Garmin Founders Inducted Into National Aviation Hall of Fame

Garmin National-Aviation Hall of Fame Enshrinement of Gary-Burrell and Min Kao. [Courtesy: Garmin]

Garmin co-founders Gary Burrell and Min Kao were inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame (NAHF) in a ceremony Saturday at the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force in Dayton, Ohio.

The NAHF honors individuals who have made significant contributions to the betterment of aviation.

Founded 35 years ago, Garmin was one of the first companies to develop a suite of avionics to provide better communication and navigation options. The company is known for its communication and navigation products found in everything from flight school training aircraft up through business jets.

“Gary Burrell and Min Kao founded Garmin with the strong belief that superior navigation and communications products could enrich and even save people’s lives," Cliff Pemble, Garmin president and CEO, said in a statement. "To truly honor their pioneering work and the foundation they laid for Garmin’s acclaimed products, there is no greater tribute than seeing them inducted into the National Aviation Hall of Fame."

Kao serves Garmin as executive chairman of the board. Burrell, who died in 2019, was posthumously inducted.

Under their leadership, Garmin developed multiple technologies and applications designed to enhance aviation safety and aircraft capabilities.

A timeline of noteworthy products includes:

1991: Garmin’s first aviation product, the GPS 100AVD, is regarded by many as the first panel-mounted GPS navigator accessible to the GA community.
1994: The Garmin GPS 155 became the first certified GPS receiver to achieve FAA TSO-C129 Class A certification for instrument approaches. The unit enabled pilots to fly IFR without the use of ground-based navigation aids.
1998: The GNS 430 and GNS 530 product family was developed. The mounted GPS navigator, combined with a color moving map, VHF navigation and communication, became the industry standard.
2004: G1000-integrated flight deck introduced glass cockpit technology to single-engine piston aircraft widely used in the training market, while also serving the business jet fleet.
2010: Garmin introduced its Electronic Stability and Protection System (ESP), the first in a series designed to help pilots avoid loss-of-control accidents.
2020: Garmin received the Robert J. Collier Trophy for Garmin Autoland, the first certified autonomous system that when activated during an emergency—such as pilot incapacitation—controls and lands an aircraft without human intervention.

avionics Garmin NAHF National Museum of the U.S. Air Force

Meg GodlewskiAuthor

Meg Godlewski has been an aviation journalist for more than 24 years and a CFI for more than 20 years. If she is not flying or teaching aviation, she is writing about it. Meg is a founding member of the Pilot Proficiency Center at EAA AirVenture and excels at the application of simulation technology to flatten the learning curve. Follow Meg on Twitter @2Lewski.