Foil: 14 Panel: Retired United Pilots Association Column: 3 Line: 66

Wall of Honor Level:
Air and Space Friend

Honored by:

PROFILE: Captain Gerard Terstiege completed his commercial aviation career on December 21, 2000, when he set the parking brake on the Boeing 767 upon arrival at the gate at J.F.K. Airport in New York on a scheduled United Airlines flight from San Francisco. Jerry's airline career had begun at JFK thirty years earlier, when assigned by United as DC-8 Flight Engineer upon completion of pilot new-hire school, so it was fitting that his airline career end here.

At United, Jerry was a pilot on the Boeing 737, 727, 757, 767 and 747-400, also the DC-8 and DC-10, as well as the Lockheed 1011-500

He was born on December 25, 1940 in New York City to parents who had immigrated to America from Germany in pursuit of a better life. Jerry was raised in the Bronx; he attended public grammar school and high school and was then accepted by the City College of New York, a recipient of a New York State Regents Scholarship. He graduated in June 1963 with a Bachelor of Civil Engineering degree.

Accepting a job as Junior Engineer with the California Division of Highways, Jerry moved to Los Angeles. He worked in design and construction, resigning from his job with the State in 1965 to accept a position as Construction Engineer with the Guy F. Atkinson Company.

Jerry started flying at the Long Beach Airport in 1965, getting licensed as Private Pilot, then Commercial Pilot, then achieving Instrument, Multi-engine and Flight Instructor ratings in the next two years. He worked as a flight instructor and charter pilot part-time while continuing with Atkinson as a construction estimator. Jerry applied to the airlines for a pilot job.

In October 1969, he was contacted by United Airlines and told to be in Denver by November 4 to fill an opening in a new-hire class. He did so and completed the course in January 1970, whereupon he was assigned to JFK. An economic slowdown caused United to surplus some pilots, sending Jerry to Washington D.C. in the summer of 1970. Further downturns caused United to furlough Jerry in February 1971.

After traveling around the world for about six months, he returned and realized that United would not soon recall the 750 furloughed pilots. Jerry was hired as a Captain in late 1971 by Priority Air Dispatch, based at DCA. Flying Piper Aztec and Beech 18/C-45 aircraft, P.A.D. worked mostly for Department of Defense contractors, carrying test munitions and other hazardous materials from east coast development sites to test sites in the western states. He rose to the position of Chief Pilot with P.A.D.

Jerry's next job, in late 1974, was General Manager and Chief Pilot of Grand Canyon Airlines, based at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. In the next four years, Jerry more than tripled the scenic air tour carrier's revenue, carrying many thousands of Canyon visitors on thrilling and awe-inspiring flights over and through this natural wonder. Joining him at the Canyon was his wife, Krista, for whom he had returned to Washington to marry.

United offered recall in April 1978. The very difficult decision to leave Grand Canyon Airlines was made. Jerry and Krista moved to San Francisco. He was now a B-727 Flight Engineer.

In addition to his work as a line pilot, Jerry took on assignments for United as well. United had begun a small package delivery service to compete with FedEx in 1981. During this period, an airline capacity reduction created a surplus of pilots, so it was decided to use a group of pilots to sell this delivery service by calling on potential customers all over the country. Jerry was the manager of the pilot sales force in San Francisco. Unfortunately, the service offered by United couldn't compete with the much better service offered by the other small package carriers without large additional investment, which United declined to fund.
Jerry also volunteered to work on committees for the pilot union, the Air Line Pilots Association, and after doing so for several years, he was elected to represent the San Francisco United pilots as Secretary/ Treasurer of the local union group, Council # 34, from 1987 through 1991. Following that service, he was elected to the United Master Executive Council Retirement and Insurance Committee, and was Chairman of that Committee from 1998 through 2000. Additionally, Jerry served on the ALPA National Steering Committee from 1993 through 2000.

In 1994 an Employee Stock Ownership Plan was established at United, with the company being purchased by most of the employees. An ESOP Committee, with representatives from all the groups that owned United acted as the Administrative Committee to provide oversight of the ESOP. Jerry was elected to this Committee in 1994 and was Chairman from 1998 through 2000.

Jerry remained current as a line pilot, taking on more responsible piloting positions as his increasing seniority allowed, while performing these other duties for United and for the rest of the pilots through his work at ALPA. Jerry was based in SFO from 1978 through 2000.

He was in the first group of United pilots to train on the L-1011-500 after United bought the Pacific Division, including some Lockheed aircraft, from Pan Am in 1985. He flew throughout the Pacific and to Australia and New Zealand from SFO.

After United bought the London based operation from Pan Am in 1991, along with the rights to fly from Heathrow to major cities in Europe, Jerry was based on temporary duty for a few months at LHR, living (with Krista) in a hotel in London while flying to Paris, Hamburg, Munich, Frankfurt, Berlin, Amsterdam and Milan

In retirement Jerry stepped forward again to be one of the founders of the United Retired Pilots Benefit Protection Association to fight against the depredation that United's management was waging against the pensions and benefits of employees and retirees in bankruptcy. Knowing that ALPA would not represent the retired pilots, Jerry and a small group of other retired pilots formed URPBPA, solicited funds and members, proceeding to defend the 3000 retired pilot members from 2002 on, continuing through the writing of this in 2007.

March 6, 2007 - retired Captain Terstiege resides with wife Krista in Foster City, California.