Page 11 - World Airshow News Autumn 2024

NAtIONAL AvIAtION HALL OF FAmE: GONE WESt:
Julie Clark & Brian Coughlin

General Lloyd ‘Fig’ Newton Pilot Brian Coughlin of Ca-
zenovia, New York passed away
The National Aviation Hall of Fame (NAHF) announced the on October 5 at the Old Rhine-
individuals selected for induction into the Hall with the Class of beck Aerodrome while flying
2025. Among the six inductees will be veteran airshow performer a World War I Fokker D VIII
Julie Clark and General Lloyd W. “Fig” Newton (USAF Ret.), the replica. The FAA and NTSB
first African American pilot to fly with the USAF Thunderbirds. are investigating the accident,
Julie Clark was a trailblazing pilot who became one of the but it appears an engine fail-
first female pilots to work for a ma- ure may have caused the crash.
jor airline. She began her airline Coughlin was 60 years old.
career flying for Golden West Air- Brian’s passion for avia-
lines and retired in 2003 as an Air- tion spanned his entire life. He
bus A320 Captain for Northwest completed numerous restora-
Airlines. tions of antique planes, including a Sopwith Triplane, Sopwith
With over 34,000 flying hours, Pups, Fokker Triplanes and DVIIIs, a Fleet biplane, a Curtiss
Clark also flew airshows for over Wright Jr, and a Curtiss Robin, among others. Brian spent 40
35 years. She is best known for her years of his life dedicated to the Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome
patriotic performances in her T-34 and began flying in their airshows in the early 1990s.
Mentor named Free Spirit. Painted World Airshow News sends our most sincere condolences to
in an Air Force One style paint the friends and family of Brian Coughlin.
scheme and featuring red, white, and blue smoke, Clark’s T-34
became one of the most recognized airplanes on the airshow cir-
cuit. Among many other aviation accolades, Clark is a recipi- GONE WESt:
ent of the Art Scholl Memorial Showmanship Award, the ICAS
Sword of Excellence, and the Bill Barber Award for Showman- Chuck Coleman
ship. (File photo)
General Lloyd W. “Fig” Newton served in the USAF for Airshow performer and aero-
over 34 years, flying 269 combat missions in Vietnam. He was space engineer Chuck Coleman
selected to join the Thunderbirds died on October 20 when his Ex-
in 1974, and from 1978 to 1982, he tra 300L crashed during a perfor-
was assigned as an Air Force con- mance at the Las Cruces Air and
gressional liaison officer with the Space Expo in New Mexico.
U.S. House of Representatives. He Coleman had over thirty-
has commanded three wings, an air five years of experience as an
division, and held numerous senior aerospace engineer, pilot, flight
staff positions. instructor, flight test pilot, air-
Newton culminated his Air show performer, A&P mechanic,
Force career as the Commander, and business owner. His career
Air Education and Training Com- included serving as a senior design engineer for McDonnell
mand where he was responsible for Douglas on a range of military aircraft including the F-15, F/A-
recruiting, training, and education for all Air Force personnel. 18, and C-17. He was also a design engineer and test pilot for
After retiring from the USAF, he became Executive Vice Presi- Scaled Composites and a chase/instructor pilot for the Global
dent at Pratt and Whitney Military Engines and served on vari- Flyer, White Knight One, and SpaceShipOne.
ous aerospace boards. Coleman had over 10,000 flight hours in over 146 types of
The other 2025 Hall of Fame inductees are Frank Robinson, aircraft. He flew more than 100 flights in his Extra to introduce
founder of Robinson Helicopter Company; Phoebe Fairgrave the actors from the movie Top Gun: Maverick to the extreme at-
Omlie, the first woman to receive both an FAA aircraft mechan- titudes and maneuvers they would experience during produc-
ic’s license and a transport pilot’s license; Mae Jemison, the first tion of the movie.
woman of color in space on shuttle mission STS-47; and John World Airshow News sends our most sincere condolences to
Goglia, the first NTSB board member to hold an FAA Airframe the friends and family of Chuck Coleman.
& Powerplant mechanic license.
Since its founding in 1962, enshrinement into the NAHF has
widely been recognized as the pinnacle of individual achieve-
ment in aviation and space exploration. The inductees are cho-
sen by a panel of over 130 aviation professionals from across the
country. The induction ceremony will take place on September
19, 2025, in Wichita, Kansas. (USAF photo)

World Airshow News 11 Quarter 4, 2024