Tony Jannus Award

The Tony Jannus Award recognizes outstanding individual achievement in scheduled commercial aviation by airline executives, inventors and manufacturers, and government leaders. The award is conferred annually by the Tony Jannus Distinguished Aviation Society and was first bestowed in 1964 in Tampa, Florida, U.S. Its namesake, aviation pioneer Tony Jannus (1889–October 12, 1916), piloted the inaugural flight of the St. Petersburg–Tampa Airboat Line on January 1, 1914, the first scheduled commercial airline flight in the world using heavier-than-air aircraft. In addition to preserving the legacy of Tony Jannus, the non-profit society also offers financial assistance to college students pursuing studies in aviation and conducts an annual essay contest for high school students to encourage careers in aviation.

Past recipients of the award include such famed luminaries as Eddie Rickenbacker, Donald Douglas, Jimmy Doolittle, C. R. Smith (the founder of American Airlines), William A. Patterson (president of United Airlines 1934–1966), and Chuck Yeager. Those so honored are enshrined at the St. Petersburg Museum of History's First Airline Pavilion. The Museum, located from the site of the inaugural flight's takeoff on January 1, 1914, also has an operational replica of the Benoist XIV airplane flown by Jannus that day. On January 29, 2011, the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics dedicated an historic site plaque on the museum's grounds, commemorating the site of the world’s first regularly scheduled airline.

History

Tony Jannus was an early American pilot whose aerial exploits were widely publicized in aviation's pre-World War I period. He flew the first airplane from which a parachute jump was made, in 1912. Jannus was also the first airline pilot, having pioneered the inaugural flight of the St. Petersburg–Tampa Airboat Line on January 1, 1914, the first scheduled commercial airline flight in the world using heavier-than-air aircraft. Departing from a location near the downtown St. Petersburg Municipal Pier on Second Avenue North, Jannus piloted the twenty-three-minute inaugural flight of the pioneer airline's Benoist XIV flying boat biplane. A crowd of 3,000 gathered at the pier to watch the history-making takeoff at 10 a.m. and were told by organizer Percival Fansler that "What was impossible yesterday is an accomplishment today, while tomorrow heralds the unbelieveable" .

Occurring just ten years after Wilbur and Orville Wright's historic first airplane flight, the new St. Petersburg–Tampa Airboat Line began providing two daily round trips across Tampa Bay, departing St. Petersburg at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m., with return flights from Tampa departing at 11 a.m. and 3 p.m. At a fare of five dollars, it was the first time tickets were sold to the general public for point-to-point commercial air travel on a scheduled basis.

Fifty years later, in 1963, James Hamlett and the Greater Tampa Chamber of Commerce created the Tony Jannus Award to recognize the "Man who has done the most to advance the airline industry" and to celebrate the Tampa Bay area's historic role in the development of commercial aviation. The following March 1964, Senator A. S. Mike Monroney was named the first Tony Jannus Award recipient for his work as chairman of the U.S. Senate's Aviation Subcommittee and as chief proponent of the Federal Aviation Act of 1958 that created the Federal Aviation Administration. In the 1970s, the St. Petersburg Chamber of Commerce joined with the Tampa chamber to co-sponsor the award. The joint effort by the two chambers of commerce eventually evolved into the Tony Jannus Distinguished Aviation Society, a non-profit organization which now confers the award.

Recipients of the Tony Jannus Award

Winners of the Tony Jannus Award are enshrined at the St. Petersburg Museum of History's First Airline Pavilion and Tony Jannus-related exhibits. The Museum, located from the site of the inaugural flight's takeoff on January 1, 1914, also has an operational replica of the Benoist XIV airplane flown by Jannus that day. The replica was built by the Florida Aviation Historical Society in 1983 and flown across Tampa Bay from St. Petersburg to Tampa on January 1, 1984, in a reenactment of the Jannus inaugural flight 70 years earlier. The replica was moved to the museum in January, 1993.

A permanent exhibit at Tampa International Airport also pays tribute to the following individuals (by year) who have received the Tony Jannus Award since 1964:The 45th Annual Tony Jannus Award, Tampa: Tony Jannus Distinguished Aviation Society, 2008. 1964: A. S. Mike Monroney — U.S. Senator, Oklahoma 1965: Juan Trippe — founder, Pan American Airways 1966: Donald Wills Douglas, Sr. — founder, Douglas Aircraft Company 1967: Eddie Rickenbacker — chairman, Eastern Air Lines and Medal of Honor recipient and World War I aviator 1968: William A. Patterson — president of United Airlines (1934–1966) 1969: Frank Whittle — jet engine developer 1970: Daniel J. Haughton – chairman, Lockheed Aircraft 1971: William M. Allen — chairman, Boeing 1972: Jimmy Doolittle — instrument flight developer and Medal of Honor World War II aviator 1973: Geoffrey Knight and Henri Ziegler — Concorde co-developers 1974: Bill Lear — aircraft radios and avionics developer 1975: Elrey Borge Jeppesen — founder and chairman, Jeppesen 1976: C. R. Smith – founder, American Airlines 1977: Robert F. Six — founder, Continental Airlines 1978: Donald Nyrop – chairman, Northwest Airlines 1979: Jehangir Tata — founder, Air India 1980: Thomas Davis – founder, Piedmont Airlines 1981: Howard W. Cannon — U.S. Senator, Nevada 1982: Manuel Sosa de la Vega – president, Mexicana de Aviación 1983: David C. Garrett, Jr. — president, Delta Air Lines 1984: Knut Hammarskjold – director general, International Air Transport AssociationWayne Parrish – aviation publisher 1985: Edward Curtis Wells — aircraft designer, Boeing 1986: Frank Borman — chairman, Eastern Air Lines and astronaut 1987: Jerome F. Lederer — founder, Flight Safety Foundation 1989: Sir Lenox Hewitt – chairman, Qantas 1990: Edwin Colodny – chairman, US Airways 1991: Colin Marshall — CEO, British Airways 1992: Thornton A. Wilson — chairman, Boeing 1993: Herbert D. Kelleher — CEO, Southwest Airlines 1994: Alan S. Boyd — U.S. Secretary of Transportation 1995: Martin Schröder – founder, Martinair 1996: J. George Mikelsons — founder, ATA Airlines 1997: Chuck Yeager — supersonic flight pioneer 1998: Angus Kinnear – president, Canada 3000 1999: Federico Bloch – CEO, Grupo TACA 2000: Richard Branson — chairman, Virgin Atlantic 2001: Robert Crandall — CEO, American Airlines 2002: Freddie Laker — founder, Laker Airways 2003: Gordon Bethune — CEO, Continental Airlines 2004: Norman Mineta — U.S. Secretary of Transportation 2005: David Neeleman — CEO, JetBlue Airways 2006: Joe Leonard – CEO, AirTran Airways 2007: Colleen Barrett — president, Southwest Airlines 2008: Larry Kellner — CEO, Continental Airlines 2009: James L. Oberstar — U.S. Congressman 2010: Jaan Albrecht – CEO, Star Alliance since 2001 2011: Frederick W. Smith — Founder and CEO, FedEx 2012: Frederico Curado – CEO, Embraer 2013: Richard H. Anderson — CEO, Delta Air Lines 2014: Pedro Heilbron— CEO, Copa Airlines 2015: Maurice J. Gallagher, Jr., CEO, Allegiant Air 2016: Gary C. Kelly, CEO, Southwest Airlines 2017: Doug Parker, CEO, American Airlines 2018: Chesley Sullenberger, airline safety advocate and "Miracle on the Hudson" US Airways pilot 2019: Tom Enders, CEO, Airbus 2022: Brad Tilden, CEO, Alaska Airlines 2023: Joanna Geraghty, CEO, JetBlue 2024: Peter Ingram, CEO Hawaiian Airlines 2025: Ed Bastian, CEO, Delta Air Lines

Tony Jannus Distinguished Aviation Society

The Society is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization based in Tampa, Florida, and governed by a board of directors composed of distinguished industry leaders and Tampa Bay area officials. Financial support is provided by prominent companies and organizations related to the aviation industry. The stated threefold mission of the Society is to: Promote the recognition and understanding that the first scheduled commercial passenger airline operated between St. Petersburg and Tampa, Florida. Provide scholarships and financial aid for college level education in the field of commercial aviation or related fields. Encourage the interest and participation of high school students in commercial aviation.

The Society holds its annual luncheon and dinner banquet in the Tampa Bay area, when the Tony Jannus Award is conferred for that year, in the presence of past recipients. These meetings are also the occasion for recognizing those college students selected to receive the Society's financial assistance, along with high school students excelling in the Essay Contest.

Tony Jannus Award

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