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Veridian to present National Aviation Hall of Fame President’s Dinner during Inventing Flight: the Centennial Celebration
Company has own unique ties to America’s aerospace heritage

Dayton, Ohio
March 5, 2003

The National Aviation Hall of Fame (NAHF) today hosted the announcement of Veridian as a major sponsor for the first of two back-to-back events it will hold heralding the Centennial of Powered Flight in Dayton this July.

Veridian will serve as the Presenting Sponsor of the 2003 NAHF President’s Dinner on Friday, July 18. The Dinner will take place in the United States Air Force Museum following the President’s Reception held in the adjacent NAHF Learning Center in Dayton, Ohio. The NAHF is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded in 1962 and congressionally chartered in 1964 to honor America’s air and space pioneers.

Among the 650 expected guests will be NAHF members, aviation enthusiasts, leaders from government, defense, and industry, and nearly two dozen enshrinees. John Glenn, Buzz Aldrin, Harry Combs, Sam Williams, Paul Tibbets, Robin Olds and Gene Cernan are among the many scheduled to take part. A highlight of the Dinner will be the presentation of “hangar stories” by a randomly selected handful of enshrinees.

At a press conference held in the NAHF Learning Center to announce their sponsorship, Veridian President, Bob Mulcahy, made note of his company’s own ties to aerospace history. Both Veridian’s Chairman of the Board, Joe Allen, and a member of its board of directors, Sally Ride, are former astronauts. The first man on the moon and a 1979 enshrinee, Neil Armstrong, is a former Veridian board of trustee and among those scheduled to attend the NAHF President’s Dinner.

Joining Mulcahy to announce Veridian’s sponsorship were NAHF President, Major General Clyde Autio, USAF (Ret); NAHF Executive Director, Mike Jackson; and William J. Roess, Co-President of Inventing Flight/Dayton 2003. The NAHF is a key program partner with Inventing Flight, the organization formed to oversee the many Dayton area events being held for the Centennial.

“The chance to support Inventing Flight and the nation’s Centennial celebrations by sponsoring this legendary President’s Dinner of the National Aviation Hall of Fame is particularly exciting to us when you consider our special connections to this rich history,” said Mulcahy. “We very much believe that honoring and preserving the contributions of past aviation pioneers serves to inspire future achievements.”

“The National Aviation Hall of Fame has always been a major partner of Inventing Flight,” said Roess. “We are pleased that Veridian, the Hall of Fame and Inventing Flight have reached this agreement.”

Speaking on behalf of the NAHF, Executive Director Mike Jackson, said, “I thank Veridian for their Presenting Sponsorship of this important opening event in our special centennial celebration. It’s gratifying to have such support coming from a highly respected member of the aerospace community. Veridian fully understands that supporting the Hall of Fame’s mission is an investment toward developing the skilled aerospace leaders and, frankly, our potential enshrinees of the second century of flight.”

The President of the NAHF Board of Trustees traditionally hosts the President’s Reception and Dinner on the eve before the organization’s annual formal induction ceremonies. This year the President’s event takes place the night before the 2003 Pioneers of Flight Homecoming on Saturday, July 19, a Centennial-themed gala being held in place of the induction ceremony at the Dayton Convention Center. The Homecoming will instead collectively salute all 178 men and women enshrined by the NAHF to date, including the Wright Brothers, Charles Lindbergh, Jimmy Doolittle and Amelia Earhart Putnam, and will fete the achievements of all returning, living enshrinees.

Veridian (NYSE: VNX) is a leading provider of information-based systems, integrated solutions and services specializing in mission critical national security programs for the intelligence community, the Department of Defense, and government agencies involved in homeland security. Veridian has annual revenues of approximately $1 billion and employs 7,000 engineers, scientists, software development engineers, computer scientists, systems analysts, and other professionals. Veridian’s corporate headquarters are located in Arlington, Virginia with numerous locations across the country, including a major presence in Dayton, Ohio. For more information visit www.veridian.com.

Inventing Flight: the Centennial Celebration honors the 100th anniversary of powered flight in Dayton, Ohio, where the Wright Brothers lived, invented and perfected the airplane. The celebration will be a tribute to the innovative spirit of the Wright Brothers and all they inspired. For more information visit http://www.inventingflight.com.

The 2003 NAHF President’s Reception and Dinner begins at 6:30 PM on Friday, July 18. Seats are $150 each and by advance registration only. Contact the NAHF for more details at (937) 256-0944 ext. 10, or online at http://www.nationalaviation.org.

Media Contact

Ron Kaplan, NAHF Deputy Director
937- 256-0944 x16
rkaplan@nationalaviation.org



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