John Travolta will host the 17th Annual “Living Legends of Aviation Awards” on Thursday, Jan. 16, 2020, at the Beverly Hilton. The event honors those who have made significant contributions to aviation/aerospace.
The evening will be highlighted by Legendary actor Morgan Freeman presenting the “Jeff Bezos Freedom’s Wings Award,” the most prestigious award in the aerospace industry, honoring the advancement of the principles of freedom. This year’s recipient is Capt. James Lovell who is also celebrating his 50th Anniversary of the Apollo 13 mission this year. Lovell is an astronaut with numerous historical firsts in flights, including Gemini 7, Gemini 12, Apollo 8 and Apollo 13.
In addition, to Capt. Lovell, six others will be inducted as Living Legends including Maj. Gen. Patrick Brady, Larry Flynn, Bill Garvey, Craig Hosking, Rod Lewis and Sergei Sikorsky.
Peter Weber, star of “The Bachelor,” currently in its 24th season airing Mondays (8:00-10:00 p.m. EST) on ABC, will also be attending. A commercial airline pilot, Peter grew up in an avid aviation family — his father and brother are both pilots, and his mother, a former flight attendant.
Other awards to be presented include The “Kenn Ricci Lifetime Aviation Entrepreneur Award” to Dr. S. Harry Robertson, and the “Eren Ozmen Entrepreneur of the Year Award” will go to Kenny Dichter. The Legends will also highlight the accomplishments of Elling Halvorson, founder of Papillon Helicopters. The “Elling Halvorson Vertical Flight Hall of Fame Award” will be presented to Mr. Sikorsky. The humanitarian “Wings of Help Award” will be presented to Thomas Schrade.
As is their tradition, the Legends will also pay tribute to Legends who have “Flown West” this past year. They include Southwest Airlines founder Herb Kelleher, founding Legend Barron Hilton, Al Haynes, Captain of United Flight 232, Murray Smith, Editor and Publisher of ProPilot, and Dick Cole, the last Doolittle Raider.
The “Living Legends of Aviation” was founded on December 17, 2003, exactly 100 years after Orville and Wilbur Wright took their first powered flight, with the purpose of celebrating aviation’s second hundred years. The “Living Legends of Aviation” is a remarkable group of 100 accomplished men and women from across the world, individuals of extraordinary accomplishment in aviation and aerospace. The Legends are entrepreneurs, innovators, industry leaders, astronauts, record breakers, pilots who have become celebrities and celebrities who have become pilots.
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