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 (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 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, Hilton Hotels Corporation 1996—Dr. Gerry Morton, Robert Staubli 1998—David Hartman, Rodman-Downs Ltd. 1999—Chaplain William Willson, CHCUSN (Ret) 2000—Dr. Richard P. Hallion, USAF Historian and Dr. James O. Young, AFFTC Chief Historian 2001—Bob Lafey, Boeing, Audio Visual and Claude Pasquis, CLP Enterprises, Audio Visual 2002—Dan Sabovich 2003—Fred Johnsen 2004—Trevor Bushell, BAE Systems and John Hodgeson 2005—Tom Roberts 2006—Michael A. Dornheim and Kenneth J. 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 2015—Carol Guthrie, Former AFFTC Deputy Comptroller and Author 2016—Dennis Archuleta, Northrop Grumman and Louise Cullina, Airline Pilots Association (ALPA) 2017—Heidi Biermeier 2018—Jan and Bruce Schell 2019 - Natalie Rice, Disneyland Resorts 2020 - Not Awarded 2021 - Not Awarded 2022 - Not Awarded 2023 - Kirsten Larson and Joe Phillips, Textron Aviation 2024 - Lisa Brown 2025 - Not Awarded 2026 - Not Awarded
See also
List of aviation awards
References