National Aviation Hall of Fame announces Class of 2018

Credit: LISA POWELL / STAFF FILE PHOTO

Credit: LISA POWELL / STAFF FILE PHOTO

The National Aviation Hall of Fame announced the four men elected for its 2018 Enshrinement Dinner & Ceremony.

Executive board member Kathy Hughes and Executive Director Amy Spowart revealed the names Wednesday night before nearly 300 attendees at the fall awards dinner of the National Aeronautic Association in Washington, D.C.

The Class of 2018 represents a broad range of contributions to the advancement of flight and manned space exploration, according to the NAHF.

Honorees are: Walter Cunningham, John R. Dailey, William H. Dana and Ronald R. Fogleman.

  • Col. Walter Cunningham, USMCR (Ret) is a decorated Korean War veteran, fighter pilot, physicist, Apollo 7 Lunar Module Pilot and SKYLAB Chief.
  • Gen. John R. (Jack) Dailey, USMC (Ret) is a decorated Vietnam veteran, Former Assistant Commandant of the Marine Corps, Chief of Staff, Former Deputy Administrator of NASA and the acting Director of the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C.
  • William H. (Bill) Dana (deceased) was a 40-year veteran of NASA, test pilot and aeronautical engineer. He was also the project pilot for the X-15 and pilot astronaut for the X-20, among several other aircraft.
  • Gen. Ronald R. Fogleman, USAF (Ret) is a United States Air Force Academy graduate, decorated Vietnam veteran (logging 80 missions as a Misty), Command Pilot and Parachutist, 15th Chief of Staff of the Air Force and author of the Air Force Core Values.

The NAHF was founded in 1962 in Dayton and chartered in 1964 by the U.S. Congress. Its mission is to honor America’s aerospace legends to inspire future leaders, which the NAHF said it does through a 17,000 square-foot public Learning Center featuring interactive exhibits, a youth education program, other public outreach programs, its annual enshrinement ceremony and collaboration with like-minded organizations.

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