AMA HONORS
By Rich Hanson, AMA President | richh@modelaircraft.org
YOU MIGHT WONDER, “What is the most honored and coveted recognition in the hobby?” The answer is induction into the AMA Model Aviation Hall of Fame. Although the award is administered by AMA, it was initially conceived and implemented in 1969 through the grassroots efforts of a group of staunch and impassioned modelers. The first awards were presented at the end of the Washington State Nats on May 31, 1969. Those inducted were Walter (Walt) Billett, Capt. Willis C. Brown (first AMA president), Carl Goldberg, Dr. Walter (Walt) A. Good (11th AMA president), Charles Hampson Grant, Nevilles E. (Jim/Jimmy) Walker, and Frank Zaic.
The candidate selection was initially handled by the independent Council of Past Presidents and sustained through the years strictly by the willpower of its members and a succession of volunteer chairmen. The first chairman of the Council of Past Presidents was Walt Good, followed by John Patton, Keith Storey, and Cliff Weirick. Cliff was pressed into service at Keith Storey’s passing and served as the last Council of Past Presidents Hall of Fame chairman until his death in 2001.
With Cliff’s passing, the AMA Model Aviation Hall of Fame was reorganized and ultimately became an official component of AMA’s history and recognition program. An ad hoc committee was formed to formalize the selection procedures, and a plan was developed to add one person from each AMA district to the Selection Committee to ensure that a sufficient pool of people would be available to sustain the process.
AMA Leader Member Jerry Neuberger serves as chairman of the Selection Committee, and it has been through Jerry’s dedication and hard work, as well as individuals such as Jack Albrecht, Bob Aberle, Charles Mackey, Bill Netzeband, and Norm Rosenstock, that the AMA Model Aviation Hall of Fame has endured.
The following individuals constitute the 2024 class of inductees into the AMA Model Aviation Hall of Fame:
Dr. Larry Fogel
Larry was born in Brooklyn, New York, in 1928. As a child in the 1930s and ’40s, he enjoyed model sailboats and Free Flight (FF) Towline gliders at Central Park. Graduating with a degree in electrical engineering, he worked at Watson Laboratories of the U.S. Air Force and computed radiation antenna patterns in connection with the design and development of VHF and UHF radio direction finders for ground-to-air use.
Larry worked for the Coles Signal Laboratory, U.S. Army Signal Corps, in charge of the newly formed group concerned with the installation of electronic communication and navigation equipment in Army aircraft (mainly helicopters). This work coincided with his master’s degree in electrical engineering from Rutgers University in 1952. These efforts led to the first patents in active noise cancellation, and he is today considered the “father of noise-cancelling headphones.” These activities also pulled Larry more closely to aerospace engineering.
Upon moving to San Diego, Larry learned of modelers flying RC gliders at the Torrey Pines Gliderport. He visited the site and was hooked. He’s a founding member of the Torrey Pines Gulls (TPG) Radio Controlled Soaring Society, the second AMA club solely dedicated to RC Soaring. Given a knack for writing, he helped to promote RC Soaring in general through numerous articles in Flying Models and American Modeler, and he authored a monthly RC Soaring column in Model Builder. These articles focused on the rapid developments in RC Soaring happening in Southern California and across America.
Larry founded the Torrey Pines Soaring Council (TPSC) in 1978 as an advisory board to the City of San Diego Parks and Recreation Department. The TPSC was instrumental in developing safe flight operations at the site. Larry, his wife, Eva, and son, Gary, made a concerted effort to preserve the Torrey Pines Gliderport. The venue was listed as a National Soaring Landmark of the National Soaring Museum (1991), a City of San Diego Historical Site (1993), on the California Register of Historic Places (1993), and on the National Register of Historic Places (1993). Torrey Pines is likely to have been the first model aviation-related site listed on the National Register. In the early 2000s, the site was named as the first AMA Model Aviation Historical Landmark.
Larry spent countless hours giving members of the public a try at RC Soaring or training new members how to fly. His leadership skills helped bridge local clubs with local politicians to ensure that their continued existence goes beyond his lifetime.
Curtis Kitteringham
Curtis began his lifelong love of model aviation in 1965 with Control Line (CL) models and progressed to RC in 1992. He has a long history of involvement with model airplane clubs throughout Southern California. Curtis is perhaps best known for his service as the U.S. Scale Masters Association National Chairman since 2013 and worked tirelessly to ensure traditional Scale competition, with an emphasis on building and flying. He continues to have a presence each year in the form of regional qualifiers and a yearly championship event. Curtis has attended every annual Scale Masters Championship event since 2003 and, as national chairman, has ensured that we continue to enjoy Scale competition.
John Kukon
John (1938-2024) was a member of the Washington Crossing Radio Control Flyers Association (WCRCFA) based out of Titusville, New Jersey. John was a fixture of the WCRCFA club and imparted a great impact on the people who knew him, both inside and outside of the club. John studied at LaGuardia Airport’s Academy of Aeronautics, obtaining a mechanics certificate with an airframe and powerplant rating. He took on an opportunity at Princeton University’s Forrestal Campus, building models for the purpose of studying aeronautical dynamics.
Demands of a career and university studies were not enough to deter his interest in competitive CL flight. John continued competing in a variety of model aircraft competitions. He was recruited by the Aereon Corporation to assist in their floundering lifting body aircraft program. In short order, he built a successful flying scale model of their concept, and his continued guidance and involvement proved instrumental in the company achieving successful manned flight of the company’s deltoid-shaped aircraft.
Retiring in 2000, John was able to pursue model aviation unabated. He remained an avid member of the WCRCFA flying club, for which he was a founding member in 1987.
Gordon Larson
As an employee of Bonner Specialties, Gordon was instrumental in bringing the Digimite product to life, leading the work on the digital signal modulation scheme used in the product. This innovation led to the production and sales release of the Digimite 8 radio system in 1966. Rapid technological advances in integrated circuitry enabled radio system components, such as receivers and servos, to be manufactured with higher reliability and at a much lower cost. These technological advances led to the design of Bonner’s 6RS and 4RS radios in late 1966.
He experimented, developed, and introduced the use of a “double-tuned” front end on the early Digimite receivers, which consisted of two separate tuning coils positioned in opposing directions. The configuration was later copied by all other radio manufacturers and became standard in the industry for that time. These innovations, as well as the introduction of the micro-ITT style connectors used on servos and receivers, helped pioneer the next generation of smaller and better RC systems used in the hobby today.
Jim Monaco
Jim has had a positive impact on model aviation and RC Soaring for almost 30 years. He has been flying model sailplanes since 1995 and is a member of the Rocky Mountain Soaring Association (RMSA) in Denver. Jim has served his local club, AMA, and the FAA through his efforts to integrate model aviation into the ever-evolving regulatory environment surrounding UAVs and aeromodeling.
Jim wrote, coordinated, and defended the first FAA altitude waiver in Class B airspace between the RMSA, Denver International Airport, and the FAA. He coordinated the first FAA-Recognized Identification Area in the region and in Class B airspace. He leads the effort to keep RC Soaring and all model aviation free to fly while maintaining a good, proactive, and mutually beneficial relationship with the FAA through demonstrations and open communication.
Jim currently serves as the AMA US Fédération Aéronautique Internationale (FAI) F5J Team Selection Committee chairman. He coordinates, edits, and authors the Blue Book contest guide for F5J with AMA and the FAI. Jim is the League of Silent Flight Le Grey Award recipient for outstanding contributions to RC Soaring. Soaring pilots and all of model aviation are the beneficiaries of Jim’s efforts.
Bruce Tharpe
Bruce (1961-2024) designed the Double Whammy and Shockwave. Both of these aircraft are powered by pulse jets. Bruce began designing airplanes with crayons and continued through high school and college. He started his design career with gliders and FF models. Several of his early designs were published in Model Builder, starting in the early 1980s and continuing through the early ’90s. During his time with Sig Manufacturing, he designed some influential models, including the Four-Star 40, Mid-Star 40, Four-Star 120, 1/3-scale Spacewalker, and Sig Wonder.
Bruce started his own company called Bruce Tharpe Engineering (BTE). He continued to design and kit numerous models, starting with the Venture 60, which was released in 1994. Other models of note are the Flyin’ King, Super Flyin’ King, Delta Vortex, and Reaction 54. Bruce also designed and manufactured the Hauler and Super Hauler. Most of the Haulers were sold to universities for research and experimentation. BTE produced the Double Whammy and the Shockwave designs that were previously mentioned.
Induction into the AMA Model Aviation Hall of Fame remains an honored and storied event. Each award is presented by the AMA president, a district vice president, or an individual of the inductee’s choosing.
Do you know someone who has made significant contributions to the sport of aeromodeling? Contributions can be in volunteer or administrative activities, product development, competition performance, or a combination of activities. Information about the AMA Model Aviation Hall of Fame and nomination forms are available on the AMA website (www.modelaircraft.org) under the Museum/History and Recognition tab. Nominations for the AMA Model Aviation Hall of Fame are due each year by March 31.
Keep ’em safe, keep ’em flying, and continue to enjoy this great hobby!
