Don Veal inducted into the Wyoming Aviation Hall of Fame.

Wyoming Aviation Hall of Fame Inducts Alumnus Don Veal

June 23, 2009 -The Wyoming Aeronautics Commission inducted alumnus and former UW President Donald L. Veal into the Wyoming Aviation Hall of Fame earlier today. Selected for his impressive contributions to aviation in Wyoming and the aviation industry, Veal exhibits the qualities of patriotism, integrity, moral courage and character worthy of entrance into this elite group.

Don received his master's degree at UW in 1960 and his Ph.D. at the university in 1964 in civil engineering and was the recipient of the first doctorate granted by the College of Engineering and Applied Science. Because of his capabilities as a researcher and pilot, he was appointed Natural Resources Research Institute associate director for atmospheric resources. In 1966, under Don’s direction, the Elk Mountain Observatory was built with Bureau of Reclamation funding to conduct experiments in cloud seeding. A twin engine Beechcraft C 45H aircraft was acquired as an extension of the ground observatory, and the hangar built to house the aircraft has been in use since.

A twin engine Beech Queen Air replaced the C 45 in the 1970s, and later a turbine powered Beech Super King Air 200 in 1977. During the past 30 years, both the Queen Air and the King Air have supported a vast array of research by UW faculty and have been used in many national and international projects. Since 1988, the King Air has been funded as a national facility through a series of cooperative agreements between the National Science Foundation (NSF) and UW.

The UW College of Engineering and Applied Science and Department of Atmospheric Science, named the university owned flight facility, located on leased land at the Laramie Regional Airport, after Don in 2001. The current flight facility includes hangar space for the university aircraft as well as maintenance facilities, including the capability for hot section overhaul of turbine engines. A machine shop and related laboratory, office, and storage areas were added in the mid 1980s. The machine shop was equipped to modify the aircraft and to fabricate the specialized research equipment that is integrated into the King Air.

“Don Veal established one-on-one relationships and built upon those relationships with his curiosity, drive and direct involvement to make a strong and lasting research facility,” said Al Rodi, department head of the Department of Atmospheric Science. “Veal has logged an impressive 11,000 air miles with more than 40 different aircrafts which has helped him earn this great honor.”

The Wyoming Aviation Hall of Fame was formed in 1995 under the auspices of the Wyoming Aeronautics Commission. The purpose of the WAHF is to inducts individuals into the Hall of Fame and maintain an archive mainly of biographical files of individuals involved with Wyoming aviation. In addition, the WAHF also collect artifacts which are displayed at the Cheyenne airport terminal where WAHF has permanent exhibit space.

A total of 17 individuals have been inducted. Past nominees include Slim Lewis who helped establish the Wyoming Air Guard, Ralph Johnson of Cheyenne, who was one of the first United Air Lines pilots, Gene Powers from Greybull who helped form Hawkins and Powers (aerial forest fire suppression), Jim Murray of Cheyenne, who was the very first U.S. airmail pilot, Bob Johnson who helped create navigation and communication systems at Wyoming’s airports and Reuel Call of Afton who created Call Aviation, a company that designed and built aircraft for mountain flying and for aerial spraying application.