In conjunction with this summer’s Program Management Committee Meeting, RTCA presented more than 40 awards to special committee members for their outstanding leadership and significant contributions related to RTCA standards published throughout 2023. RTCA also presented the esteemed William E. Jackson Award to our 2023 winner.
“We come together to celebrate and recognize our esteemed members who have made a tremendous impact on global aviation,” said RTCA President Carol Huegel. “While we appreciate the work of all of our special committee members, today we celebrate and recognize members who have demonstrated an exemplary commitment to the development of technical products that drive innovation and the modernization of the global air transportation system”.
Carol praised the group of winners for doing all this work as volunteers who have dedicated countless hours rolling up their sleeves to understand complex problems, exchange thought-provoking ideas, and ultimately reach agreements on how to best resolve complex issues with an eye for the safety and efficiency of the aviation industry.
RTCA recognized 21 Outstanding Leaders and 22 Significant Contributors for their tremendous work on 14 standards supporting surveillance and navigation, datalink and spectrum, and UAS and Counter-UAS.
Click here to see full list of 2023 Award winners.
Carol, along with RTCA’s Karan Hofmann, and Board Chair Mr. Lorne Cass, virtually presented the distinguished 2023 William E. Jackson Award and a $5,000 check to Dr. Elisa Gallon.
Dr. Gallon, who holds a B.S. in pure mathematics from Université Blaise Pascal, M.S. in GNSS from Ecole Nationale De l’Aviation Civile (ENAC) and ISAE-Supaéro, and Ph.D from Illinois Institute of Technology, was presented the William E. Jackson award for her thesis, entitled “High-Integrity Modeling of Non-Stationary Kalman Filter Input Error Processes and Application to Aircraft Navigation.”
The William E. Jackson Award is presented to an outstanding graduate student in the field of aviation electronics and telecommunications. It is a memorial to William E. Jackson, a pioneer in the development and implementation of the nation’s air traffic control system and an enthusiastic supporter of student engineers, whose family recently reached out to RTCA to hear news of these annual award winners. To be considered for this prestigious award, applicants must submit their thesis, a letter of endorsement from a faculty member, and a bio. Dr. Gallon’s professor was also a past Jackson Award winner. “Thank you so much,” said Elisa. “I’m very surprised and very grateful. I’d like to thank both of my PhD advisors and everyone who contributed to my personal and academic growth.”
Congratulations to all award winners and thank you for your contributions to aviation.
