Louis Jackson “Jack” Terrill was born January 19, 1944 in Berlin, NH. He entered the United States Air Force in 1961 and was stationed at Loring AFB in Limestone, ME, where he worked on hydraulic and pneumatic systems on B-52 and KC-135 aircraft. Jack received an Honorable Discharge in 1965, and entered into employment with LTV Electro Systems in Greenville, Texas (1966 to 1969), where he worked on the U-6, U-8, C-123, C-124, C-130, and C-133 aircraft, as well as built C-130 gun ships and light ships for Vietnam. He also performed modifications on the KC-135 in support of Distant Early Warning systems in Alaska.

Jack then embarked on a career as a General Aviation Mechanic, holding Mechanic Airframe & Powerplant (original issue 1970) licenses, and was granted Federal Aviation Inspection Authorization in 1977. He owned and operated Terrill Aviation at the Hobbs-Lea County Airport in New Mexico from 1971 to 1998, offering fuel sales, flight instruction, aircraft sales, maintenance, and charter operations. He maintained numerous single- and twin-engine piston-driven and turboprop aircraft and restored several antique aircraft, including the L-5, L-16, and T-34. During this period he also obtained his Private Pilot license.

Through a series of life opportunities and changes, Jack shared his considerable knowledge and skills with new friends and Fixed Base Operations in Alaska, Colorado, New Hampshire, and Vermont. To his growing list of maintained aircraft he added seaplanes, including de Havilland Beavers and Otters, and performed restorations on Ercoupes, the A-2 CallAir, and others.
Everywhere he lands, Jack contributes to, and promotes, aviation. He is a life-long proponent and advocate for the high standards of General Aviation maintenance, and has assisted many others seeking FAA-required aircraft mechanic training. In 2012, Jack was awarded the Charles Taylor Master Mechanic Award for service to General Aviation.

Jack currently (2014) enjoys residing on an airpark in Cheyenne, Wyoming, where he continues to keep aircraft in the air, from Piper PA-11 to the KingAir 200.