News Release: Zenith Aircraft’s Roger Dubbert is the 2024 recipient of the Spirit of Flight Award

Press Release

Zenith Aircraft’s Roger Dubbert is the 2024 recipient of the Spirit of Flight Award

EAA AirVenture, Oshkosh, Wisconsin – Roger Dubbert, the demo/test pilot at Zenith Aircraft Company, was named the 2024 recipient of the prestigious Spirit of Flight Award. The award was presented at EAA AirVenture Oshkosh convention during the EAA Homebuilder’s Dinner on Thursday, July 25th.

The Spirit of Flight Award, sponsored by Scaled Composites, was established by the Society of Experimental Test Pilots (SETP) and Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) in 1996 to recognize an EAA member who has made a significant contribution to the spirit, technology, manufacture, safety and flight test of sport aircraft. Roger Dubbert was recommended for the award by EAA, and the board of SETP voted its approval of the EAA nomination.

(Zenith Aircraft photo)

Roger Dubbert leads an illustrious career at Zenith Aircraft Company, a leading kit aircraft manufacturer, where he has been the demo pilot for the past 25 years (he has been employed at Zenith since 1993).  Dubbert has flown thousands of introductory/demonstration flights to prospective amateur kit builders over the years, introducing many new and experienced pilots to sport aviation. Dubbert has been Zenith Aircraft's test pilot for several new designs, including the Zenith CH 750 Cruzer and the STOL CH 750 Super Duty, where he performed the first flights and oversaw the flight test programs. Roger has also performed flight testing for ASTM Light Sport Aircraft (LSA) conformity, as well as flight tests of airframes with new engine installations. Roger has also performed numerous first flights of Zenith amateur-built kit airplanes in various configurations and with various engine installations, including the first flight and flight test of his own personal amateur-built aircraft, a STOL CH 701 in 1998. Roger not only has extensive flying and flight testing experience, he also heads customer service at Zenith Aircraft Company where he supports and helps thousands of customers to successfully build (and then fly) their Zenith kits. Roger educates and shares his knowledge of flying (and aircraft building) with popular videos shared on social media.

(Zenith Aircraft photo)

Roger Dubbert was featured in Kitplanes magazine in 2017 as the factory demo pilot with the most number of flights given. Roger was a key leader of the 2014 "One Week Wonder" project at EAA AirVenture 2014 where a complete Zenith kit was built in just seven days. Roger subsequently transition-trained Jeffrey Skiles to perform the first flight in the One Week Wonder aircraft (a few days after the AirVenture show).

Roger Dubbert has been the "cover model" of Zenith, having been featured on dozens of magazine covers (flying air-to-air formation with photo planes) over the years, most recently on the cover of the April 2024 issue of Aviation et Pilote (France) and the July 2024 issue of Kitplanes magazine. Roger is a true sport aviation ambassador, taking up many passengers on their very first light airplane ride (including Young Eagles flights) to transitioning experienced pilots (including military and airline pilots) into light aircraft. Dubbert, who was born and raised in Mexico, Missouri, is popular and well liked by the entire Zenith and sport aviation community (and pretty much anyone who knows him) due to his unrivaled expertise, and his kind and friendly nature.

Zenith Aircraft Company, based at the Mexico Memorial Airport, will be hosting its 33rd annual Zenith Homecoming (Open Hangar Days and Fly-In) at its newly expanded production facilities at the airport on September 20 & 21.

Youth Aviation Day Offers Flying Fun and Career Opportunities for the Next Generation, Part 4: Young Eagles, Huey and Cobra Flights

By The Aero Experience Team

The First Annual Youth Aviation Day, held Saturday at Creve Coeur Airport, offered high flying fun and an opportunity to connect with local aviation organizations in a family-friendly atmosphere. The event, conceived by the Gateway Youth Aeronautical Foundation and enthusiastically adopted by the airport as a public outreach initiative, honors the Foundation's mission of inspiring the next generation to discover the world of aviation. Visitors to Youth Aviation Day had a wide variety of activities to enjoy, including aviation club exhibits in the Foundation hangar, pedal planes for the younger children, aircraft displays from area businesses, free EAA Young Eagle flights and ride opportunities in the Gateway Chapter Army Aviation Heritage Foundation Vietnam-era Army Huey and Cobra helicopters. 

In this multi-part series, The Aero Experience reports on the many unique aspects of this new Midwest Aviation event in support of the Gateway Youth Aeronautical Foundation. We thank all of the event sponsors, especially Mungenast St. Louis Acura and Alton Toyota, Team Gateway to a Cure, Schaefer's Hobby Shop, Gateway Flight Training, and those who donated to the Foundation in recent weeks. 

In Part 4, we feature the flying opportunities available on Youth Aviation Day. Experimental Aircraft Association Chapters 32, 1402 and 64 teamed up to provide Young Eagle flights for those aged 8-17 in general aviation aircraft. 75 Young Eagles were flown throughout the day, many on their first flights ever. 

One parent's comment represents a frequent reaction to the powerful effect of a Young Eagle flight experience:

"I just want to thank you so much for hosting this event. My daughter has been smiling ear to ear over her first flight. This was such a fantastic event you held! I hope there are plans for next year so we can plan our vacation around it 😉 This flight may have helped her figure out a little bit more which way to go for a career."

The Gateway Chapter of the Army Aviation Heritage Foundation flew over 200 passengers on Youth Aviation Day - 20 Huey flights and 14 Cobra flights. Here we show the positioning, pre-flight briefing and passenger flight of the Huey and the launch and recovery of the Cobra.

The Aero Experience thanks the Gateway Youth Aeronautical Foundation, Creve Coeur Airport and all of the participants represented in this series for producing an outstanding community event!

EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2017: Exhibitor Sampler

By Fred Harl

The Aero Experience will continue our coverage of EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2017 in December with a look at some of the exhibitors that populated the grounds during the week. A large swath of the aerospace industry was well represented, from experimental aircraft to space exploration and everything in between. Here we present a sampler of what you will see in future posts.