Gray Owl Award

The Gray Owl Award is presented to the naval flight officer (NFO) on continuous active duty in the U.S. Navy or Marine Corps who has held that designation for the longest period of time.

A naval flight officer in the U.S. Navy and Marine Corps is distinct from a naval aviator in that the aviator pilots the aircraft, while an NFO provides knowledge and expertise to assist piloting, such as in navigation, airborne weapons, aerodynamics, flight planning and safety.

By virtue of being qualified for the Gray Owl Trophy, which by definition represents long years of dedicated service to the Navy or Marine Corps, the recipient is considered “a symbol of stalwart and intrepid professionalism.”

Similar awards include the Gray Eagle Award, presented to the Naval Aviator on continuous active duty in the U.S Navy or Marine Corps who has held that designation for the longest period of time; the Ancient Albatross Award, an identical honor for United States Coast Guard aviators; and the Old Salt Award, presented to the surface warfare officer serving on continuous active duty with the earliest surface warfare officer qualification.

Grumman Aerospace Corporation (now the Northrop Grumman Corp.) awarded the first Gray Owl Trophy to U.S. Navy Captain George N. LaRoque in June 1979.

The award traces its origins to 1978, when U.S. Navy Captain Kenn Haas decided that there should be an award for the NFO community that equaled the Gray Eagle Trophy. Haas asked Grumman Aerospace Corporation to sponsor the award, the proposal was accepted and the first formal presentation of the Gray Owl was held the next year. Haas later became the third recipient of the Gray Owl in 1983.

The trophy takes the form of a sculpture of an owl mounted atop a mahogany base. Each recipient’s name plus the date and duration of their time holding the Gray Owl are engraved on the trophy.

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Wikipedia