In Recognition of Excellence

Founded in 1983 by Carol Odgers, Chuck Yeager, Robert Cardenas, and William J. Knight, the Flight Test Museum Foundation is dedicated to the preservation and display of artifacts deriving of the flight-testing programs undertaken at California’s Edwards Air Force Base, NASA’s Armstrong Flight Research Center, the USAF’s Plant 42, and across the Golden State’s Aerospace Valley.

A private, non-profit organization, the Flight Test Museum Foundation raises funds to support the Air Force Flight Test Museum at Edwards AFB, as well as the museum’s Blackbird Airpark Annex at USAF Plant 42 in Palmdale.

In addition to the legacy Eagle and General Robert Cardenas Excellence in Aviation awards, 2024 will see the Flight Test Historical Foundation unveil and present three new awards:

• Robert Hoover Lifetime Achievement “Feather” Award.
• Carol Odgers Flight Test History Medal.
• General Al Boyd “Falcon” Award.

Subject awards recognize specific achievements by which the boundaries of humankind’s aviation and aerospace frontiers have been broadened.

Foundation Chairman Art Thompson stated: “The new awards pay tribute to aerospace legends who had a passion for the Flight Test Historical Foundation, Edwards Flight Test Center, and the Aerospace Valley. The awards honor these giants and recognize their achievements to inspire others who follow in their footsteps.”

The business of identifying and nominating recipients for the antecedent awards is seen to by the Flight Test Museum Foundation’s awards committee in cooperation with the Society of Experimental Test Pilots, the Society of Flight Test Engineers, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, and additional aviation organizations.

The Robert Hoover Lifetime Aviation Achievement “Feather” Award is bestowed upon individuals who’ve made significant individual contributions to the erudite and demanding enterprise of testing aerospace vehicles. Nominees will have a minimum of thirty-years involvement in ground and flight-testing operations, and have worked on projects of societal significance. Additionally, nominees will have contributed to the betterment of the flight-testing sector by either conceiving of specific technical innovations, providing leadership, or engaging in outreach and education germane to the flight-testing community.

Named in honor of Flight Test Historical Foundation co-founder Mrs. Carol Odgers, the Carol Odgers Flight Test History Medal recognizes service to the aerospace community taking the form of efforts to collect and document the stories and artifacts by which future generations will come to know and appreciate the importance of flight-testing. Recipients of the Carol Odgers Flight Test History Medal will have made significant contributions to the collection and documentation of flight-test and the history thereof.

Named for the first Commander of the Air Force Test Center, the General Al Boyd “Falcon” Award recognizes individuals who’ve rendered exceptional support to flight-test programs. Recipients of the award will have made significant contributions to the success of one or more flight-test programs or to the advancement of flight-test as a profession. The General Al Boyd “Falcon” Award considers nominees’ initiative, persistence, leadership, and spirit of cooperation.

The Flight Test Museum Foundation’s newly-renamed General Robert Cardenas Excellence in Aviation/Aerospace Award recognizes individuals and organizations deemed to have furthered the safe and effective utilization of aerospace vehicles in all realms of atmospheric- and space-flight. Recipients of the award will have advanced humanity’s collective interests by contributing to the application of aerospace vehicles to new and unique purposes whilst demonstrating initiative, persistence, leadership, strength of character, and a cooperative spirit.

The aforementioned awards join the Foundation’s Eagle Award, which, for more than forty-years, has recognized trailblazers in flight-test. The award is presented at the Foundation’s annual Gathering of Eagles fundraiser and dinner, which facilitates camaraderie, education, and opportunity to memorialize the history of flight test programs. The event serves, also, as a fundraiser for the Air Force Flight Test Museum at Edwards Air Force Base, university scholarships, and a variety of STEM education initiatives.

The next Gathering of Eagles dinner will be held on Saturday, 11 November 2023, at the Hellenic center in Lancaster, California.

FMI: https://flighttestmuseum.org