HAI is pleased to announce that the Whirly-Girls International is the 2005 recipient of the Agusta Community Service Award. This award recognizes an individual or organization for the establishment of public use of heliports, advancement of the use of helicopters in urban areas operations, and the advancement of “Fly Neighborly” concepts.
The Whirly-Girls is a non-profit, educational, and charitable organization dedicated to advancing women in helicopter aviation. The Whirly-Girls was founded in 1955 by Jean Ross Howard Phelan. Originally at its creation, there were 13 members. There are now 1,362 members from 43 countries. Whirly-Girls includes corporate, commercial and military pilots, flight school managers and instructors, mechanics, heliport designers, flight surgeons, air traffic controllers, attorneys, paralegals, airport managers, business owners, cattle ranchers, aeronautical engineers, test pilots, administrative assistants, owners, operators, aviation pioneers, and pathfinders.
The organization’s goals are: (1) to promote the acceptance of rotorcraft in their local communities through increasing public awareness of rotorcraft utility and versatility; (2) to promote the advancement of women in rotorcraft aviation through scholarship awards, public presentations, press releases, magazine articles, and displays in aviation museums; (3) to provide, through the organization’s web site, information about employment opportunities for women in the helicopter industry; and (4) to encourage the development of helipads.
This past April, the Whirly-Girls celebrated their 50th anniversary. The celebration took place at the Mayflower Hotel, in Washington, D.C., where the very first Whirly-Girl meeting was held in 1955.
The Whirly-Girls award an average of $40,000 in scholarships each year to female pilots. They are currently the helicopter industry’s largest scholarship fund.
The “Salute to Excellence” awards banquet will take place February 27, 2006, during HELI-EXPO 2006, at the Wyndham Anatole Hotel, in Dallas, Texas. For more information on the “Salute to Excellence” awards, please visit www.rotor.com/salute. For more information on HELI-EXPO 2006, please visit www.heliexpo.com.
