Drs. Ivan Getting and Bradford Parkinson to be
Inducted into National Inventors Hall of Fame

EL SEGUNDO, Calif. (2/19/04) -- Dr. Ivan Getting, founding president of The Aerospace Corporation, and Dr. Bradford Parkinson, board of trustees chair, will be inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame May 1 at the organization's annual ceremony held in Akron, Ohio. They are being honored for inventing the Global Positioning System (GPS).

Getting, who died in October 2003, is credited with envisioning GPS, while Parkinson, who created and ran the Defense Department's Navstar GPS Joint Program Office from 1972 to 1978, is considered the architect of the system. Parkinson continues to work on GPS at Stanford University, where he is professor emeritus of aeronautics. In March 2003 the National Academy of Engineering awarded Getting and Parkinson the Charles Stark Draper Prize for inventing GPS.

The National Inventors Hall of Fame includes inventors who have made advances in medicine, engineering, computing and other areas. The inventors are recognized for having a direct impact on bettering everyday life through their work.