John Wing, founder and president of Wing Aero Products, was presented May 3, 2017, with the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award from the FAA.
The award is presented to pilots who have exhibited professionalism, skill, and aviation expertise for at least 50 years while piloting aircraft as Master Pilots.
To be eligible for the award, nominees must have U.S. citizenship, hold a U.S. Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) or Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) pilot certificate, and have 50 or more years of civil and military flying experience with no history of revocation of any airman certificate.
John Wing meets all of these requirements and more. His first solo flight was in 1966 and by 1970 he had earned his commercial pilot certificate. He went on to fly several aircraft for both business and pleasure, from single-engine Cessnas to multi-engine aircraft such as the Piper Aztec and Aero Commander 560.
Since general manager responsibilities for Wing Aero Products were passed to Jonathan Folds last year, Wing has more time to enjoy time with his wife, children and grandchildren.
Wing Aero Products has been a leading distributor of ASA books and pilot supplies for more than 30 years.
Very impressive John! This is a well deserved acknowledgement of your commitment to aviation, both personally and professionally. For those that don’t know, John is a long-standing volunteer pilot with Challenge Air for Kids & Friends. This organization exists to inspire kids with special needs that nothing is beyond their grasp, including flying an airplane. John has flown countless missions over the years and is a favorite among the kids and their parents due to his passion, energy and always leading with his heart. Thanks again for all your support over the years and congratulations on this milestone achievement!
How wonderful to learn of this achievement, John. Kudos to you, your business, and of course, family! (You’re lookin’ good too)…
John was a huge inspiration to me. He is one of the reasons I am flying today. I’m sure there are many, many pilots that could say the same. John deserves some special recognition for the tremendous good he has done to promote aviation throughout his lifetime. I’m glad he got this award.
Congratulations John! You may not remember me but I used to buy products from Wing Aero Products back in the mid 90’s when I managed “The Pilot Shop” at Centennial Airport in Englewood, CO. You and your staff were always professional, well organized and informed. I’m glad to see you getting recognition for your contributions to the Aviation Industry.
Congratulations, John! It is an amazing honor to be recognized with the highest honor that a GA pilot can receive. This is no small achievement on your part. Receiving the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award means that you have been flying for almost half of the time that aviation has existed. You are an inspiration to all who follow in your footsteps. As a FAASTeam Lead Rep, I have been involved with several of these ceremonies and I am always humbled by what this means to a pilot. Congratulations, and I hope to see yo fly for another 50 years!