About Richard Jeppesen
I am the son of Elrey Borge Jeppesen that pursued my first love, to fly. I was a pilot for an airline that merged, several times, to form Northwest Airlines. I retired from NWA in 1992. My first Airline job was with Trans-Texas Airlines, that served 7 Southern States, flying co pilot on the DC-3 in 1964. My FAA ATP pilot license number is 1531397. My Dad’s was 2771.
My license reads: Airline Transport Pilot, Airplane single engine land, Airplane multi-engine land & sea. Type rated in the B-747, B-727, DC-9, F-27, G-111 (Grumman Albatross). Commercial privileges: Rotorcraft-Helicopter. I am rated as a Certified Flight Instructor, Airplane Multi Engine Instrument. I was a FAA designee check pilot with 22,000 flight hours. I hold a FAA mechanic license rated for Airframe & Power plant.
During my airline pilot days, I was Chairman of the Air Safety Committee for our airline representing the Air Line Pilot Association for several years. I was involved in many airline accident investigations. During my flying career, I owned a construction and development business. I was a licensed contractor and licensed real estate broker. My company, JDI, Inc. created Limited Partnerships that bought and sold land. JDI, Inc. sometimes acted in the capacity of construction managers and developed land into golf course type projects. Additionally, we had a farming division that would farm the land holdings and we would lease additional property for farming purposes. We farmed approximately 1,000 acres in Arizona. I was married for 32 years and raised 5 kids. I am an American and an Australia citizen.
For some reason I got the gene that has always made me curious about my heritage. Dad did not get that gene. He didn’t know the name of his grandparents nor where they lived other than he knew they stayed in Denmark. Dad did get, however, the “keep everything gene.” He had a basement full of stuff. I was always asking Dad about his past and he realized that I was the one that was interested in our family history. To that end, he left me all the family archives. I have over eight file drawers full of documents, pictures, letters, etc. Some of which I had to get translated from Danish.
It is my honor to assemble a correct time line for my Dad’s life realizing that he may be the only family member that will attain notoriety in my family for perhaps many generations to come. I feel an obligation to my family and to Aviation history to write his story with a bit of history of the Jeppesen family for all those future family members that may receive the same heritage gene that I did. For those that are not family members but curious about the early flying days, I apologize for including a few more family pictures and stories then you may feel necessary.
My license reads: Airline Transport Pilot, Airplane single engine land, Airplane multi-engine land & sea. Type rated in the B-747, B-727, DC-9, F-27, G-111 (Grumman Albatross). Commercial privileges: Rotorcraft-Helicopter. I am rated as a Certified Flight Instructor, Airplane Multi Engine Instrument. I was a FAA designee check pilot with 22,000 flight hours. I hold a FAA mechanic license rated for Airframe & Power plant.
During my airline pilot days, I was Chairman of the Air Safety Committee for our airline representing the Air Line Pilot Association for several years. I was involved in many airline accident investigations. During my flying career, I owned a construction and development business. I was a licensed contractor and licensed real estate broker. My company, JDI, Inc. created Limited Partnerships that bought and sold land. JDI, Inc. sometimes acted in the capacity of construction managers and developed land into golf course type projects. Additionally, we had a farming division that would farm the land holdings and we would lease additional property for farming purposes. We farmed approximately 1,000 acres in Arizona. I was married for 32 years and raised 5 kids. I am an American and an Australia citizen.
For some reason I got the gene that has always made me curious about my heritage. Dad did not get that gene. He didn’t know the name of his grandparents nor where they lived other than he knew they stayed in Denmark. Dad did get, however, the “keep everything gene.” He had a basement full of stuff. I was always asking Dad about his past and he realized that I was the one that was interested in our family history. To that end, he left me all the family archives. I have over eight file drawers full of documents, pictures, letters, etc. Some of which I had to get translated from Danish.
It is my honor to assemble a correct time line for my Dad’s life realizing that he may be the only family member that will attain notoriety in my family for perhaps many generations to come. I feel an obligation to my family and to Aviation history to write his story with a bit of history of the Jeppesen family for all those future family members that may receive the same heritage gene that I did. For those that are not family members but curious about the early flying days, I apologize for including a few more family pictures and stories then you may feel necessary.