Minnesota Pilots Association Honors Achievers

The Minnesota Pilots Association announced its Aviation Achievement Award winners at the 2021 Great Minnesota Aviation Gathering at Buffalo Municipal Airport.

Tom Lymburn is an aviation historian, writer, and photographer who has been announcing air shows since 1991. He taught English in Princeton, Minnesota, for 34 years, serving three terms as department chair and being voted Teacher of the Year in 2003. Over three decades of announcing airshows, Tom has called over 200 different types of aircraft and interviewed Flying Tigers, Doolittle Raiders, Black Sheep Squadron pilots, Tuskegee Airmen, Berlin Airlift crew, and WASPs. He is member of the EAA, AOPA, Vintage Aircraft Association, Warbirds of America, and the American Aviation Historical Society. He serves with the Sawbones Air Racing Team as historian and writer and on the Board of Directors of American Wings Air Museum. He's a founding member of the Minnesota Pilots Association, writes features and a monthly column called "The Mystery Airplane" for the Minnesota Flyer, and serves on the board of directors and scholarship committee of the Minnesota Aviation Hall of Fame. Tom earned his

private pilot license in a tail dragger in 1983. Tom has been kind enough to be the announcer of each and every GMAG, and we greatly appreciate him!

Richard Braunig worked for the Minnesota Department of Transportation, Office of Aeronautics as the Manager of Aviation Safety and Enforcement. He was with MnDOT for more than 30 years, having recently retired. He has a degree in Aerospace Engineering and flew for the U.S. Navy before coming to MnDOT. He has more than 7,000 flight hours in single engine and multi-engine aircraft and helicopters.