Martin-Baker Receives 2019 Spirit of Flight Award

01/10/2019 12:15

DENVER, Oct. 1, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Martin-Baker Aircraft Co., Ltd, received the 2019 Spirit of Flight Award at the 57^th Annual National Aviation Hall of Fame Enshrinement Dinner and Ceremony Friday.

The Board of Trustees of the NAHF in the United States presented the award to John Martin, Co-Managing Director and CEO of the company at a ceremony held in Denver, Colorado, at Wings Over The Rockies Air & Space Museum in front of nearly 1,000 people.

The Spirit of Flight Award qualifications include organizations that serve a special need of the nation and set high standards for excellence in the utilization of aerospace assets.

Presenting the Award was Greg Ulmer from Lockheed Martin. "Martin-Baker sets the bar for aircraft safety and its history of excellence and engineering," Ulmer said. "This is why it sits in so many airplanes today. Its ejection seat saves lives and ensures our men and women come home safely. We hope no pilot flying an airplane ever has to use their ejection seat, but we take great comfort in knowing a Martin-Baker seat is there when it's needed most."

"I'd like to say thank you to the committee for awarding us such a prestigious award," said John Martin, Co-Managing Director and CEO. "It would have made my father (Sir James Martin) so proud and I just feel as he is looking down now at his legacy, it's something that would give him a great big smile on his face. There's nothing he loved better than saving people's lives. After he lost his great friend and partner, Captain Baker, he dedicated his whole life to lifesaving equipment."

Martin-Baker joins NASA, the Tuskeegee Airmen, the Doolittle Raiders and other aviation pioneers who have received this award.

Martin-Baker, http://martin-baker.com, employs approximately 1,000 people worldwide, with approximately 180 at Martin-Baker America headquartered in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. Martin-Baker America is responsible for the manufacture and assembly of escape systems and crashworthy seats for the US Air Force, Navy, Marine Corps and Army. Martin-Baker America has over 5,000 seats in aircraft at 52 bases across 42 states. The Mk16 ejection seat is fitted in the T-38 and T-6 training aircraft, and the F-35. Nearly the entire fleet of US Navy aircraft with ejection seats have the MBA Naval Aircrew Ejection Seat (NACES). Over 2,500 American Airmen were saved during Vietnam using MBA ejection seats, and since that time another 1,000 Americans have ejected in a variety of aircraft and have been safely returned to their families.

For more information, e-mail Richard Johnson at mediarelations@martin-baker.com. Follow us on twitter @MB_EjectEject, Instagram at eject_eject, or facebook at Martin-Baker Aircraft Company Limited.

For more information on the National Aviation Hall of Fame, please visit https://www.nationalaviation.org.

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