The Living Legends of Aviation will honour fixed wing and helicopter pilot Lauren Sánchez in Beverly Hills on January 19, 2024. The award, which is the Living Legends most distinguished honour for vertical flight, will highlight her accomplishments as a helicopter pilot and aviation businesswoman.

Sánchez founded rotary operation Black Ops Aviation in 2016, one of the first female-owned and operated aerial film and production companies with a focus on television and film. She is an Emmy Award-winning journalist and news anchor who began her career working in local news while studying at the University of Southern California. Following a successful national television career, her love of aviation truly took flight. Her father, a former commercial pilot, aircraft mechanic and flight instructor, who still flies to this day, instilled in her a passion for aviation.

"Lauren is a role model and true inspiration for so many women in aviation. She actively engages in many facets of the vertical flight industry, from licensed pilot to businesswoman, and uses her platform to encourage young women and girls to find their place within the industry," says Stacey Elsner, acting executive director of the Living Legends of Aviation.

The Living Legends of Aviation Awards are Hollywood's biggest night in aviation. As Living Legend and actor Morgan Freeman says: "This is the Academy Awards of aviation."

The Living Legends of Aviation was founded in December 2003, exactly 100 years after Orville and Wilbur Wright took the first powered flight. With the purpose of celebrating aviation's second 100 years, the Living Legends of Aviation are 100 remarkable men and women of extraordinary accomplishment in aviation and aerospace. They include entrepreneurs, innovators, industry leaders, astronauts, record breakers, pilots who have become celebrities and celebrities who have become pilots. Notable Legends include Elon Musk, Kenn Ricci, Harrison Ford, Buzz Aldrin, Jared Isaacman, Captain Jim Lovell and Fatih and Eren Ozmen.

John Travolta will be the event host at the ceremony and 'The Official Ambassador of Aviation'. Other awards will be presented to Gulfstream Aerospace president Mark Burns, Beta Technologies CEO Kyle Clark, Linden Blue and Lance Toland. New inductees will include Marc Parent, Steve Hinton and aviation writer Fred George.