Saturday, October 6, 2012

When it comes to appropriately and publicly saluting our nation’s aviation pioneers, there may be no other event as significant as the National Aviation Hall of Fame’s Enshrinement gala.  Not surprisingly the spectacular formal dinner and ceremony has become known as America’s “Oscar Night of Aviation.”  The 2012 edition of this historic event will again see a freshman crop of air and space legends inducted before an anticipated audience of 1,000 or more peers and admirers.  This includes not only NAHF members and former enshrinees, but also hundreds of government, aerospace and defense industry leaders, media representatives and aviation enthusiasts from around the world.

The evening begins with a one-hour Opening Guest Reception held in the spacious atrium of the Dayton Convention Center.  Guests then convene in the adjacent grand ballroom for a gourmet dinner and evening’s live and multi-media on-stage presentations to each of the four honorees.

The Enshrinee Class of 2012 being honored is:
(click the pictures for a larger view):

Geraldyn “Jerrie” Cobb, record-setting pilot who learned to fly at age 12, was the first and only woman to pass all of the Mercury astronaut selection tests. 1981 Nobel Prize nominee for her pioneering humanitarian work in the Amazon jungle.

Keith Ferris, known world-wide as the “Dean of American Aviation Art,” founded the American Society of Aviation Artists. Also an expert and inventor of aircraft paint systems for military camouflage and high visibility purposes.

The late Lt. Gen. Elwood R. “Pete” Quesada, USAF, helped develop and successfully demonstrate air-to-air refueling in 1929, served as first commander of Tactical Air Command, and later helped establish and helmed the FAA.

The late Richard T. Whitcomb, acclaimed as the most influential aeronautical researcher of his time, his revolutionary concepts include the Area Rule, Supercritical Airfoil, and Winglets that enable aircraft to fly faster, farther and with less fuel.