Honda Engineers Receive Safety Awards for Advances in Vehicle Safety At the 20th International Technical Conference on Enhanced Safety of Vehicles (ESV) held in Lyon, France on June 18, 2007, Honda development engineer, Satoshi Iijima was recognized for his extensive contributions to improving vehicle safety by being chosen as the recipient of a United States government award for Safety Engineering Excellence. Iijima was honored for his extensive efforts of more than 30 years of research on motorcycle crash safety, and development of new motorcycle safety devices, highlighted by the launch of Honda’s specialized airbag system for motorcycles. Mr. Iijima’s team began their fundamental research into motorcycle airbag systems in 1990. His research findings on motorcycle airbag technologies have been presented at international conferences such as ESV on many occasions, and his dedicated efforts have made a large contribution to the enhancement and improvement of motorcycle technologies related to the crash safety field. The highly advanced motorcycle airbag system was introduced for the first time on a production motorcycle in 2006 when it was integrated into Honda’s flagship luxury touring model, the 2007 GL1800 GoldWing. Already renowned for offering the very latest and finest in comfort, convenience and safety features, the GoldWing was selected as the first full-production motorcycle to be equipped with Honda’s first airbag system, subsequently winning worldwide recognition and praise for its effective promotion of rider safety. ESV is one of the world’s leading conferences for vehicle safety discussion; it is a forum that brings together researchers, engineers and government officials worldwide. For more information about Honda’s innovative air bag system go to www.powersports.honda.com