The Friend of the Society Award pays tribute to individuals or organizations who have provided an exceptional and notable contribution to the operation and the objectives of the

Society of Experimental Test Pilots The Society of Experimental Test Pilots is an international organization that seeks to promote air safety and contributes to aeronautical advancement by promoting sound aeronautical design and development; interchanging ideas, thoughts and suggest ...

(SETP). The award was established in 1995 and is sponsored by SETP. A Friend of the Society is not a member of SETP, and there is no requirement for a Friend of the Society to be awarded every year. Honorees are announced at the annual Awards Banquet in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

where they receive public recognition and a commemorative plaque.

Criteria

A Friend of the Society must meet the following criteria: #Candidates may not be members of the Society and it is preferred that candidates not be eligible for membership in the Society. #The candidate must, over a significant time period, have made a significant contribution to the operation support and the objectives of the Society.

Recipients

Recipients of this award, from 1995 to present, include: *1995—

Barron Hilton William Barron Hilton (October 23, 1927 – September 19, 2019) was an American business magnate, philanthropist and sportsman. The second son and successor of hotelier Conrad Hilton, he was the chairman, president and chief executive officer of ...

Hilton Hotels Corporation Hilton Worldwide (legally Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc.) is an American multinational hospitality company that manages and franchises a broad portfolio of hotels and resorts. Founded by Conrad Hilton in May 1919, the corporation is now led b ...

*1996—Dr. Gerry Morton, Robert Staubli *1998— David Hartman, Rodman-Downs Ltd. *1999—Chaplain William Willson, CHCUSN (Ret) *2000—Dr. Richard P. Hallion,

USAF The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Sign ...

Historian and Dr. James O. Young, AFFTC Chief Historian *2001—Bob Lafey,

Boeing The Boeing Company () is an American multinational corporation that designs, manufactures, and sells airplanes, rotorcraft, rockets, satellites, telecommunications equipment, and missiles worldwide. The company also provides leasing and product ...

, Audio Visual and Claude Pasquis, CLP Enterprises, Audio Visual *2002—Dan Sabovich *2003—Fred Johnsen *2004—Trevor Bushell,

BAE Systems BAE Systems plc (BAE) is a British multinational arms, security, and aerospace company based in London, England. It is the largest defence contractor in Europe, and ranked the seventh-largest in the world based on applicable 2021 revenues. ...

and John Hodgeson *2005—Tom Roberts *2006— Michael A. Dornheim and Ken Szalai *2007—Dana Kilanowski *2009—Hank Caruso, ForeFeathers Enterprises *2010—Michael J. Fahrney, The Boeing Company *2011—Richard R. Schock, FMS Financial Partners *2012—Paula S. Smith, Executive Director, SETP *2013—Katherine Benjamin *2014—Steve Lewis,

National Test Pilot School The National Test Pilot School (NTPS) is the only civilian test-pilot school in the United States, located in Mojave, California. It is organized as a not-for-profit educational institute under California state law and is governed by a board of ...

*2015—Carol Guthrie, Former AFFTC Deputy Comptroller and Author *2016—Dennis Archuleta,

Northrop Grumman Northrop Grumman Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense technology company. With 90,000 employees and an annual revenue in excess of $30 billion, it is one of the world's largest weapons manufacturers and military techn ...

and Louise Cullina,

Airline Pilots Association The Air Line Pilots Association, International (ALPA) is the largest pilot union in the world, representing more than 59,000 pilots from 35 U.S. and Canadian airlines. ALPA was founded on 27 July 1931 and is a member of the AFL-CIO and the Canad ...

(ALPA) *2017—Heidi Biermeier *2018—Jan and Bruce Schell *2019 - Natalie Rice, Disneyland Resorts *2020 - Not Awarded *2021 - Not Awarded *2022 - Not Awarded

References

{{reflist Aviation awards

Criteria

Recipients

See also

References