Russell W. Meyer Jr.
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Russell W. Meyer Jr.(born July 19, 1932 inDavenport, Iowa,United States) is the Chairman Emeritus and formerChief Executive Officer(CEO) of theCessna Aircraft Company.He was awarded theWright Brothers Memorial Trophy,theCollier Trophyon two separate occasions (once jointly with Cessna), and the Meritorious Service Award from theNational Business Aircraft Association(NBAA). In 2009, he became inducted into theNational Aviation Hall of Fame.[1][2]
Biography
[edit]Early life and education
[edit]Meyer graduated fromYale Universitywith aB.A.degree in 1954 and was awarded aDoctor of Lawdegree fromHarvard Law Schoolin 1961.
Jet pilot and attorney
[edit]He was a jet pilot in theU.S. Air Forcefrom 1955-1958 and served with theMarine Corps Reservesfrom 1958–1961.
Between 1961 and 1966, Meyer was anattorneywithArter & HaddeninCleveland, Ohio.
Aviation CEO
[edit]He was President and CEO of theGrumman American Aviation Corporationfrom 1966 to 1974, and joined Cessna in 1974 as an Executive Vice President, recruited by long-time Cessna PresidentDwane Wallace.Meyer was elected the company's CEO in 1975 by Wallace and the rest of the Board of Directors, and would serve in that role from 1975 to 2000 and again from June 2002 to 2004, succeeded byJack J. Pelton.
He conceived the Citation Special Olympics Airlift in 1986, which usesCessna Citation Jetsto transport thousands of disabled athletes to the NationalSpecial Olympics.That same year, he and Cessna were awarded the Collier Trophy for the worldwide safety record of the Cessna Citation fleet ofbusiness jets.Ten years later, in 1996, under his leadership, the Collier Trophy was again awarded to Cessna for developing theCitation X,the first commercial aircraft to achieve a cruising speed of Mach.92, making it the fastest business jet in the world. Meyer also helped lead the passage of the 1994General Aviation Revitalization Act,and was involved in various programs throughout his career that aimed at growing and strengthening the aviation industry.
Personal life
[edit]He was a close and longtime friend of legendary golfer, pilot and Cessna ownerArnold Palmer.
He and his wife Helen have five children.[1]
References
[edit]- ^ab"Meyer Jr., Russell W."National Aviation Hall of Fame.Retrieved2019-07-29.
- ^"Russ Meyer, Former Cessna Chairman and CEO, slated for National Aviation Hall of Fame Induction".www.AviationPros.com.Retrieved2019-07-29.
External links
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- 1932 births
- Living people
- Yale University alumni
- Harvard Law School alumni
- Collier Trophy recipients
- National Aviation Hall of Fame inductees
- People from Davenport, Iowa
- American aviation businesspeople
- American aerospace businesspeople
- Cessna
- United States Army Air Forces pilots
- Military personnel from Iowa
- American business biography, 1930s birth stubs
- Aviation biography stubs