Gaylon, Mark and Verdean Heiner of Turnerville have received the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award in a program hosted by former Bank of Star Valley President Rod Jensen. The awards were formally presented by Richard Jeffs of the Federal Aviation Administration.

“It is a unique happening for three brothers to receive the Wright Brothers award from the FAA,” said Julie Smith, who is a fellow pilot and friend to the brothers. “They have each fulfilled the requirement for fifty years of flying experience and the sum of their flight hours is in the thousands.  That’s a whole lot of flying! They have had remarkable aviation experiences involving work for Aviat including test flying, airplane delivery, and certification, as well as commercial aviation, flight instruction, and private flying.”

A Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award is determined by the following criteria:

• Nominees must hold a U.S. Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) or Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) pilot certificate.

• Nominees must have 50 or more years of civil and military piloting experience or 50 or more years combined experience in both piloting and aircraft operations, which can include up to 20 years of the required 50 years as U.S. military experience. The effective start date for the 50 years is the date of the nominee’s first solo flight or military equivalent, and the 50 years may be computed consecutively or non-consecutively.

• Nominees must have U.S. citizenship.

• Nominees may not have had any airman certificate revoked.

“Very few pilots ever achieve this distinction, even fewer families produce a master pilot,” Jensen said as he welcomed family and friends to the event Saturday, May 16 at the Heiner airstrip in Turner ville. “I don’t know how many times such an event as this has taken place where three brothers together receive the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award but this is truly is a unique and historic event.”

Jensen’s full comments from the presentation are below:

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen, distinguished guests, fellow aviators, family members, and friends.

Today, we gather to celebrate something truly extraordinary — not simply the achievement of flying airplanes — but the lifelong commitment to aviation excellence, safety, mentorship, craftsmanship, and service to the aviation community.

The Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award is one of the most prestigious honors the Federal Aviation Administration can bestow upon a pilot. It recognizes more than fifty years of safe flight operations and dedication to the highest standards of aviation professionalism.

Very few pilots ever achieve this distinction.

Even fewer families produce one Master Pilot.

But today, we honor three brothers — Verdean, Mark, and Gaylon — whose combined aviation legacy represents well over a century and a half of flying, instructing, building, mentoring, maintaining, testing, and advancing aviation.

I do not know how many times such an event as this has taken place – where three brothers together receive the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award – but this truly is a unique and historic event.

The Heiner brothers have not simply participated in aviation.

They lived it.

They built it.

They shared it.

And they inspired generations through it.

Today is not only a celebration of three remarkable pilots. It is a celebration of a family legacy written across Wyoming skies, mountain valleys, backcountry strips, training flights, certification tests, and countless safe landings – and a few moments peppered with the extreme acceleration only a pilot can know.

Gaylon Heiner
We begin by honoring Gaylon Heiner.

Gaylon’s aviation journey began in the fall of 1968. Like so many pilots of his generation, he started with determination, hard work, and a dream of flight. He soloed that same year and later purchased his first airplane — a 1941 J-3 Cub — in 1973. What followed was not simply a hobby, but a lifetime devoted to aviation.

Over the decades, Gaylon continuously advanced his skills and experience, upgrading aircraft, pursuing additional ratings, and embracing new challenges. In 1988, he earned his commercial, instrument, and Certified Flight Instructor ratings. He went on to instruct new pilots, conduct biennial flight reviews, serve as a Civil Air Patrol check pilot, and participate in numerous search
missions.

But what stands out most about Gaylon is not simply the breadth of his experience — it is the spirit in which he shared it.

Friends and fellow aviators consistently describe him as humble, generous, safety-minded, and deeply committed to general aviation.

Gaylon also played a unique role in aviation history alongside his brothers. Working with Verdean and others, he helped support the development and certification efforts of the Christensen – Aviat Husky aircraft. He later delivered Husky’s across the country, often navigating long cross-country flights before the age of GPS and modern avionics.

Imagine three brothers flying in formation across America, dead reckoning their way from one destination to another, sharing the skies together simply because they loved flying.

That image captures something special about the Heiner family.

For Gaylon, aviation was never merely transportation.

It was freedom.

Adventure.

Craftsmanship.

Friendship.

And community.

Today, even after more than five decades of flying, Gaylon continues to inspire local aviators and encourage others to pursue the joy of flight.

Gaylon, your dedication, professionalism, and lifelong love of aviation make you richly so deserving of the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award. Congratulations.

Mark Heiner
We also honor Mark Heiner — a pilot, instructor, test pilot, mentor, and aviation ambassador whose career reflects an extraordinary depth of skill and versatility.

Mark’s aviation journey began in 1967 in Logan, Utah. He soloed quickly and demonstrated early on the kind of natural talent and determination that would define his aviation career.

Over the next five decades, Mark accumulated experience across an incredible variety of aircraft and aviation disciplines. He became known not only as a highly capable pilot, but as someone willing to take on difficult and demanding flying assignments.

Mark’s aviation story includes flight instruction, aerobatics, tailwheel flying, seaplane operations, aircraft testing, work with experimental aircraft, and management of an FBO.

He earned the respect of fellow instructors, FAA personnel, test pilots, mechanics, and students alike.

Those who wrote on his behalf described him as a pillar of the Star Valley aviation community— a pilot who introduced countless people to flying and whose professionalism elevated everyone around him.

One of the greatest compliments a pilot can receive is the trust of other pilots.

Again and again, those who know Mark emphasized his judgment, safety, and integrity.

His career reflects the very essence of the Master Pilot Award: not merely technical competence, but a lifelong commitment to doing things the right way. Mark also embraced aviation as a teacher and mentor.

Many pilots remember not just what Mark taught them, but how he taught them — with patience, confidence, and respect.
His influence extends far beyond the logbooks he filled or the ratings he earned.

It lives on in all of us pilots which he trained.

In the confidence he gave nervous students.

In the example he set every day on the ramp and in the cockpit.

And in the aviation culture he helped build throughout Wyoming and beyond. Mark, your extraordinary professionalism, your service to aviation safety, and your lifelong commitment to flight make this recognition deeply well deserved. Congratulations.

Verdean Heiner
We also recognize Verdean Heiner, whose aviation career stands as a remarkable example of dedication, leadership, technical excellence, and mentorship.

Verdean’s story began as a young Wyoming farm boy who watched jet contrails overhead and dreamed of someday flying among them.

That dream became reality through hard work, discipline, and relentless determination.

From his earliest days working on the family farm, Verdean developed the work ethic that would carry him through an extraordinary aviation career spanning more than fifty years.

His accomplishments are truly exceptional.

Verdean earned his pilot certificates and mechanic ratings while steadily advancing through nearly every dimension of aviation. He became a Certified Flight Instructor, an FAA Inspection Authorization mechanic, and eventually a highly respected aviation leader and educator.

Throughout his career, Verdean combined technical expertise with an unwavering commitment to safety. At SkyWest Airlines, he helped train and mentor thousands of pilots, teaching aircraft systems, regulatory compliance, professionalism, and operational discipline.

Those who worked with him describe him as demanding in the very best sense of the word — someone who held himself and others to the highest standards because people’s lives depend on excellence in aviation.

His colleagues consistently describe him as calm, knowledgeable, approachable, and deeply respected. But beyond the titles, ratings, and accomplishments, Verdean became something even more important.

He became a mentor.

The kind of mentor who shapes careers.

The kind of leader who improves aviation not through recognition or headlines, but through steady daily example.

Many of the pilots who fly today do so more safely because of Verdean Heiner.

And perhaps most fittingly, Verdean’s influence extended beyond piloting into aircraft development and innovation itself, including work associated with the early Husky program. His career reflects the complete aviation professional — pilot, mechanic, instructor, leader, and mentor.

Verdean, your lifelong contributions to aviation and your steadfast devotion to safety and professionalism embody the highest ideals of the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award. Congratulations.

So, as we honor Gaylon, Mark, and Verdean, we recognize something larger than three individual achievements. We recognize a lifetime family legacy.

The Heiner brothers represent the very best traditions of American aviation —skill earned through experience, humility earned through wisdom, and professionalism grounded in responsibility.

For decades, these men have safely crossed mountains, valleys, plains, and skies. They have instructed students.

Maintained aircraft.

Conducted test flights.

Mentored younger pilots.

Supported their communities.

And quietly strengthened aviation one flight at a time.

The Wright Brothers once said: “Learning the secret of flight from a bird was a good deal like learning the secret of magic from a magician.”

Today, we honor three men who dedicated their lives to mastering that magic — and sharing it generously with others.

On behalf of everyone gathered here, and on behalf of the aviation community that has benefited so greatly from your knowledge, your leadership, and your example:

Congratulations to Gaylon Heiner.

Congratulations to Mark Heiner.

And Congratulations to Verdean Heiner.

Thanks to each of you for your respective remarkable service to aviation.

May your skies always remain clear!