The National Aeronautic Association has announced its 2010 nominees for the Robert J. Collier Trophy, which will be awarded for the 100th time at a luncheon in Arlington, Va., next month.The award aims to honor “the greatest achievement in aeronautics or astronautics in America” during the year. This year’s nominees are: Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation and the X2 Technology Demonstrator team, the Boeing Company C-17A Globemaster III team, the X-51A WaveRider team, the automatic ground collision avoidance systemfighter risk reduction program team, MC-12W Project Liberty team, the Orion launch-abort system development team, and a nominee listed as “General Aviation: Saving Thousands of Lives in Haiti.”
Past winners include the crews of Apollo 11 and Apollo 8, the Mercury 7, Scott Crossfield, Burt Rutan and Howard Hughes. Projects and programs which have been the recipient of the Collier include the B-52, the Polaris Missile, the Surveyor Moon Landing Program, the Boeing 747, the Cessna Citation, the Gulfstream V, the Eclipse E500 and the F-22. The selection committee comprises 30 leaders in the fields of aviation and aerospace and is led by NAA Chairman Walter J. Boyne. The committee will meet on March 14, and the winner will be announced on March 15, at the NAA Spring Awards Luncheon. The formal presentation of the Collier Trophy will take place on May 5 at the 100th Anniversary Collier Dinner in Arlington.
