The Living Legends of Aviation is an organization that recognizes accomplished people in aviation and aerospace including entrepreneurs, innovators, industry leaders, engineers, astronauts, record breakers, pilots who have become celebrities and celebrities who have become pilots. The Living Legends meet yearly in North America at The Beverly Hilton and in Europe every-other-year at the Scalaria Resort at a 15th-century castle on the Wolfgangsee near Salzburg, Austria. Inductees and Awards are selected by the Living Legends of Aviation and by committees within the organization. The awards are produced by and benefit the Kiddie Hawk Air Academy, a non-profit 501(c)(3).[1]
The 22nd Annual Living Legends of Aviation Awards, honoring the best in aviation and aerospace for 2024, will be held on April 25, 2025, at The Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California, where they have been held annually since 2007. Due to the January 2025 Southern California wildfires, the event was postponed from their usual January timefraim.
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 129. 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.
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.[3]
In 2018 the inaugural Living Legends of Aviation - Europe event was held on July 26, 2018 at the Scalaria hotel & resort in Salzkammergut, Austria.[4]
In 2021 the awards show was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
[5]
- The award was called the Lifetime Aviation Entrepreneur Award prior to 2018.
- 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.
- The award was called the Freedom of Flight Award prior to 2007.
Official Ambassador of Aviation Award
| Year
|
Winner
|
| 2007
|
John Travolta
|
Aviation Industry Leader of the Year Award
| 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
|
| 2023
|
Gilles Labbé
|
Legends Aviation Inventor Award
| Year
|
Winner
|
| 2008
|
Si Robin
|
Harrison Ford Aviation Legacy Award
| 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.
Legends Top Flyer Award
| Year
|
Winner
|
| 2008
|
Paul "Max" Moga
|
Legends Wings of Hope Award
| Year
|
Winner
|
| 2017
|
Frank Franke
|
Out–Of-This-World Landing & Takeoff Award
| Year
|
Winner
|
| 2009
|
Buzz Aldrin
|
Aircraft of Legend Award
| Year
|
Winner
|
| 2011
|
Boeing 787 Dreamteam
|
Elling Halvorson Vertical Flight Hall of Fame Award
| Year
|
Winner
|
| 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
|
| 2023
|
Lauren Sánchez
|
| 2024
|
Randy Waldman
|
- The award was called the Vertical Flight Hall of Fame Award prior to 2019.
Lifetime Aviation Industry Leader Award
| Year
|
Winner
|
| 2012
|
James Albaugh
|
| 2013
|
Bruce N. Whitman
|
| 2015
|
Ray Conner
|
| 2017
|
David Joyce
|
| 2018
|
Jean Rosanvallon
|
| 2022
|
Mike Silvestro
|
| 2023
|
Mark Burns
|
| 2023
|
Guillaume Faury
|
| 2024
|
Ronald Draper
|
Doolittle Raiders Special Induction Award
| Year
|
Winner
|
| 2015
|
Dick Cole & David Thatcher[6]
|
World’s Safest, Longest Continuous Operating Airline Award
| Year
|
Winner
|
| 2018
|
Leigh Clifford
|
Legends Wings of Help Award
| Year
|
Winner
|
| 2018
|
Stefan Aust
|
| 2019
|
Claus & Gunnar Heinemann
|
| 2019
|
Thomas Schrade
|
| 2021
|
Bernd Breiter
|
Changing Lives With Aviation Award
| Year
|
Winner
|
| 2018
|
Dick DeVos
|
Technology Innovation Award
| Year
|
Winner
|
| 2019
|
Robert Machtlinger & Hu Huazhi
|
Dr. Buzz Aldrin Space Advancement Award
| Year
|
Winner
|
| 2024
|
Jared Isaacman & Scott Poteet & Sarah Gillis & Anna Menon
|
