The Howard Hughes Memorial Award is an aviation industry award presented annually by the Aero Club of Southern California. According to the Association's official website, the award is given "to an aerospace leader whose accomplishments over a long career have contributed significantly to the advancement of aviation or space technology."
The award was established in 1978 by William R. Lummis, a first cousin of aviation pioneer Howard Hughes, who at the time was Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Summa Corp.. Recipients of the Howard Hughes Memorial Award receive a solid silver medallion cast from silver mined from Hughes' Nevada mining operations.