Five individuals who contributed greatly to recreational aviation were honored on November 12 as they were inducted into the EAA Sport Aviation Halls of Fame during a ceremony and dinner at the EAA Aviation Center in Oshkosh.

The 2025 inductees include:

• EAA Homebuilders Hall of Fame: Vic Syracuse of Locust Grove, Georgia
• Vintage Aircraft Association Hall of Fame: Mark Holliday of Athens, Tennessee
• EAA Ultralights Hall of Fame: Dave Cronk of Moab, Utah
• Warbirds of America Hall of Fame: Darrel Berry (posthumous)
• International Aerobatic Club Hall of Fame: Rob Holland (posthumous)

The EAA Sport Aviation Halls of Fame were established to honor the outstanding achievements of men and women in aviation who share the spirit of EAA and its community. Those inducted into the halls of fame are selected by their peers for myriad contributions made to their respective areas of aviation.

In addition, Phil Myrkle of Oshkosh received the Henry Kimberly Leadership Award that recognizes Oshkosh-area residents for volunteer service to EAA. Myrkle is a longtime volunteer at the EAA AirVenture Oshkosh fly-in convention and the EAA Aviation Museum.

EAA HALLS OF FAME 2025 INDUCTEES

HOMEBUILDERS HALL OF FAME

Vic Syracuse (EAA 180848) Syracuse is a 12-time aircraft builder, having built multiple RVs, three Kitfoxes, a Prescott Pusher, a Just Aircraft SuperSTOL, and a Hummingbird helicopter. In addition, he has performed numerous pre-buy inspections for prospective buyers of homebuilt aircraft. His articles in Kitplanes magazine, EAA Sport Aviation magazine, and others have helped thousands of homebuilt aircraft owners with maintenance issues. In addition, his video content on YouTube and his books on aircraft maintenance and pre-purchase advice are valued resources among aircraft builders. Syracuse has served as the chairman of EAA’s Homebuilt Aircraft Council and was honored in 2022 with the prestigious Tony Bingelis Award, which recognizes EAA technical counselors for dedicated service and significant contributions.

VINTAGE AIRCRAFT ASSOCIATION HALL OF FAME

Mark Holliday (EAA 87406): Holliday grew up in aviation and soloed 26 airplanes on his 16th birthday. Eight days after he earned his private on his 17th birthday, he flew a Mooney Mite from Hastings, Minnesota, to the 1969 EAA fly-in at Rockford, Illinois. That was 1969, and he hasn’t missed an EAA convention since. Early on, Holliday also flew for his family’s FBO, Lake Elmo Aero, at Lake Elmo Airport (21D) in Minnesota. He delivered airplanes to customers in every state in the nation (except Hawaii), logging nearly 1,500 hours by the time he was 21. Holliday flew aerobatic routines in his Swift at air shows for 25 years and is highly regarded in the Swift community for his knowledge and expertise. Holliday also flew a series of World War I replicas as chief pilot for the Vintage Aero Flying Museum in Fort Lupton, Colorado, just a few of the more than 200 types that he’s flown.

ULTRALIGHTS HALL OF FAME

Dave Cronk (EAA 1653087): In 1972, Cronk transformed Bob Lovejoy’s initial Quicksilver prototype into a line of the safest and best-selling rigid-wing hang-gliders of the 1970s. As rigid-wing hang-gliders became obsolete, Cronk adapted his Quicksilver glider designs to powered ultralights, creating the weight-shift Quicksilver, the MX, MXL, Sprint, and GT series. In 1994, the GT-500 became the first ultralight certified in the FAA’s light-sport aircraft category. Today, his tube, bolt, and sewn Dacron sleeve construction is widely accepted and remains fundamental to many modern ultralight aircraft designs. Cronk also won the 1975 Hang Gliding World Championship in Austria in a glider of his own design. His Cumulus 10 hang glider is on permanent display at the Smithsonian National Air and Space Museum’s Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia. Cronk continues to serve as an active consultant for several ultralight aircraft companies, as well as the U.S. Department of Defense, NASA, and SpaceX.

INTERNATIONAL AEROBATIC CLUB HALL OF FAME

Rob Holland (posthumous): Holland earned 13 consecutive U.S. national aerobatic championships (Unlimited), 14 U.S. national aerobatic freestyle championships, and six world freestyle championships. In addition, Holland was the driving force in securing the 2026 World Aerobatic Championships for Batavia, New York. Holland was also an active participant in air shows around the country and over the course of the last two decades, he was named an honorary Blue Angel and Canadian Snowbird, received the Art Scholl Memorial Showmanship Award, and was awarded more than 38 national and international medals. Holland jumped at any opportunity to fly, ultimately logging more than 15,000 hours in more than 180 different types of aircraft. The air show and aerobatic competition communities were saddened by his death in an aircraft accident in April 2025.

WARBIRDS OF AMERICA HALL OF FAME

Darrel Berry (posthumous): Berry, who died in October 2025, was a member of the EAA Tennessee Warbirds First Squadron, a founding member of the Ridge Runner flight team, and a lead pilot for the T-34 Association’s FAST team. As the owner of BMT Aviation, his passion for collecting, restoring, and flying vintage military aircraft included more than three dozen warbirds, featuring several T-34s, T-6s, AT-11s, helicopters, and a Grumman TBM Avenger. An Army and Marine Corps veteran, Berry became a pilot in 1978 and logged more than 8,000 hours of flying over his career.

EAA HALLS OF FAME INDUCTEES