News Release

Chief Ranger/Pilot for Alaska's Northern National Parklands Receives National Aviation Safety Award

Chief Ranger/Pilot Scott Sample with a Top Cub bushplane on wheel-skis at the Coal Creek Airstrip in Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve in winter.

NPS Photo

News Release Date: January 27, 2021

Contact: Kris Fister, [phone]

Congratulations to Chief Ranger/Pilot Scott Sample, the 2020 recipient of the National Park Service (NPS) Wright Brothers National Aviation Safety Award, which was presented to him on Tuesday, January 26 in Fairbanks, Alaska. This award "recognizes an individual or organization within the NPS at the park, regional, or national level who proactively promotes an open-minded attitude in the prevention of aviation mishaps and accidents, works diligently to correct and improve aviation safety deficiencies, and effectively communicates the actions and results to others." It is given annually to aviation specialists who exemplify excellence in the field of aviation safety.

Sample was nominated for the award by the leadership of Big Bend National Park, as he had assisted the park with aviation missions as part of a detail in early 2020. The staff at Big Bend were extremely appreciative of and impressed by the amount and scope of work he accomplished while he was there, which included identifying and addressing a series of safety issues in the Big Bend aviation program, updating aviation plans, and advising/mentoring employees to ensure they completed required aviation training. 

In addition to being responsible for the significant number of safety improvements, Sample also flew more missions per day in Big Bend than any other detail pilot had in the previous 18 months.

In his Chief Ranger role, Sample oversees visitor and resource protection in six northern Alaska national park units: Bering Land Bridge National Preserve, Cape Krusenstern National Monument (where Sample started his Alaska career), Gates of the Arctic National Park and Preserve, Kobuk Valley National Park, Noatak National Preserve, and Yukon-Charley Rivers National Preserve.