When Jack Pelton was 13
years old, he flew with his father to his first EAA fly-in and
convention at Oshkosh in a Cessna 140 from their home in Southern
California. On Friday morning, Pelton, president and CEO of Cessna
Aircraft Corporation, was given the Oshkosh Key to the City Award at the
17th annual Mayor’s Breakfast event downtown.
"Thanks for honoring
me with the key to your great city," he said to Oshkosh Mayor Bill
Castle. "We always call our hometown of Wichita the aviation
capital of the world, but no one can argue that for this one week, that
title moves to your great city when thousands of people travel to
Oshkosh."
EAA President Tom
Poberezny, who accompanied Pelton to the event, commented,
"Aviation has a tremendous impact worldwide, and this is the home
of aviation. I’d like you all to keep in mind the year 2006, because
this is the year that changed the face of aviation." He was, of
course, referring to the impact of light-sport aircraft, and the
announcement earlier this week that Pelton unveiled the company’s
proof-of-concept LSA to the aviation world right here at Oshkosh, a
virtual endorsement of the movement from general aviation’s (GA)
leading GA aircraft manufacturer.
The award was developed
to honor distinguished personalities for contributions to the promotion
and support of EAA AirVenture, Oshkosh, and the aviation community.
"The Mayor’s
Breakfast Committee is pleased to honor Jack Pelton on two levels,"
said Stan Kline, Mayor’s Breakfast coordinator for the Oshkosh Chamber
of Commerce. "We recognize his service to EAA and the world of
general aviation."
Pelton has also served as
chairman of EAA’s Gathering of Eagles Steering Committee for the past
three years. The Gathering of Eagles is EAA’s largest fundraiser, and
supports EAA’s youth education outreach programs. The event raised a
record $1.3 million at its gala event Thursday night.
Pelton is the 2006
chairman for the General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA). His
three decades of aviation experience include three years as senior vice
president of engineering at Cessna. He also oversaw Cessna’s
engineering and product development activities, including new aircraft
development, design, experimental and production flight testing,
certification, and product improvements for all Cessna models. Cessna
has produced more than 187,000 aircraft since the company was founded in
1927.
Before joining Cessna in
2000, Pelton served as senior vice president of engineering and programs
at Fairchild Dornier in Germany and was responsible for the company’s
728JET aircraft family.
Wisconsin Governor Jim
Doyle also attended and commented, "Jack Pelton symbolizes all the
aircraft companies that come to Oshkosh every year."
