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2000 SESSION


SENATE JOINT RESOLUTION NO. 129
Memorializing the Smithsonian Institute to name the tower to be located at the new Air and Space Museum at Dulles Airport the "Donald D. Engen Tower."

Agreed to by the Senate, February 11, 2000
Agreed to by the House of Delegates, March 8, 2000

WHEREAS, Donald D. Engen, Director of the National Air and Space Museum, died on July 13, 1999; and

WHEREAS, Donald Engen built a lasting legacy in aviation, aviation education, and aviation history; and

WHEREAS, Donald Engen gave a lifetime of service to the United States Navy, entering in 1942 as a Seaman Second Class and retiring in 1978 as a Vice Admiral; and

WHEREAS, during his career with the Navy, Donald Engen accumulated 7,450 hours of flying time and made 624 aircraft carrier landings, including 50 combat missions from the USS Lexington in World War II and 43 combat missions from the USS Valley Forge during the Korean War; and

WHEREAS, during his distinguished Navy career, Donald Engen received the Navy Cross, the Distinguished Flying Cross, three Air Medals during World War II and two Air Medals while serving in Korea; and

WHEREAS, after retiring from the Navy, Donald Engen embarked on an entirely new and similarly distinguished career in the field of aviation; and

WHEREAS, Donald Engen served as General Manager of the Piper Aircraft Corporation plant in Lakeland, Florida; and

WHEREAS, Donald Engen served as a member of the National Transportation Board; and

WHEREAS, in 1984 Donald Engen was appointed Administrator of the Federal Aviation Administration by President Ronald Reagan, where he served three years; and

WHEREAS, in 1996 Donald Engen was appointed Director of the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum, where he served until his death and where he was instrumental in developing plans to design and construct the Air and Space Museum to be located at Dulles International Airport; and

WHEREAS, in 1997 Donald Engen was inducted into the Virginia Aviation Hall of Fame; and

WHEREAS, Donald Engen was a guiding light in the field of aviation and devoted his life to public service; now, therefore, be it

RESOLVED by the Senate, the House of Delegates concurring, That the Board of Directors of the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C., be memorialized to name the tower, to be located at the new Air and Space Museum at Dulles International Airport, the "Donald D. Engen Tower"; and, be it

RESOLVED FURTHER, That the Clerk of the Senate transmit copies of this resolution to the Board of Directors of the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C., and to the members of the Virginia delegation to the United States Congress that they may be apprised of the sense of the General Assembly of Virginia in this matter.