The Elrey B. Jeppesen Story

Today, pilots enjoy the benefit of flying in practically all kinds of weather with only the occasional inconvenience of weather-related flight delays or cancellations. In the early days of aviation, however, those who braved the elements in marginal weather put themselves at great risk with no navigational aids or aeronautical charts to assist them.

Then a young Elrey Borge Jeppesen entered the scene. In 1921, at the age of 14, he took a ride with a barnstormer and decided that flying was definitely for him. At 20, Jepp earned his pilot's license, which was signed by Orville Wright. He bought his own Jenny and began a long and colorful career in aviation.

Initially Jepp spent his time barnstorming, flight instructing, wing walking, and conducting aerial surveys. In 1930, he signed on with Varney Airlines and later with Boeing Air Transport as an airmail pilot to fly the Salt Lake City-Cheyenne/Salt Lake City-Oakland routes. At $50 a week and 14 cents a mile, this route was the highest paying, and the most dangerous.

With no aeronautical charts available, many pilots used road maps for navigation. When visibility was limited, they often followed the railroad tracks, which they called "hugging the UP", or Union Pacific. If weather conditions deteriorated too much, they had to land in emergency fields and wait out the weather, alone except for a sack of mail. Jepp used to talk about someday being able to fly over or through that weather, but many of the older pilots thought he was a dreamer.

During the winters of 1930 and 1931, Jepp experienced the unfortunate loss of many of his fellow pilots due partly to the lack of published aeronautical information. He wanted to change that, so he began making notes in a black, loose-leaf, 10 cent notebook. In it he recorded field lengths, slopes, drainage patterns, and information on lights and obstacles. He also included drawings which profiled terrain and airport layouts, and noted phone numbers of local farmers who could provide weather reports. On his days off, Jepp climbed hills, smokestacks, and water towers, using an altimeter to record accurate elevations.

The Chart Business Is Born
Other pilots learned of Jepp's "little black book" and were constantly asking him for his navigational information. The requests became so frequent that Jepp began offering copies of his book for $10. Needless to say, pilots were eager to accept his offer and thus began the Jeppesen legacy of providing accurate flight information. Many pilots even collected additional data on their own routes and reported it back to Jepp so he could add to his growing collection of airport and route information.

But reliable charts weren't the only things missing. There were no navigational aids available and no procedures for flying by instrument reference. Again, Jepp entered the scene. He became involved in the newest technology for navigation--the radio. He tested the new radio navigational aids and developed ways to use the technology for improving point-to-point navigation. He also began designing instrument approach procedures using the information he had gathered on airports through the Northwest. These procedures were documented on his instrument approach charts, which were the only source in the country for that type of material.

In the late 1930s, Varney Airlines, Boeing Air Transport and several other companies merged to become United Airlines, United was printing its own charts at that time, but their pilots were buying Jepp's instead. United decided to use Jepp's charts throughout their organization, becoming one of the first airlines to subscribe to his early Airway Manual Service.

While at United, Jepp met his wife, Nadine, one of aviation's first flight attendants. Together they worked on the chart business. Before long, the dual job of flying as a Captain for United and working on his burgeoning chart business became too much. Captain Jepp quit his work at United so he could concentrate on building charts.

 

adapted for use here at The Beacon from and article at the the Jeppesen company web site:

 

2003 Wings Publishing