The Cumberbatch Trophy

Awarded for an outstanding contribution to aviation safety.

2018 awarded to: Michael O'Donoghue CBE

Mike O’Donoghue had a distinguished career in the Army Air Corps as a pilot, flying instructor, commander and staff officer. His final appointment was as Commandant of tri-service Defence Helicopter Flying School at RAF Shawbury.  Following his retirement Mike was appointed as the Chief Executive of GASCo in 2010.

Apart from monitoring the production of the GASCo quarterly magazine, ‘Flight Safety’, and its on-line equivalent ‘Flight Safety Extra’, Mike has had all the usual responsibilities of a CE, such as staffing, budgets, annual reports, representing GASCo on appropriate committees and linking with similar organisation worldwide.  Above all he has a responsibility for ensuring that the objectives and aims of the Board and Council are met.

The enormous strides made by GASCo over the past eight years and the very high regard in which it is held by the GA community is very much due to the commitment, hard work and interpersonal skills of an outstanding Chief Executive.

However his most impressive achievement has been in the field of GA flight safety where his contribution has been outstanding.

Shortly before he joined GASCo the CAA had announced that it was to stop direct involvement in organizing and running their Flight Safety Evenings (FSEs).  The GASCo Board decided that FSEs were an important part of flight safety and therefore GASCo successfully negotiated with the CAA to continue running FSEs under contract.  On taking over as CE Mike’s immediate task was to recruit Regional Safety Officers (RSOs) to cover the country and to devise a GASCo format for the FSEs.  This he did with such energy and enthusiasm that seven RSOs were quickly recruited and trained and year on year the number of FSEs increased to well in excess of the number contracted to the CAA.  One has even been delivered in Australia where a RSO, whose day job is as an airline pilot, had a stopover.

In addition to the FSEs Mike continues to organize a series of Flight Safety Seminars.  The annual Weather Seminar at the Met Office is usually over-subscribed and the Sea Survival Seminar held in conjunction with the RNLI is also very popular.

The CAA has recently worked with GASCo to develop an Airspace Infringement Awareness Course’. This is a unique training package offered to pilots who have made a minor infringement of controlled airspace and GASCo has been contracted by the CAA with delivery of these day long courses.

 For his outstanding contribution to aviation safety, during an extensive aviation career, Mike O’Donoghue is awarded the Cumberbatch Trophy.

Previous Winners:

1936/37  Imperial Airways
Sqn Ldr H G Brackley DSO DSC, F J Bailey Esq, W Rodgers Esq AFM, F Dismore Esq,
LA Walters Esq, H J Horsey Esq, O P Jones Esq, A S Wilcockson Esq, A B H Youell Esq

1937/38  Olley Air Services
Captain G P Olley MM, T W Morton Esq, C W H Bebb Esq, F R Midgley Esq, R D Morrison Esq,
J Dendy Esq, G E B Stoney Esq, J E B Scott Esq

1938/39  Messers Wrightways Ltd
J W Duggan Esq, F Brent Esq, P C Fair Esq, G G Stead Esq

1948/49  Air Commodore H G Brackley CBE DSO DSC

1949/50  Aer Lingus

1950/51  No. 3 Line B.O.A.C.

1951/52  Tasman Empire Airways Limited

1952/53  Professor E S Calvert BSc ARSc

1953/54 British West Indian Airways

1954/55 Silver City Airways Ltd

1955/56 Captain W B Calldwell & Captain E W Jorden and Flying Staff, British European Airways, Channel Islands Services

1956/57 Malayan Airways Limited

1957/58 Trans-Australian Airlines

1959/60 James Martin Esq CBE

1960/61 Royal Air Force, Institute of Aviation Medicine

1961/62 Aden Airways Limited

1962/63 D P Davies Esq

1963/64 Blind Landing Experimental Unit of the Royal Aircraft Establishment

1964/65 John Wright Gibbs Esq MBE (posthumous)

1965/66 Britannia 102 + 312 Flights BOAC

1966/67 Dr E S Calvert OBE & J W Sparks Esq

1967/68 W E B Griffiths Esq CBE

1968/69 J A Karran Esq OBE

1969/70 Captain E N Jennings MBE DFC

1970/71 Qantas Airways Limited

1971/72 Captain Frank Ormonroyd DFM MA & Captain Eric L R Poole

1972/73 John W Wilson Esq

1973/74 J F M Moyle Esq

1974/75 John Henri Grant Esq

1975/76 S Gordon Corps Esq

1976/77 Joint Airmiss Working Group (Chairman: Group Captain David Hughes DFC AFC)

1978/79 Captain Frank H Hawkins

1979/80 Captain Philip Brentnall DFC

1980/81 John Michael Ramsden Esq

1981/82 VC10 Flight of British Airways

1982/83 Captain T L J Lakin W H Grice Esq Captain P J Hunt (British Airways 'All Weather' Team)

1989/90 Qantas Airways Limited

1992/93 Ronald Ashford Esq

1993/94 Ken M Carpenter PhD

1994/95 William D Reynard Esq

1995/96 British Airways Safety Services

1996/97 Don Bateman Esq

1999/2000 John Thorpe MRAeS

2000/01 R Curtis Graeber PhD FRAeS

2001/02 S Eric Clark BSc CEng FRAeS

2003  Not Awarded

2003/04 Alan R Jacobsen PhD

2004/05 Stuart Mathews

2005/06 Kathy Abbott PhD MSc FRAeS

2007 - 2010  Not Awarded

2011/12 Harbour Air Seaplanes

2013 - 2014  Not Awarded

2014/15 Hugh Browning

2016  Not Awarded

2017  Commander Ian S Fitter RN

2018  Michael O'Donoghue CBE