On April 14, 1945, Laura Taber Barbour was aboard a Pennsylvania Central Airlines DC-3 passing through the turbulent West Virginia skies as electrical storms ripped through Cooper’s Rock State Forest near Morgantown. She was among 17 passengers and a crew of three when the plane crashed into Cheat Mountain. All on board were killed.
In 1956, her husband, the late Dr. Clifford E. Barbour and their son Cliff augmented the unprompted insurance settlement and through collaboration with Flight Safety Foundation’s Jerome Lederer and Gloria Heath, established the Laura Taber Barbour Air Safety Award in her honor.
The Laura Taber Barbour Air Safety Award “recognizes notable achievement in the field of aviation safety — civil or military — in method, design, invention, study or other improvement.” Each year, the Award recipients are selected for “significant individual or group effort contributing to improving aviation safety, with emphasis on original contributions,” and a “significant individual or group effort performed above and beyond normal responsibilities.” Mechanics, engineers and others outside of top administrative or research positions should be especially considered. The contribution need not be recent, especially if the nominee has not received adequate recognition.
Nominations for the 2022 award, which will be presented during the Foundation’s 75th annual International Air Safety Summit (IASS) later this year, are now open. Click here to access the nomination form.
The members of the Award Board along with the Barbour family gratefully acknowledge your support and generosity of time.
Recipients of The Laura Taber Barbour Air Safety Award |
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| 2021 | Henry Gourdji, International Civil Aviation Organization (retired) |
| 2020 | John Goglia, U.S. National Transportation Safety Board (retired); honorary award to Sir Stuart Matthews, Flight Safety Foundation (retired) |
| 2019 | Cameron Ross, BHP Billiton |
| 2018 | Tay Tiang Guan, Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore; honorary awards to Paul Russell (Boeing) and Jay Pardee (FAA), U.S. Commercial Aviation Safety Team |
| 2017 | Margaret (Peggy) Gilligan, U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (retired) |
| 2016 | Ken Smart, U.K. Air Accidents Investigation Branch, British Airways |
| 2015 | Nancy Graham, ICAO Air Navigation Bureau (retired) |
| 2014 | William E. Chiles, “Target Zero” – Bristow Group’s Culture of Safety Team |
| 2013 | Key Dismukes, NASA Ames Research Center |
| 2012 | Robert Sheffield, Shell Aviation (retired) |
| 2011 | Capt. John Cox, Safety Operating Systems |
| 2010 | Dr. Harold O. Demuren, Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority |
| 2009 | Nicholas A. Sabatini, U.S. Federal Aviation Administration (retired) |
| 2008 | Capt. Bertrand de Couville, Air France |
| 2007 | John R. Ackland, Boeing Commercial Airplanes |
| 2006 | Don Bateman, Honeywell |
| 2005 | Capt. Ralph S. Johnson |
| 2004 | Kay Yong, Ph.D., Aviation Safety Council, Taiwan, China |
| 2003 | Capt. Robert L. Sumwalt, US Airways and Air Line Pilots Association, International |
| 2002 | Capt. Edmond L. Soliday (retired), United Airlines |
| 2001 | Joseph Andrew Wright Sr., ARFF Technical Services |
| 2000 | Capt. Richard Slatter, C Eng, FRAeS, Consultant, International Civil Aviation Organization |
| 1999 | Meritt M. Birky, Ph.D., U.S. National Transportation Safety Board |
| 1998 | Vice Admiral Brent M. Bennitt, U.S. Navy (retired) |
| 1997 | William G. Laynor (retired), U.S. National Transportation Safety Board |
| 1996 | Capt. Robert G. Buley, Northwest Airlines |
| 1995 | C.O. Miller, System Safety |
| 1994 | Capt. H. Ray Lahr (retired), United Airlines |
| 1993 | Hidemaro Nagano, Japan Air Lines; John H. Enders, Flight Safety Foundation (honorary) |
| 1992 | Dr. William Reynard, U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Ames Research Center |
| 1991 | Robert E. Doll, United Airlines |
| 1990 | Capt. John X. Stefanki (retired), United Airlines |
| 1989 | Capt. Heino Caesar, Lufthansa German Airlines |
| 1988 | Capt. J. L. DeCelles (retired), Trans World Airlines |
| 1987 | Hortencio G. Morsch, Varig Brazilian Airlines |
| 1986 | Warren A. Stauffer (retired), Lockheed Corp. |
| 1985 | Gary S. Livack, General Aviation Manufacturers Association |
| 1984 | Walter B. Horne (retired), U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Langley Research Center |
| 1983 | Brian Hamliton Heeps, Repco Corp., Australia |
| 1982 | John T. Richards, Aviation Safety Bureau, Transport Canada |
| 1981 | Charles E. Billings, U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Ames Research Center |
| 1980 | Delfina R. Mott, Association of Flight Attendants |
| 1979 | Capt. Paul A. Soderlind, Northwest Airlines |
| 1978 | Capt. B. Victor Hewes, Air Line Pilots Association, International |
| 1977 | James E. Dougherty, U.S. Federal Aviation Administration |
| 1976 | George Wansbeek, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines |
| 1975 | Fred Earnest Weick (retired), Piper Aircraft Corp. |
| 1974 | Dr. Ross McFarland, Guggenheim Center, Harvard University |
| 1973 | Capt. Homer Mouden, Braniff Airlines and Air Line Pilots Association, International |
| 1972 | Dr. John A. Swearingen, U.S. Federal Aviation Administration Civil Aeromedical Research Institute |
| 1971 | Malcolm Kuhring, National Research Council, Canada |
| 1970 | Joseph J. O’Connell Jr. and staff, Bureau of Aviation Safety, U.S. National Transportation Safety Board |
| 1969 | Theodore G. Linnert, Air Line Pilots Association, International |
| 1968 | Walter Tye, U.K. Air Registration Board |
| 1967 | W.O. Breuhaus and William F. Milliken Jr., Cornell Aeronautical Laboratory; W.M. Kauffman, National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, Ames Research Center |
| 1966 | Francis McCourt, U.S. Army Aviation Materiel Laboratories |
| 1965 | Arthur E. Jenks, U.S. Federal Aviation Agency; Gloria W. Heath, Flight Safety Foundation (honorary) |
| 1964 | Philip Donely, U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Langley Research Center; Jerome Lederer, Flight Safety Foundation (honorary) |
| 1963 | David D. Thomas, U.S. Federal Aviation Agency |
| 1962 | Otto E. Kirchner Sr., The Boeing Co. |
| 1961 | E.S. Calvert and J.W. Sparke, U.K. Royal Aircraft Establishment |
| 1960 | Melvin N. Gough, U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration, Langley Research Center |
| 1959 | Allen L. Morse, U.S. Federal Aviation Agency |
| 1958 | James Martin, OBE, United Kingdom |
| 1957 | Harry F. Guggenheim |
| 1956 | Dugald O. Black, Gerard J. Pesman, I. Irving Pinkel and G. Merritt Preston, National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, Lewis Flight Propulsion Center |