[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 64 (Tuesday, May 19, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E896]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]


     CONGRATULATING GULFSTREAM FOR WINNING THE 1997 COLLIER TROPHY

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                           HON. STEPHEN HORN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                         Tuesday, May 19, 1998

  Mr. HORN. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to call the attention of the 
House to the winner of the 1997 Robert J. Collier Trophy, aviation's 
most prestigious award. The National Aeronautic Association (NAA) 
recently awarded the Collier Trophy to the Gulfstream Aerospace 
Corporation and the Gulfstream V Industry Team for the Gulfstream V--
the world's first ultra-long range business jet. The trophy honors the 
year's top aeronautical achievement in the United States.
  Gulfstream employs 5,800 people at five locations, including 
approximately 800 at its Long Beach, California facility in my 
Congressional District. The Gulfstream V is completed at the Long Beach 
facility. The Collier Trophy brings a well-deserved honor to all of 
Gulfstream's employees.
  The NAA specifically recognized Gulfstream and the Gulfstream V 
Industry Team ``for successful application of advanced design and 
efficient manufacturing techniques, together with innovative 
international business partnerships, to place in customer service the 
Gulfstream V.'' This aircraft is capable of flying 6,500 nautical miles 
at speeds up to Mach .885. It has a superior cabin environment with a 
100 percent fresh air ventilation system, customized interiors, and the 
company's oversized signature oval windows offering panoramic views. 
The Gulfstream V has set 46 world and national records since receiving 
final certification on April 11, 1997. These records include: the 
first-ever nonstop flight from New York to Tokyo by a business jet; a 
climb to 51,000 feet in just over 15\1/2\ minutes; and the first-ever 
nonstop business aircraft flight between Washington, DC, and Dubai.
  Amazingly, the Gulfstream V achieved these records while overcoming 
such challenges as using a new airframe with a new engine. And the 
project stayed fundamentally on schedule. By listening to customers 
throughout the production of the Gulfstream V, Gulfstream showed its 
commitment to superior service.
  The Gulfstream V is not only a remarkable achievement in America's 
aviation history, but in our nation's business tradition as well. The 
story of this aircraft's production fits well in America's heritage of 
bold, entrepreneurial risk-taking. When Gulfstream first decided to 
pursue this project in the early 1990s, it was a relatively small, 
privately held company, and the Gulfstream V carried with it 
significant financial risks. Instead of backing down in the face of 
economic adversity, Gulfstream launched a series of partnerships under 
revenue-sharing agreements that allowed the Gulfstream V to become a 
reality.
  The Collier Trophy has been awarded since 1911 ``for 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.'' Until this century, men and women 
could only look at the sky and wonder what it was like to fly. Air and 
space travel was the stuff of science fiction and fantasy. But starting 
with that fateful first flight in Kitty Hawk, America has led the way 
in man's conquest of the skies.
  The list of the Collier Trophy's winners tells nearly the entire 
history of America``s leadership in aviation and space travel. Past 
winners include Orville Wright, Charles E. ``Chuck'' Yeager, Neil 
Armstrong and the Apollo 11 flight crew, Cessna, and Boeing. The Trophy 
is on permanent display at the Smithsonian Institution's National Air 
and Space Museum. Gulfstream's employees and partners should take great 
pride in this historic achievement. They deserve it.

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