The Collier Trophy is the most prestigious award in the aviation field, given once a year to those that have made "the greatest achievement in aeronautics or astronautics in America, with respect to improving the performance, efficiency, and safety of air or space vehicles, the value of which has been thoroughly demonstrated by actual use during the preceding year." ...

Robert J Collier, publisher of Colliers Weekly magazine, was a sports-pilot and president of the Aero Club of America. He commissioned the 525 pound (240 kg) trophy in 1911, originally named the Aero Club of America Trophy. After presenting it several times, Collier died in 1918 after the end of World War I. World War I was primarily a European conflict with many facets: immense human sacrifice, stalemate trench warfare, and the use of new, devastating weapons - tanks, aircraft, machineguns, and poison gas. ...

It was renamed in his honor in 1922 when the Aero Club dissolved, and the award was taken over by the National Aeronautic Association. The name became official in 1944, and the award presented once a year by the President of the United States, with the trophy on permanent display at theNational Air and Space Museum. The primary mission of NAA is the advancement of the art, sport, and science of aviation and space flight by fostering opportunities to participate fully in aviation activities and by promoting public understanding of the importance of aviation and space flight to the United States. ... Interior of museum, with Gemini capsule, Soviet rockets, and Wright Flyer visible The National Air and Space Museum (NASM) of the United States Smithsonian Institution maintains the largest collection of aircraft and spacecraft in the world. ...

One famous recipient of the trophy was Chuck Yeager, who piloted the Bell X-1, the first aircraft to break the sound barrier. According to his biography, Yeager used the trophy in his garage to store nuts and bolts. General Yeager Brigadier General Charles Elwood Chuck Yeager (born February 13, 1923 in Myra, Lincoln County, West Virginia) is a former World War II ace and test pilot. ... The Bell X-1 was the first aircraft to exceed the speed of sound in controlled, level flight. ... U.S. Navy F/A-18 at transonic speed. ...

Another recipient was Richard T. Whitcomb who was awarded the trophy for his discovery of the 'area rule', a design method for supersonic aircraft.

External link

• The Collier Trophy - contains a fairly up-to-date listing of the winners
• National Aeronautic Association - complete winners list