OCHOPEE and HOMESTEAD, FL - The National Park Service (NPS) is pleased to announce that Big Cypress National Preserve Pilot Fred Goodwin has been awarded the 2020 National Park Service Wright Brothers National Aviation Safety Award.
This prestigious award is presented to individuals or groups who proactively promote an open-minded attitude in the prevention of aviation mishaps and accidents, work diligently to correct and improve aviation safety deficiencies and communicate the actions and results to others.
Goodwin has served as the NPS fleet pilot in Big Cypress National Preserve since 2011. He dedicates his time and energy to both Big Cypress National Preserve and Everglades National Park in a variety of operations, always with safety as the highest priority.
“Fred's leadership of prioritizing safety on all flights is one key to the success for the South FL Fire & Aviation program" said James Sullivan, chief of fire & aviation for South Florida National Parks & Preserve.
Fred’s peers and cooperators, from multiple agencies, recognize his positive attitude, his leadership, his cooperation, willingness to collaborate, and commitment to safety both in the air and on the ground.
Throughout 2020, Fred identified several aviation safety concerns and through SAFECOM’s, a tool used to identify, document, track, and correct safety related issues, was able to implement and ensure corrective actions were completed.
He has been crucial to the development of several programmatic plans aimed at assessing and reducing risk within the aviation program. This includes creating a set of standard operating procedures for special use missions, and Project Aviation Safety Plans, which allow for collaboration between program managers and project coordinators to identify any mission deviations.
Fred is also a qualified instructor for several aviation classes and represented the NPS at the Southeast Region Helicopter Manager Workshop in January 2020. He uses his experience and skills to help impress the importance of safety on all aviation resources who have the privilege of enrolling in the courses he instructs.
"The National Aviation Office (NAO) recognizes all the work Fred has done in 2020 regarding aviation safety and wants to formally express our appreciation. He truly is an asset to Big Cypress National Park and the overall NPS aviation program," said National Aviation Branch Chief John Buehler.
Tags: big cypress national preserve everglades national park south florida national parks and preserve
Source: U.S. Department of the Interior, National Park Service
