each year to bring together the Living Legend members for a variety of events. The awards are presented at a prestigious live ceremony, most commonly in mid January following the relevant calendar year.
In 2003, the first Living Legends of Aviation Awards were presented at a banquet dinner hosted by Airport Journals at the Centennial Airport in Englewood, Colorado. To avoid any weather related issues, in 2006 the venue was moved to Southern California and held at the Hyatt Regency Century Plaza hotel in Los Angeles. Since 2007 the Awards have been presented at The Beverly Hilton in Beverly Hills, California.[4]
In 2018 the inaugural Living Legends of Aviation - Europe event was held on July 26, 2018 at the Scalaria hotel & resort in Salzkammergut, Austria.[5]
In 2021 the awards show was cancelled due to the COVID-19_pandemic.
List of winners
Year | Winner |
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2003 | Charles Gates |
2004 | Clay Lacy |
2005 | Steven Udvar-Hazy |
2006 | Al Ueltschi |
2007 | James D. Raisbeck |
2008 | Sir Richard Branson |
2009 | Joe Clark |
2010 | Delford Smith |
2011 | J Robert Duncan |
2012 | David Neeleman |
2013 | Frederick Smith |
2014 | Herb Kelleher |
2016 | Kenn Ricci |
2017 | Robert Bigelow |
2018 | Jeff Bezos |
2019 | Charles Gordon-Lennox, 11th Duke of Richmond |
2019 | S. Harry Robertson |
2021 | Craig Sincock |
2021 | Alexandre Couvelaire |
2022 | Daniel Drohan |
- The award was called the Lifetime Aviation Entrepreneur Award prior to 2018.
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2003 | George F (Rick) Adam |
2004 | Joe Clark |
2005 | Vern Raburn |
2006 | Dale & Alan Klapmeier |
2007 | Sheikh Ahmed Bin Saeed Al Maktoum |
2008 | Linden Blue |
2009 | Elon Musk |
2010 | Lynn Tilton |
2011 | Eren & Fatih Ozmen |
2012 | John Uczekaj |
2015 | Thomas Flohr |
2017 | Tyson Weihs & Jason Miller |
2018 | Ivo Boscarol |
2019 | Kenny Dichter |
2021 | Jared Isaacman |
2021 | Daniel Wiegand |
2022 | Tim Ellis |
- The award was called the Aviation Entrepreneur of the Year Award prior to 2011, and the Aviation Industry Entrepreneur of the Year Award from 2012–2017.
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2006 | Bob Hoover |
2007 | Forrest Bird & George McGovern |
2008 | Emily Howell Warner & Zoe Dell Nutter |
2009 | Kermit Weeks |
2010 | Doolittle Raiders & Sam Johnson |
2011 | Burt Rutan |
2012 | Neil Armstrong & Eugene Cernan |
2013 | Patrick Brady |
2016 | Clay Lacy |
2018 | Walter Eichhorn |
- The award was called the Freedom of Flight Award prior to 2007.
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2007 | John Travolta |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2007 | Pete Bunce |
2008 | Ed Bolen |
2009 | Preston Henne |
2010 | Mark Van Tine |
2014 | Michimasa Fujino |
2016 | Phebe Novakovic |
2018 | Brian Barents |
2021 | Marc Parent |
2021 | Bin Chen |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2008 | Si Robin |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2008 | Harrison Ford |
2009 | Jeffrey Puckett |
2010 | Pat Epps |
2011 | Richard Sugden |
2012 | Greg Anderson |
2013 | Marilyn Richwine & Rhonda Fullerton |
2014 | Mark Baker |
2015 | Scott Terry |
2016 | Peter Paul Luce |
2017 | Jim Inhofe |
2018 | Sean Tucker |
- The award was called the Legends Aviation Legacy Award prior to 2009.
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2017 | Gen. Jack Dailey |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2008 | William Anders |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2008 | Paul "Max" Moga |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2009 | Kurt Russell |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2009 | Tom Cruise |
2010 | Sean Tucker |
2011 | Morgan Freeman |
2012 | David Ellison |
2014 | Angelina Jolie |
2015 | Miles O'Brien |
2016 | Mark & Scott Kelly |
2018 | Jim Payne |
2022 | William Shatner |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2017 | Frank Franke |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2009 | Buzz Aldrin |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2010 | James Lovell |
Year | Winner |
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2010 | Frank D. Robinson |
Year | Winner |
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2011 | Boeing 787 Dreamteam |
Year | Winner |
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2012 | Roy Morgan |
2013 | Jack Erickson |
2014 | Elling Halvorson |
2015 | William "Bill" Chiles |
2016 | Steven Hickok |
2017 | Mike Silva |
2019 | Sergei Sikorsky |
2021 | Lon & Brenda Halvorson |
2022 | Max Lyons |
- The award was called the Vertical Flight Hall of Fame Award prior to 2019.
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2012 | James Albaugh |
2013 | Bruce N. Whitman |
2015 | Ray Conner |
2017 | David Joyce |
2018 | Jean Rosanvallon |
2022 | Mike Silvestro |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2018 | Jeff Bezos |
2019 | Capt. James Lovell |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2015 | Dick Cole & David Thatcher[7] |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2015 | Col. Gail Halvorsen |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2018 | Eren & Fatih Ozmen |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2018 | Leigh Clifford |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2018 | Stefan Aust |
2019 | Claus & Gunnar Heinemann |
2019 | Thomas Schrade |
2021 | Bernd Breiter |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2018 | Dick DeVos |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2018 | Bertrand Piccard |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2019 | Robert Machtlinger & Hu Huazhi |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2019 | Alan Eustace |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2021 | Oliver Daemen |
Year | Winner |
---|---|
2021 | Zara Rutherford |
2022 | Mack Rutherford |
References
- "About".
- "Read My Lips". December 2008.
- "Legends".
- Schapiro, Steve (March 2015). "Harrison Ford honors AOPA". AOPA Pilot: 27.
- Living Legends of Aviation Europe https://www.legendseu.com
- "Living Legends of Aviation | Honorees". Archived from the original on February 13, 2015. Retrieved February 25, 2015.
- "Missoula Doolittle Raider Thatcher to join Living Legends of Aviation".