NEWS RELEASE
April 1, 1999

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact: Jennifer Saddler Thomas
Phone: (740) 452-6462
Fax: (740) 453-3758
E-mail: jthomas@y-city.net

Pioneer Hall of Fame Ceremony Inducts Outstanding Women in Aviation

Four aviation pioneers were inducted into the International Women in Aviation Pioneer Hall of Fame on Saturday, March 20, at the closing banquet for the 10th Annual International Women in Aviation Conference— A Decade of Dreams. The conference, held in Orlando, drew 3,500 aviation enthusiasts and professionals. Reeve Lindbergh, author and daughter of Anne Morrow and Charles Lindbergh, served as the keynote speaker for the banquet and Pioneer Hall of Fame ceremony. The 1999 inductees include Arlene Elliott, Gloria Heath, Anne Morrow Lindbergh and June D. Maule.

Arlene Elliott and her husband Herbert began Elliott Aviation, a fixed base operation, in 1936. Elliott has been a steady promoter of general aviation for more than 60 years and was instrumental in the "turn around of the bankers’ attitude" toward the financing of aircraft, leading to many years of service on the board of a local bank. The Elliotts have received numerous awards for their aviation and community leadership and remain active with the company serving on its Board of Directors. Elliott Aviation is headquartered in Moline, Illinois, and has more than 250 employees in seven states.

Gloria Heath is recognized as a leader in establishing an international safety information dissemination service and providing a unified global response to distress occurrence for the land, sea and air. Heath served as a WASP during World War II and has been involved in aviation ever since in a variety of roles including the director of summer aviation programs at Connecticut College as well as a consultant for the search and rescue operation, SAR-ASSIST. She is a founding Board member of the Flight Safety Foundation and remains actively involved today.

Anne Morrow Lindbergh promoted aviation from its earliest day, both as a pilot and an advocate of aviation with her husband Charles Lindbergh. Determined to help Charles on his pioneering flights, she learned Morse code and earned her radio operator’s license. Lindbergh was the first woman in the United States to receive a glider pilot’s license. Today, she is best known as a writer. Her early books are eloquent travelogues of pioneering adventures in the air and remain among her greatest contributions to aviation.

June D. Maule is the CEO and exclusive owner of Maule Air, Inc., the manufacturer of MAULE STOL airplanes. Maule was the wife and business partner of the late B. D. Maule, aircraft designer and manufacturer. For 55 years, Maule operated the administrative aspects of the company with her husband. She continues to work daily at the manufacturing facility in Moultrie, Georgia.

The Pioneer Hall of Fame was established in 1992 to honor women who have made significant contributions as record setters, pioneers, or innovators in aviation. In honor of the 10th anniversary of the Conference, special programs were distributed to highlight the accomplishments of the 29 individuals and four aviation groups inducted since the program’s inception.

Women in Aviation, International (WAI) is a non-profit organization with more than 3,500 members, based near Dayton, Ohio. WAI is dedicated to the encouragement and advancement of women in all aviation career fields and interests. For more information on WAI or the Pioneer Hall of Fame, contact Women in Aviation International at 3647 S.R. 503 S, West Alexandria, OH USA 45381; Phone (937) 839-4647; Fax (937) 839-4645;
E-mail wai@infinet.com; Web www.wiai.org.

###