[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 99 (Wednesday, July 22, 1998)]
[Senate]
[Page S8810]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




JOHN D. ODEGARD, RECIPIENT OF THE FAA 1998 EXCELLENCE IN AVIATION AWARD

 Mr. DORGAN. Mr. President, I rise today to congratulate the 
John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences at the University of North 
Dakota, and its dean and founder, John Odegard who have been selected 
by the Federal Aviation Administration to receive its 1998 Excellence 
in Aviation award. In addition to being one of North Dakota's most 
outstanding entrepreneurs, John is also a personal friend of mine and I 
can attest to the fact that this honor is truly deserved. It accurately 
reflects the contributions that John and the college have made to 
aviation education and research to make flying safer in our country.
  Announcing the award, FAA Administrator Jane Garvey noted,

       The FAA formally recognizes significant aviation research 
     accomplishments each year through the Excellence in Aviation 
     award. This research plays a prominent role in ensuring that 
     the nation's airspace system remains the safest in the world.
       ``Aviation weather research conducted at the John D. 
     Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences contributed to the 
     development of the Terminal Doppler Weather Radar, which is 
     used to detect wind shear near airports. The aerospace 
     school, which has conducted aviation research, education and 
     training programs for over 30 years, participates in a FAA-
     sponsored research project to chart wind conditions at the 
     Juneau, Alaska, airport.

  Mr. CONRAD. I join my colleague, Senator Dorgan, in congratulating 
Dean Odegard on this exceptional and well deserved honor from the FAA.
  Dean Odegard and the Odegard School, which this year was named in his 
honor by a grateful state, are true national assets. John's work 
building the School at the University of North Dakota is one of the 
great accomplishments in North Dakota in my lifetime. His vision and 
ability to make his dreams a reality sets him apart in all of higher 
education and aviation. He began his career in 1968 with two small 
planes and a dozen students and transformed this fledgling operation 
into the premier aerospace training facility in the world with 1400 
students, a fleet of 85 aircraft and 16 flight simulators.
  The contributions of John Odegard and his staff and faculty to 
aviation safety in the development of new pilot training programs is a 
major achievement. His leadership in the creation of university-based 
air traffic controller training is providing our country with superior 
new young controllers that our country's air space system desperately 
needs. As the Administrator noted in her citation, UND's work in FAA-
sponsored atmospheric research has resulted in the Terminal Doppler 
Weather Radar that is now making air travel even safer in the United 
States.
  It is also important to note that the contributions made by the 
Odegard School to improvements in national aviation safety are a direct 
product of the investment the Federal government made almost 20 years 
ago. It was the FAA's Airway Science Program, begun in the early 
1980's, that helped build the Odegard School's facilities on the 
University of North Dakota campus. Those investments, of which we are 
very proud, are paying dividends today in lives saved. That's what the 
FAA award recognizes.
  Mr. DORGAN. Within our state, John's achievements are well 
recognized. The North Dakota State Board of Higher Education has 
honored John by placing his name on the aviation college at the 
University of North Dakota. The Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences is 
one of our state's flagship programs and draws students from every 
state in the nation as well as many foreign countries. Airlines from 
around the world send its pilots to be trained at UND. Its size and 
number of employees means it is also a significant economic asset and 
has served to help draw the aerospace industry to North Dakota.
  Again, I want to offer my congratulations to John and all his faculty 
and staff at the Odegard School. We look forward to their continued 
contributions to the aerospace industry, not only in North Dakota but 
throughout the world.

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