Julie Clark set a standard for leadership and professionalism throughout her career as an airline pilot and aerobatic performer—with nearly 33,000 hours of accident-free flying. One of her proudest moments, in fact, was earning the Art Scholl Memorial Award for Showmanship from her peers at the International Council of Air Shows conference 20 years ago, and in 2018, the ICAS Sword of Excellence. Clark retired from flying airshows in her signature polished T-34 Mentor, Free Spirit, in 2019.
But her most recent honor tops the list. Clark has been selected as the 2023 recipient of the Katharine Wright Memorial Trophy from the National Aeronautic Association, the organization announced on Wednesday. The trophy is awarded annually in partnership with the Ninety-Nines International Organization of Women Pilots to “an individual who has contributed to the success of others or made a personal contribution to the advancement of the art, sport, and science of aviation and space flight over an extended period of time,” according to the NAA.
