Boeing 787 Dreamliner

Lights Up Collier Trophy Dinner

   A stunning view of the new Boeing 787 Dreamliner airplane dominated the NAA Robert J. Collier Trophy Presentation Banquet on May 10, 2012, where the "greatest achievement in aeronautics or astronautics in America" during 2011 was honored.

   Hangar 7 at Ronald Reagan National Airport, the location of the dinner, never looked so good. Bedecked in white linen with a raised stage in the center and a string orchestra adding to the ambience, the hangar was the perfect setting for this year's black-tie event.

   The Boeing 787 program was launched in 2004 with a record order from All-Nippon Airways, and since then 58 customers from six continents have placed orders for 851 airplanes valued at more than $175 billion.  

Top Boeing executives James Albaugh (far left) and W. James McNernery Jr. (second from right) accept the Collier Trophy from NAA Chairman Walter Boyne (second from left) and NAA President and CEO Jonathan Gaffney (far right).    .

  The super-efficient airplane features a suite of new technologies that include advanced engines from General Electric and Rolls-Royce, a one-piece composite fuselage and wings, higher cabin pressure, increased humidity, a 30 percent larger window, larger stow bins, advanced air filtration, and LED lighting.

   Increased fuel efficiency results in exceptional environmental performance and a flight range of 7,650 to 8,500 nautical miles. It will carry between 210 and 290 passengers depending on the seating configuration.

   Boeing Chairman, President and CEO W. James McNerney Jr. said, "This is huge. On behalf of the men and women of Boeing and the staff of the 787, I thank NAA for this great honor. Developing, certifying, and delivering the 787 was a milestone achievement."

   Despite what McNerney described as an "arduous and tenacious journey," he declared, "Our commitment to the program never wavered. In the end it was the relentless determination of our team that got it done.

   "It was a quintessentially American endeavor - the 787 is a reminder of what we can accomplish when we come together to do extraordinary things."

   James Albaugh, President and CEO, Boeing Commercial Airplanes, compared winning the Collier Trophy to winning the Super Bowl and marveled at how "our team overcame issue after issue. They never complained, they put their badges on, came through the gate, and solved the problems.

   "It's about excellence and personal accountability. People worked holidays, weekends, and nights. I want to thank the families who allowed them to do this.

   "In generations to come, this will be the airplane to which others will be compared."

The Last Man on the Moon

To Speak at June 26 Luncheon

   The final luncheon of the 2011-2012 Season will feature former Apollo Astronaut Captain Eugene A. Cernan, USN (Ret.) and will include the presentation of NAA's Henderson Trophy to Joe Lombardo.

   Cernan says, "Too many years have passed for me to still be the last man to have left his footprints on the Moon. I believe with all my heart that somewhere out there is a young boy or girl with indomitable will and courage who will lift that dubious distinction from my shoulders and take us back where we belong. Let us give that dream a chance." Join us to hear his reflections on the 40th anniversary of the last Apollo mission.

Eugene A. Cernan

   Also at the luncheon, Joe Lombardo, Executive Vice President, Aerospace Group, General Dynamics, will be honored with the 2012 Cliff Henderson Trophy. The award recognizes those whose vision, leadership or skill has made a significant and lasting contribution to the promotion and advancement of aviation and aerospace in the United States. A full story about this award follows this article below.

   The luncheon will be held at the Crystal Gateway Marriott and starts with a reception at 11:30am followed by lunch at Noon with the program immediately following. Click here to register online.

Joe Lombardo to Receive

Cliff Henderson Trophy

   Joe Lombardo, Executive Vice President, Aerospace Group, General Dynamics, has been selected to receive the 2012 Cliff Henderson Trophy.

   The Cliff Henderson Trophy, which resides at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum, was established in 1960 by the National Aviation Club (now part of NAA)  to honor the creator and Managing Director of the world-renowned National Air Races from 1928-1939. Henderson's work in our industry stimulated a generation's interest in aviation and challenged the state of the art in aviation development.

   In that spirit, the trophy is awarded to "a living individual, group of individuals, or an organization whose vision, leadership or skill made a significant and lasting contribution to the promotion and advancement of aviation and aerospace in the United States."

   Lombardo, who served as President of Gulfstream Aerospace from 2007 until 2011, is the Executive Vice President of the Aerospace Group for General Dynamics Corp. The group consists of Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. and Jet Aviation. Lombardo has served as Executive Vice President since 2007.

   Prior to his appointment in 2007, Lombardo was Chief Operating Officer for Gulfstream.  Since October 2001 he also served as a Vice President of General Dynamics Corp.

Lombardo joined Gulfstream in 1996 as Vice President of Co-Production. He was responsible for the successful ramp-up and dual production of the Gulfstream IV-SP and Gulfstream V. As Chief Operating Officer, he was responsible for the cost, quality and schedule of Gulfstream's manufactured products.

   After starting his aerospace career in 1975 at Douglas Aircraft, Lombardo held leadership roles in production and material control, planning and manufacturing. Before joining Gulfstream, Lombardo was general manager of production for twin-jets at Douglas Aircraft Company, a division of McDonnell Douglas Corporation.

   NAA will present the trophy to Lombardo at the final luncheon of the 2011-2012 NAA Luncheon Series on Tuesday, June 26, 2012, at the Crystal Gateway Marriott. Click here to register online.

Nominations Now Being Accepted for

The Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy

   NAA is now accepting nominations for the 2012 Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy. The deadline for submissions is August 31, 2012. Nomination Guidelines are available to assist in formulating nominations.

   Traditionally, aviators and those who work, serve, or recreate in our industry are sensitive to and knowledgeable about the history and heritage of the aviation/aerospace industry. It was in that spirit that NAA created the Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy in 1948 to highlight and acknowledge individuals who contribute to the history of aviation.

   One of the most prestigious awards in aviation in the world, the Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy recognizes individuals who are pioneers, visionaries, public servants, business leaders, and explorers. While the criteria for the trophy is quite simple - it is awarded annually to a living American for "significant public service of enduring value to aviation in the United States" - it has been awarded to some of the most famous Americans in our nation's aerospace history.

   Recipients include Gene Cernan, Neil Armstrong, John Glenn, Herb Kelleher, Joseph F. Sutter, Dwayne L. Wallace, Ira C. Eaker, Clarence "Kelly" Johnson, Barry M. Goldwater, Igor I. Sikorsky, Juan T. Trippe, Donald Douglas, James Doolittle, and Charles A. Lindbergh. The 2011 Recipient was Lieutenant General Tom Stafford, USAF (Ret.).

   The recipient is selected by a panel of aviation and aerospace leaders as well as former Wright Trophy Recipients. The 2012 Wright Brothers Trophy will be awarded at the Wright Memorial Dinner hosted by the Aero Club of Washington on December 16, 2011 in Washington, DC.

The 787: A New Yardstick for America

   There was an exceptional quality to the recent award of our famous and prestigious Collier Trophy to the Boeing 787 Dreamliner, one that bodes well for our industry and our nation.

   Every award of the Collier Trophy is a cause for celebration, but the most recent was distinguished by many extraordinary aspects. One of these was the care taken by two of Boeing's top executives to recognize all of the many partners in the program. Another was the electric nature of the evening, during which the richly decorated interior of the legendary National Airport hangar buzzed with friendship, excitement and - best of all -business. The hangar setting was all the more appropriate, for parked outside, beautifully lit, was the gorgeous Boeing 787 Dreamliner, filled with a steady stream of guests marveling at it sumptuous interior.

   W. James McNerney, Chairman, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Boeing Company and James Albaugh, President and Chief Executive Officer of Boeing's Commercial Airplanes Division, each accepted a miniature version of the original Collier Trophy. The beautiful Collier Trophy itself, standing tall and glistening in the lights, is inscribed with the most famous names in aviation history. It became the natural focal point for the hundreds the evening's guests and photographers.

   Both men gave stirring speeches that represented the 787 in its most important but perhaps least recognized role, that as the harbinger of a modern American industrial revolution. McNerney emphasized the importance of the cooperation Boeing had received from every element of the aerospace industry, and forecast that the future lay in just such mutual interactions.

   Albaugh's comments reinforced those of McNerney's by exploring other aspects of the internal and external cooperation which made the aircraft possible. His talk had a particularly poignant punch when he called to the dais almost 100 of the "worker bees" of the project, men and women from every section of Boeing and its contractors, some deliberately dressed in work clothes rather than formal wear.

   Both speeches were well received, quieting for their interval the extraordinary decibel level of excited conversations that rang through the hangar. For most of the night, the place was like a supercharged beehive. The audience was comprised mainly of the leaders of the many company teams that had worked together to achieve the 787's success. The dinner became a happy symphony of musical chairs as people circulated from table to table to congratulate others and to do business -- always to do business.

   In those hours it became clear that the 787 program was a new yardstick for America, a vibrant signal of a positive outlook and the willingness to take risks. Personally I thought that it would be wonderful if this tangible sense of accomplishment could be bottled and injected back into American industry in general to get our country on the road to preeminence in manufacturing once again. The evening was amazingly apolitical, but there was a vibe, a palpable sense that what Boeing and the industry were able to with the 787 is the role model of what all America needs to do for the future. 

Walter J. Boyne

Chairman

Members of the Collier Selection Committee with the Collier Trophy winners.