History of Netjets

[joepilot111]

I am looking for info concerning the history of Netjets..any suggestions?

Thanks

 

[falcon20driver]

Jimmy Stewart was one of the original owners back in the 1960's.

http://www.netjets.com/aboutej/history.asp

NetJets Inc. – History At A Glance
1964
• Founded by Brigadier General O.F. “Dick” Lassiter, Executive Jet is incorporated as the civilian
version of the Air Force’s Special Air Missions Squadron. The original Board includes General
Curtis LeMay, M.J. Rathbone, and actors Jimmy Stewart and Arthur Godfrey.
• Purchased first 10 production Lear 23s.

 

[LearAv8r]

and don't forget that Paul Tibbitts was also involved......


in case you don't remember who he was.....He dropped the bomb on Hiroshima........just read his book and is a definate must read!!

Lear-

 

[LJDRVR]

I grew up in Columbus Ohio in the sixties, seventies and eighties. I remember EJA's Lear 24's & 25's with the groovy red and blue diagonal stripes on the fuselage and wingtips. I recall they touted that their average pilot had 8000 hours of flight time. There are other assorted memories of black uniforms with cool red stripes, and getting to sit in a LR 24 as a kid and thinking how neat it was that there were boxes of chiclets in the cupholders.

From a 135 perspective EJA was unique in that they kept their crews/aircraft out on the road and didn't charge customers for repositioning legs. That, plus 24-hour availibility made them unique at the time. From a historical standpoint the logistics of the average fractional pilot's schedule trace their roots to EJA in the seventies. They even advertised how they used a propriatary computer program to match aircraft/crew with customers. (One can only imagine what sort of monstrous UNIVAC-like machine ran said program, but I'm picturing punch cards or magnetic reels.)

My first flight as a Learjet Captain happened to be on a freighter 35 that had the old EJA livery. As a kid I had this little2" long die-cast Learjet with EJA decals that I used to play with and make jet noises, and years later I end up making my first flight as Captain of a transport category jet in the full-size version that makes the noises for you. How cool is that?

So I'm a nerd....

 

[3Wire]

Wasn't Jimmy Doolittle one of the original founding fathers? And wasn't actor Jimmy Stewart an air force pilot and a AF reserve General at the time NETJETS was founded?

 

[bizjet737]

as a kid, i too wanted to fly the red/white/blue belly-banded lears. they were gone when i started (just a couple of old lr35's left when i started 15yrs ago). however, i did get hired right after getting my atp on my birthday. became the youngest capt ever a year later (age 24 barely). what a ride it's been!

 

[Diesel]

Hey R. I got hired at 23 and uprgaded at 23. Of course things were a lot different then.

 

[Roadie]

I grew up in Columbus Ohio in the sixties, seventies and eighties. I remember EJA's Lear 24's & 25's with the groovy red and blue diagonal stripes on the fuselage and wingtips.

I also grew up in Columbus during the 60's and 70's and remember that EJA had a few 727s that they leased out. In the early 70s, several of them sat on the ramp for maybe a year, in front of their Hamilton Rd. location. Also, during the early years, around 1965 or so, I believe they had a few Mystere 20s (Falcon).

 

[flymeonce]

Do you all know that EJA / NJA used to have a 707 in the late 60's and had a hanger in Europe - Geneva..... And the sign is still on that hanger.... "Executive Jet Aviation".. interesting to say the least..."The Generals along with senior Gov't officials and movie stars used the 707 regulary especially in the winter months for the europe ski play ground adventures. Just another piece of the history that is in the books....