LENNY POTTS AWARDED ELDER STATESMAN OF AVIATION
Oct
8
Saturday, October 08, 2011
The National Aeronautic Association (NAA) announced the four recipients of this year’s Wesley L. McDonald Elder Statesman of Aviation Awards. One of the recipients is the museum’s own Lenny Potts. Lenny serves as the president of the National Skydiving Museum Board of Trustees. Other recipients include General Jack Dailey, The Honorable James Coyne, and John Cashman, all who will be honored at the NAA Fall Awards Banquet on Monday, November 7 at the Crystal Gateway Marriott in Arlington, Virginia.
From his first parachute jump in 1952 to his current service on the National Skydiving Museum’s Board of Trustees, Leon “Lenny” Potts has dedicated himself to the skydiving and aviation communities for more than 50 years and continues to make a lasting impact today. He was instrumental in promoting the sport of parachuting by forming local clubs and associations, always stressing safety. He served with the U.S. Parachute Teams as team pilot when they competed in the World Parachuting Championships in Bulgaria, Yugoslavia and Great Britain. He has served on the NAA Sport Aviation Council. He has been awarded the U.S. Parachute Association’s highest honor – the Lifetime Achievement Award and just this past September was inducted into the National Skydiving Museum’s Hall of Fame.
Jonathan Gaffney, chairman of the Selection Committee and president of NAA said of this prestigious award, “As the Elder Statesman Award is synonymous with lifetime achievement, these four individuals together have contributed immensely to the advancement of our industry, the defense of our nation, and the fabric of sport aviation in the United States. It is such a great honor to put their names on this most cherished award.”
The Wesley L. McDonald Elder Statesman of Aviation Award was established in 1954 to honor outstanding Americans, who, by their efforts over a period of years, have made contributions of significant value to aeronautics, and have reflected credit upon America and themselves. Previous winners have included Eddie Rickenbacker, Jimmy Doolittle, Olive Ann Beech, Scott Crossfield, Carol Hallett, and Chuck Yeager.