The Auburn University family is celebrating after one of its directors received a prestigious award from the Federal Aviation Administration.

On Jan. 27, Auburn leadership and community gathered to celebrate School of Aviation Director James Witte after he received the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award.

The award is the FAA’s highest honor issued to pilots certified under Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations Part 61, according to an Auburn University press release. The award was established in 2003 and consolidated the FAA’s other pilots’ recognition programs. It was named in honor of America’s first pilots, Orville and Wilbur Wright.

People across the city joined for the celebration, including Auburn President Christopher Roberts, Executive Vice President Lt. Gen. Ronald Burgess, College of Liberal Arts Dean Jason Hicks, Maria Witte, associate dean of the Graduate School and Witte’s wife, Alabama State Representative Joe Lovvorn, and Auburn Mayor Ron Anders.

This award is granted to pilots who have at least 50 years of experience and skill.

“The Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award is more than an individual recognition,” Witte said, according to the press release. “It is a reflection of the entire School of Aviation.”

In 1964, Witte joined the United States Army and spent time as a helicopter pilot, where he flew operations in Vietnam and Pakistan. He retired from the military in 1990. During his military career, he was ranked Lieutenant Colonel and earned 29 air medals, two Bronze Stars, the Pakistani Wings and the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry.

After retiring from the Army, Witte went on to earn a doctorate from the University of South Florida and taught at the school until 1999. Witte then came to Auburn as the only faculty member in the university’s adult education program.

In 2020, Witte was tasked to lead Auburn’s College of Liberal Arts’ Departments of Aviation. The program has since been designated as the School of Aviation.

“Your career as an educator and pilot is distinctive and extraordinary with an assortment of aircraft experience and thousands of accident-free flight hours,” FAA Administrator for Standards and Programs, Richard Henry said in a press release from Auburn.