Bernie Carris Award
Bernard Michael Carris
1922 – 1991
FAI qualified 5-hour flight for Silver C badge
Bernie Carris was born and raised in Big Flats, NY, in the shadow of Harris Hill at Elmira, NY. He had his first glider ride while he was still a teenager in a primary glider some neighbors had built. At age 17 during WW II, he enlisted in the military and became a B-17 tail gunner. When the war was over, he used his military benefits to enter the Schweizer Soaring School and became a part-time instructor at the school in 1948 and quickly gained their trust to be moved into the position of Chief Flight Instructor.
During his 43 years as an instructor, both at Schweizer Soaring School and later on at Harris Hill, he taught hundreds of students the skills and subtleties of unpowered flight. Some famous like NASA’s Werner von Braun, ‘Today’s Show’ Hugh Downs, actor Cliff Robertson, and author Richard Bach, but mostly scores of infamous aspiring pilots that felt comfortable with his casual and practical style of teaching.
Bernie Carris served as an FAA Designated Flight Examiner and in 1974 Bernie and the Schweizer Soaring School were awarded an FAA plaque for the record of 100,000 flights without a serious accident since the school start in 1946. Bernie did the test flying for all the Schweizer sailplanes starting with the 1-23D. As part of this task he came up with a procedure for terminal dive brake testing in order to meet the Standard Class requirements for the Schweizer 1-23H-15 and 1-34. He worked with the FAA, NASA and SSA on joint testing programs.
Bernie was also closely involved in the creation of the Schweizer Soaring School manual and contributed to the book – The Joy of Soaring.
During the winters, he worked in the Schweizer work shops in many varying positions and became an experienced aircraft mechanic. He used this experience with some friends to build a new metal fuselage for the RJ-5.
During his most active years instructing, he was responsible for as much as 185 badges achieved by his students in one year (1973).
Aside from being an active instructor, Bernie was a high ranking soaring competition pilot and competed in national contest as early as 1948 where he place 19th. He continued flying competitively and placed well in several national and regional competitions from the late 1950s through the early 1970s. During the 1960 Nationals, he finished second flying the RJ-5. During the 30th National Championship held in 1963 on Harris Hill, he ended six points out of first behind Dick Johnson after a nail-biting last contest day fending off soaring giants Dick Schreder, George Moffat, Paul Bilke and Paul Schweizer.
There are many colorful anecdotes of the well-liked Bernie Carris – or BC to his students and friends – many of which involve his white corvette, pranks both in the air and on the ground, and lovely ladies. Friends recall BC as “never a stern word or criticism, he just hung out and smoked a lot of cigarettes.”
As an FAA Designate Flight Examiner, check rides were casual and if a student did something poorly, he wouldn’t flunk them but instead talk to the instructor to get that student proficient.
When the ceiling was low and there was nothing else to do he would not waste the day but have a spot landing contest. The pilot would be in the front seat of the 2-33 and the person in back was the heckler. The heckler could not touch the controls, but word spread that opening the rear door made a pretty good spoiler. BC usually won that spot landing contest.
His favorite restaurant was El Monte’s, a Harris Hill favorite, and Black Velvet was his drink.
Bernie Carris was inducted in the National Soaring Museum Hall of Fame in 1986.
Guest columnist for Soaring Magazine ‘Safety Corner’
Silver C #95 in 1947; Gold #183 in 1963
HHSC Award – financial credit for cost of tow and glider rental
Bernie Carris Memorial Award Recipients
| 1996 | Mark Glauner |
| 1997 | Justin Poet and Peter Burdulis |
| 1998 | not awarded |
| 1999 | Josh Burczynski |
| 2000 | Nick LaRose |
| 2001 | not awarded |
| 2002 | Samuel Reger |
| 2003 | not awarded |
| 2004 | not awarded |
| 2005 | Corey Sullivan and Andy Brayer |
| 2006 | Mike McCann |
| 2007 | Brian Doane |
| 2008 | not awarded |
| 2009 | Evan Olson and Andrew Salisbury |
| 2010 | not awarded |
| 2011 | Michael Harrison |
| 2012 | JT McMaster |
| 2013 | |
| 2014 | |
| 2015 | |
| 2016 | |
| 2017 | |
| 2018 | |
| 2019 | |
| 2020 | |
| 2021 | Eric Shelhammer and Evan Kownurcko |
| 2022 | Jakub Ziembicki |
| 2023 | Jenna Cooper |
| 2024 | Mike Goldstein & Spencer Berry |
Sources: NSM archives, SSA records, Paul A. Schweizer’s “Wings like Eagles’, contributions from John Gill, Bill Batesole, Heinz Weissenbuehler, Stu Schweizer