Jeppesen
Jeppesen (also known as Jeppesen Sanderson) is an American company that specialises in aeronautical charting and navigation services, flight planning, pilot supplies and aviation training. The company is a subsidiary of Boeing Commercial Airplanes. Jeppesen also publishes related software, some of which is used on its electronic flight bag product line.
Jeppesen is headquartered in Englewood, Colorado with offices around the world including Neu Isenburg (Germany), Crawley (United Kingdom) and Canberra (Australia).
History
The company was founded in 1934 by Elrey Borge Jeppesen, a pilot himself working for Varney Airlines, who was the first to make aeronautical charts for pilots to navigate in flight. The information he collected and the charts he drew were at first only for personal use, but fellow pilots quickly saw the benefits of using these charts and Jeppesen started selling copies of his chart book for 10 dollars. Other pilots started to collect data on their own routes and handing this to Jeppesen for him to include in his navigation book.
United Airlines, the airline Jeppesen worked for in the late 1930s after Varney airlines had merged with several other companies to form United Airlines, was one of the first airlines to start using Jeppesen's charts. After a while the chart business started taking up so much of Jeppesen's time that he quit his job as a Captain and became dedicated to making charts.
Business
Jeppesen provides services to aviation companies and pilots. A large number of books, software, and training tools are created for use by pilots in training at all levels of training (including private, commercial, multi, ATP, Flight Instructors, and Airframe and Powerplant (A&P))
Jeppesen provides tools for aviation training such as classroom training materials, books, charts, logbooks, kneeboards, demonstration tools, videos, DVDs, flight bags, and instrument training devices.
Jeppesen offers charting and navigation services including Airway Manuals, JeppView, and NavData. Jeppesen is one of two providers of VFR and IFR aviation charts. The other is the US Government.
Jeppesen creates software products and services for flight planning uses. Flight Planning can be done using software purchased from the company, or through the flight planning department personnel.
Jeppesen offers International Trip Planning which consists of obtaining hotels, transportation, overfly and landing permits and notifications, ground handling, flight planning, and charts.
Allegations against Jeppesen
The neutrality of this section is disputed. |
According to an article that appeared in October, 2006, in The New Yorker, Jeppesen has close business ties to the CIA. The article claims that the company has provided navigational and logistics support to the agency's extraordinary rendition program. [1]. The article says Jeppesen provided "flight plans, clearance to fly over other countries, hotel reservations, and ground-crew arrangements" to the CIA. According to the article, an unnamed former employee quoted Bob Overby, Jeppesen's managing director, as saying at a meeting, "We do all of the extraordinary renditions flights—you know, the torture flights. Let's face it, some of those flights end up that way...It certainly pays well."
On November 16, 2006 Amnesty International staged a demonstration in front of the company's International Trip and Flight Planning Office in San Jose, California to protest their involvement in the rendition program.[2]. In December, 2006 representatives of the South Bay Mobilization for Peace and Justice group asked the San Jose City Council to remove a Jeppesen banner from a city skating rink. The group also holds a weekly vigil at the company's offices. [3]
Nobeltec
Nobeltec is a company that provides marine navigation products such as navigation software and charts. The company was purchased by Jeppesen in 1999.
C-MAP
On January 30th 2007 Boeing concluded its purchase of C-Map, a leading provider of digital maritime cartography, data services and other navigational information. C-Map became a part of Jeppesen’s marine division.