JUAN TRIPPE, GREEN-WOOD CEMETERY

BEFORE revisiting Green-Wood Cemetery, where I haven’t been since the pandemic, I’m going over some highlights presented from past tours. It’s rather serendipitous that the founder of a major airline was named “Trippe.” The founder of Pan American Airways, Juan Terry Trippe (1899-1981) was a Naval aviator in World War I. He employed his Wall Street business training to form an upscale air taxi service in 1922 and expanded the service to Florida and the Caribbean. Pan Am’s first flight took place October 19, 1927, from Key West to Havana in a Fairchild FC-2. He was of northern European extraction, but was named “Juan” to honor a great aunt, Juanita Terry.

Pan Am expanded worldwide and even increased its scope during World War II. Trippe is responsible for several innovations in the airline world. A firm believer in the idea of air travel for all, Trippe is credited as the father of the tourist class in the airline industry. Jet flight was introduced in 1958 and Pan Am was the first airline to employ the Boeing 747 in 1970.  Trippe gave up the presidency of the airline in 1968 and passed away in 1981, and Pan Am went bankrupt in 1991, its assets purchased by Delta.

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12/7/23