The Air Line Pilots Association  (ALPA) has honored airline pilots who have set the standard for excellence through extraordinary contributions in the areas of aviation safety and security. The awards were conferred by ALPA’s president during the Association’s 55th Air Safety Forum, which was held August 5-6 in Washington, D.C.

ALPA’s 2008 Superior Airmanship Award was presented to Compass Airlines Capt. Steven Peterka, First Officer Clifton “Lee” Cain, and Flight Attendant Gloria Heurematte for their performance during an emergency landing as a result of an in-flight cabin fire on a flight in May 2008.

FedEx Express Capt. David Wells received the Association’s highest safety honor. His accomplishments include work to establish a standard level of safety for all airline flying, including cargo, through ALPA’s “One Level of Safety” campaign.

The tireless dedication of Piedmont Airlines Capt. Stephen Ormsbee was integral to ALPA’s “One Level of Safety” campaign, which pressed for enhanced safety regulations for regional airlines. His work, for which he received a 2008 Presidential Citation, helped prompt a new FAA regulation mandating that commuter aircraft with 10-30 passenger seats be operated under the same safety rules as aircraft with more than 30 seats.

First Officer Scott Graham of United Airlines received ALPA’s 2008 Presidential Citation for his work to enhance aviation security, especially in the areas of identifying countermeasures to shoulder-launched surface-to-air missiles, establishing secondary cockpit barriers, and enhancing flightdeck access training.

Delta Air Lines Capt. Bob Hesselbein was granted ALPA’s 2008 Presidential Recognition Award for his exemplary efforts to advance aviation security.

Finally, ALPA honored the crew of US Airways Flight 1549 with the Association’s first-ever Distinguished Crew Safety Award in recognition of their heroic acts in conducting an emergency landing of their crippled Airbus A320 in the Hudson River and safely evacuating all 155 passengers and crewmembers from the sinking jetliner.