Henderson Trophy Luncheon

The Honorable Deborah Lee James, Secretary of the Air Force

2015 Luncheon Sponsors:  

U.S. Paraglider Pilots Compete in the 2015 Red Bull X-Alps

On July 5, 2015 the world's toughest adventure race starts in Salzburg, Austria. Four U.S. paraglider pilots will join 29 other athletes from around the world, racing 1,038km (645 miles) across the Alps only by foot or by paraglider. The last race (in 2013) was the fastest yet, with the winner - 3-time champion Christian Maurer of Switzerland - reaching Monaco in 6 days, 23 hours, 40 minutes after flights up to 4000m (13,000 feet), coverage an average straight-line distance of 150km (93 miles) a day. In order to take off for those flights athletes must hike to appropriate peaks and ridges - or simply keep hiking to cover the distance. In 2007, second-place finisher (and the only athlete to have competed in all 6 X-Alps) Toma Coconea of Romania hiked - or rather, ran - 981km (610 miles), more than 70% of the course!

The website will have in-depth coverage, including stories, photos, and videos sent in daily from each team along with reports from a full-time news desk. However, the page that many followers keep open for two weeks in July is http://www.redbullxalps.com/live-tracking.html. Each athlete carries a GPS tracking device that provides live map updates, so you can follow the action as it happens: who is flying, who is hiking, and who is pushing to take the lead. The live tracking starts July 2, 2015 with a one-day Prologue event rewarding the top finishers with a head start on race day.

Until race day, you can get a glimpse into the preparations required for such an endeavor. Every athlete has a Diary with information about training regimens, photos, and a glimpse into what it takes to hike and fly over 600 miles of the Alps: http://www.redbullxalps.com/athletes.html

Paragliders from the United States prepare for the 2015 Red Bull X-Apls

Bob Carlton to Receive 2015 Bill Barber Award for Showmanship

World Airshow News has announced that Bob Carlton is the 2015 recipient of the Bill Barber Award for Showmanship. Carlton joins a long list of honorees that reads like an airshow hall of fame.

Bob Carlton began his fascination with aviation as a young boy flying control line models. He learned to fly in 1979 at age 19 and soon mastered hang gliders, sailplanes, powered airplanes, and helicopters. He began flying sailplane airshows in 1993.

After he began flying airshows, Carlton often found it difficult to arrange for a tow plane at each show site. His engineering background led to the development of the world's first twinjet sailplane, which allowed him to climb to altitude under his own power.

His innovative approach to glider aerobatics continued with the addition of the Super Salto jet sailplane in 2009. With a more powerful jet engine, the Super Salto not only allowed Carlton to climb to altitude without a tow plane, but he could also perform a full low-level aerobatic routine under power.

Carlton's latest addition to his airshow stable is the SubSonex JSX-2 microjet kit aircraft. He serves as the chief test pilot for the little jet and has debuted a full aerobatic airshow routine in the SubSonex for the 2015 airshow season.

Bob Carlton lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico with his wife Laurie and their dog, Ginger. He is a member of the Soaring Society of America and the International Council of Air Shows. He is also a retired rocket scientist for a major national laboratory.

The Bill Barber Award for Showmanship began in 1986, and is awarded to airshow performers or teams that have demonstrated great skill and showmanship. World Airshow News magazine and the friends and family of the late Bill Barber present the award annually.

The award will be presented on Tuesday, July 21 during EAA AirVenture at EAA's Theater in the Woods.  

Bob Carlton

Front-Line Earthquake Relief from Paraglider Pilots

KarmaFlights Paraglider Pilots

The paraglider pilots of KarmaFlights, based in Pokhara, Nepal, were the first to provide aid and assistance to the Nepalese villages at the epicenter of the earthquake that occurred April 25, 2015.

Mike Meier Inducted into Rogallo Hall of Fame

Mike Meier (right) inducted into Rogallo Hall of Fame

The Rogallo Foundation honors those who have made important contributions to the sport of hang gliding and low-speed flight. This year Mike Meier, of Wills Wing, was inducted in the Rogallo Hall of Fame for his long-time support of unpowered free flight and his contributions to the advancement of hang glider design and safety. 

Most recently, Mike received the Jack Northrop Award for the most outstanding technical paper presented at the annual Society of Experimental Test Pilots West Coast symposium, for his paper, "Lessons Learned and Murphy's Corollary".

AMA Model Aviation Day

Join the Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA) Foundation in celebrating model aviation for the Third Annual National Model Aviation Day on August 15, 2015. National Model Aviation Day was created to encourage clubs to celebrate the hobby and share it with the public. 

AMA's chartered clubs have also been asked to conduct a fundraiser to provide assistance to a worthy cause. For the third year in a row, all club efforts will support the Wounded Warrior Project. Together, approximately 200 of AMA's clubs have contributed a total of $176,000 to support the Wounded Warrior Project's full range of programs and services for this generation of injured veterans and their families.

News from the Aero Club of Northern California

More than 200 pilots packed the NASA Moffett Field Conference Center April 30 for Accident Wise 2015, an aviation safety seminar organized by the Aero Club of Northern California.  The event was co-sponsored by AOPA's Air Safety Institute, the NASA Airspace Operations and Safety Program (AOSP), the NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS), and Cirrus Aircraft.

Rick Beach, aviation safety chair for the Cirrus Owners and Pilots Association (COPA) and a veteran of three NTSB investigation teams, discussed general aviation accidents in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Air Safety Institute's Tom Curran discussed surviving an aircraft accident after an off-airport crash. He explained how smart pilots prepare and take basic precautions from route planning and emergency rations to signal mirrors and satellite phones to maximize chances of survival and rescue after a crash.  The safety seminar was one of several Aero Club events during the spring.

On March 22, club members toured the U.S. Coast Guard Air Station at San Francisco International Airport. The air station operates four MH65C helicopters and provides search and rescue coverage along 300 miles of California coastline.

On April 8, aeronautical engineer Alan Brown, program manager and chief engineer for the F-117A Stealth Fighter from initial concept until the first production aircraft was built, spoke to a packed Aero Club luncheon.   Brown reviewed the history and engineering design challenges in designing the nation's first radar-invisible aircraft. He was working in Lockheed's propulsion division when he was asked to join the Skunk Works to develop an innovative engine inlet that could trap incoming radar signals. Later Brown became program manager and chief engineer for the F-117A.

Club members touring the U.S. Coast Guard Air Station at San Francisco International Airport

Abe Karem Awarded 2015 Godfrey L. Cabot Award

Abe Karem (center) accepting the Cabot Award

The Aero Club of New England presented their prestigious 2015 Godfrey L. Cabot award to Abe Karem, President of Karem Aircraft on June 5th at the Harvard Club in Boston, MA.  The award was presented to Mr. Karem to honor his lifetime innovation creating remotely piloted, unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV's).

These UAV's have revolutionized modern aviation with their use in both civilian and defense applications. His designs have fundamentally defined the basic configuration for the majority of fixed wing and single-rotor UAV's.

The Millionaires Unit - U.S. Naval Aviators in the First World War

On June 25, 2015, over 40 people gathered at the Flight Path Museum and Learning Center at the Lost Angeles International Airport to hear Darroch Greet, co-producer of The Millionaires Unit speak.  The movie details the story about a privileged group of Yale college students who formed a private air militia in preparation for America's entry into World War One.  The unit became the founding squadron of the U.S. Naval Air Reserve and was the first to fly for the United States in the Great War.  Highlights from the upcoming movie were screened at the event.

For more information, please visit click here.

The Millionaires Unit

AMA Pilot Receives Andrei Tupolev Aeromodelling Medal

Carl Dodge

The Academy of Model Aeronautics (AMA) is proud to announce that Carl Dodge of Richmond Heights, OH, has been awarded the Andrei Tupolev Aeromodelling Medal by the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI). Carl is the first American pilot to win the award, and the first AMA member to be recognized with this medal.

The Andrei Tupolev Aeromodelling Medal was established in 1989. It may be awarded annually on recommendation by the FAI Aeromodelling Commission to any aeromodeler who in the same year won the FAI World Championship and the National Aeromodeling Championships (Nats) in the same class of models. It is donated annually by the NAC of Russia. Not more than one medal may be awarded each year. The FAI is the international body for all air sport international championships, competitions, and record-keeping.

Carl was nominated for the award after winning the 2014 FAI World Championship for Control Line Model Aircraft held in Wloclawek, Poland, in August of 2014, and the 88th Nats for F2A Control Line Speed in Muncie, IN, in July 2014.