A letter from Philip M. Condit, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, The Boeing Company, September 19, 1999:

Dear Jerry:

I consider it a great honor to extend this birthday [97th] greeting from the people of Boeing--all 203,800 of us!

Each and every one of us at Boeing owes you a debt of gratitude for the decades of dedicated work you have committed to the continuous improvement of flight safety.

As participants in the global aviation system, we salute your contributions which date back to the early days of the U.S. Air Mail Service. Considering that one of Bill Boeing's early successes was building Model 40s for air mail delivery, we're glad you were there.

And while the Civil Aeronautics Board and the Bureau of Air Safety no longer exist, it's hard to overlook your role in the growth of their replacements: the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board.

Of equal note is your work with the Airlines War Training Institute and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, both of which are important parts of The Boeing Company's history, not to mention NASA's role in our future.

At Boeing, we promote the concept of "People Working Together," which is exemplified by your finest achievement, the Flight Safety Foundation. We're proud to be a part of the foundation; it is indeed proof that working together works.

On behalf of everyone at Boeing, I'd like to say "Happy birthday ... and thank you, Jerry Lederer!"

Sincerely,

/s/ P. M. Condit
P. M. Condit

In addition, Stuart Matthews of the Flight Safety Foundation says,

Jerry Lederer organized the Flight Safety Foundation in 1947 and directed its activities for 20 years. The Foundation's president emeritus, Lederer has received more than 100 awards and is known as "Mr. Aviation Safety" for his innovation and advocacy of many concepts designed to save lives and reduce aircraft accident rates. He served as Director of the CAB [Civil Aeronautics Board] Safety Bureau, director of the Cornell-Guggenheim Aviation Safety Center, and director of safety for NASA [National Aeronautics and Space Administration] in the late 1960s.