Washington, DC – The Board of Directors of the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) has selected Dr. Sam B. Williams, Chairman and CEO of Williams International, as the recipient of the 2003 NBAA Award for Meritorious Service to Aviation. Byron M. “Skip” Reed II, chairman of Steer Safe, Inc., will receive the 2003 NBAA John P. “Jack” Doswell Award.
The Award for Meritorious Service to Aviation is presented annually to an individual who, by virtue of a lifetime of personal dedication, has made significant, identifiable contributions that have materially advanced aviation interests. The Doswell Award is granted for lifelong individual achievement on behalf of and in support of the aims, goals and objectives of business aviation.
Dr. Sam B. Williams
An innovator and pioneer in small gas-turbine-engine and fan-jet-engine technology, Williams International Corporation Chairman and CEO Sam Williams has made major contributions to aeronautical and automotive propulsion and helped make affordable business jet aircraft possible.
Sam Williams was born on May 7, 1921, in Seattle, WA, and was raised in Columbus, OH. After he graduated from Purdue University in 1942 with a B.S. in mechanical engineering, he joined the Chrysler Corporation and was awarded patents for his automotive gas-turbine engine. In 1954, he founded Williams Research Corporation in Birmingham, MI. In 1968, Williams patented a small fan-jet engine, the predecessor of today’s cruise missile engines. In 1981, Williams Research Corporation became Williams International, which today is a world-class producer of small gas-turbine engines.
Williams gas-turbine engines have been used in numerous military and civil applications. Williams also led the design and development of the FJ44 turbofan for the new class of six- to eight-place lightweight business jets. Williams fanjets today power the Raytheon Premier, Cessna Citation CJ2 and Sino Swearingen SJ30-2.
Byron M. “Skip” Reed II
Skip Reed has been an active member of NBAA since the 1970s and has contributed significantly to the viability and growth of the Association for more than 25 years.
Reed gave freely of himself and his talents over a long period of NBAA history beginning in the 1970s, when he was the first Member Company volunteer to serve as a participant in the FAA’s comprehensive National Airspace Review. From that time onward he actively engaged himself in the work of several NBAA committees, including the Airspace/Air Traffic Committee and Industry Affairs Committee. He also served from 1985 to 1998 as a member of the NBAA Board of Directors. As a Director, he was elected to all three officer positions, and was an outstanding Chairman from 1991 to 1993, a period of challenging transition for the Association. Reed retired from the Board in 1998.
Reed was born June 8, 1945, in Deming, NM. He attended the Allen Military Academy and the University of Houston before taking up flying full time. Today, Reed is chairman of Steer Safe Stabilizers, Inc. in Deming, NM. For much of his career, he worked as chief pilot for the Zachry Construction Corporation (previously known as H. B. Zachry Company) in San Antonio, TX, and he still flies for Zachry today.
For More Information
The Meritorious Service and Doswell Awards will be presented on Thursday, October 9, 2003, at the NBAA Awards Banquet during the Association’s 56th Annual Meeting & Convention in Orlando. For more information about attending the Convention or the Awards Banquet, contact NBAA at (202) 783-9283 or visit the web at www.nbaa.org/conventions/2003.
NBAA represents the aviation interests of more than 7,300 companies that own or operate general aviation aircraft as an aid to the conduct of their business, or are involved with business aviation. NBAA Member Companies earn annual revenues approaching $5 trillion — a number that is about half the gross domestic product — and employ more than 19 million people worldwide. The NBAA Annual Meeting & Convention is the world’s largest display of civil aviation products and services.
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International Business Aviation Council Ltd.