A. Howard Hasbrook Papers (FSC-29)

A. Howard Hasbrook was well known to air safety researchers. Each year the Aerospace Medical Association Life Sciences and Biomedical Engineering Branch gives the A. Howard Hasbrook Award to an individual who has made outstanding contributions in the field. Hasbrook received numerous awards during his career and in 1972 received the Harry G. Moseley Award of the Aerospace Medical Association for “The most outstanding contribution to flight Safety.”

In 1950, Hasbrook became the Associate Director of the Cornell University Av-CIR Program that conducted crash injury research. In 1955, he became the Director and in 1960 joined the new Civil Aeromedical Research Institute being developed by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in Oklahoma City as its Chief of Crash Safety Research. He also served as a research pilot at the Institute, as well as teaching aerobatics.

Hasbrook kept up-to-date on the latest developments in crashworthiness and encouraged wide-spread restraint system installation in light aircraft plus “delethalization of the interior cockpit and passenger zones.”

Hasbrook entered the field of crashworthiness at Cornell University in 1950 following his World War II flight instructor work and post-War aerial application period. His association at Cornell with air safety pioneer, Dr. Hugh DeHaven, helped him decide to devote his professional life to making aircraft safer. He participated in the design of the Texas A & M University prototype pioneering crashworthy agricultural aircraft being designed by Fred Weick. He has written more than 100 technical papers and reports on crash injury investigations, crash safety designs, human factors and safe flight operation aspects.

Among the numerous awards Hasbrook received during his lifetime was the Lifetime Achievement Award from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University on April 15. 1998.

A. Howard Hasbrook died on August 18, 2000 at the age of 87 after a lengthy battle with lung cancer. Since 1977, he and his wife Virginia, lived in Prescott, Arizona where he worked as an air safety consultant. (From Aviation, Space, and Environmental Medicine, Vol. 71, No. 12, December 2000)