Gert von Helden receives, together with Martin Jarrold and David Clemmer (both Indiana University, USA), the 2018 “John B. Fenn Award for a Distinguished Contribution in Mass Spectrometry” by the American Society for Mass Spectrometry (ASMS). The Award recognizes a focused or singular achievement in fundamental or applied mass spectrometry and is given for pioneering contributions to the development of ion mobility spectrometry (IMS).