Hazy Wins Wright Brothers Trophy

Steven F. Udvar-Hazy, who distinguished himself as a pioneer in aviation, received the 2009 Wright Brothers Memorial Trophy recently from the National Aeronautic Association at the annual Aero Club of Washington Wright Memorial Dinner.

NAA established this award in 1948 to honor the memory of Orville and Wilbur Wright. The trophy is awarded annually to a living American for "significant public service of enduring value to aviation in the United States."

A staunch advocate of aerospace education, Udvar-Hazy has given back to the aviation and space community in many ways including making a $65 million dollar donation to the Smithsonian Institution, National Air and Space Museum, to build the Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center near Dulles International Airport. This donation funded approximately half of the initial construction costs for the museum.

His family also contributed funds to build the Christine and Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Library and Learning Center at the Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Prescott Campus, one of the nation's centers of undergraduate aerospace education. In 2009 Forbes ranked him as the world's 305th richest person, with a net worth of $2.2 billion, down from $2.8 billion in 2008, so he could afford it.

NAA Chairman Walter Boyne presented the trophy to Udvar-Hazy "for innovative aerospace business practices, improved aircraft design, piloting skills, and selfless philanthropy ensuring preservation of our aerospace history - all major contributions of enduring value to aviation in the United States."

Born in 1946 in Budapest, Hungary, Udvar-Hazy's family came to the United States in 1958, fleeing the Soviet occupation. He attended UCLA and later became the founder, chairman and CEO of International Lease Finance Corporation (ILFC), the worldwide market leader in the leasing and remarketing of advanced technology commercial jet aircraft to airlines around the globe. With a portfolio valued at more than $52 billion, it consists of more than 1,000 jet aircraft, or more aircraft than any airline.

His presence in California has not been without controversy, however. In 2005, Udvar-Hazy purchased a Laguna Beach gay bar, The Boom Boom Room, and an attached hotel, the Coast Inn, for $14.9 million. The bar dated to the 1930s and was frequented by gay and lesbian patrons, including actor Rock Hudson, starting in the 1950s.

After media reports of his plans to raze the buildings and construct a boutique hotel, gay and lesbian activists organized a campaign, dubbed Save the Boom, to preserve the bar..

Despite their efforts, the bar closed in September 2007 when the lease expired. With the permit-approval process stalled, Udvar-Hazy offered the property for sale in 2007, but later removed it from the market.

As of March 2009, the property remained unsold, Wikipedia reported.