Dassault Falcon's Longtime Test Pilot

On July 9th, Dassault Falcon bid farewell to one of its veteran pilots -- Jerry Tritt. On leave for several months due to a lengthy illness, Tritt was Dassault Falcon's Chief Pilot-Technical. His most recent contributions to the Falcon program include the development of the EASy flight deck, but his influence can be seen in virtually all Falcon aircraft and systems, from the Falcon 20 to the new Falcon 7X.

"Jerry's value to Dassault Falcon went well beyond his insights as a veteran demonstration pilot," said John Rosanvallon, president of Dassault Falcon. "His collaborative style of working with engineers and technicians made challenging tasks more productive. He seemed to bring out the best in people."

"Jerry always flew with passion, and for the simple satisfaction of knowing that he was giving the best effort possible in any undertaking," said Rich Iudice, Director of Flight Operations at Dassault Falcon, and a personal friend of Tritt's. "His knowledge of airplanes and aviation in general was unsurpassed.  He was an inspiration to all of us and we will miss him."

A Pilot's History

Tritt was born in Hamilton (MO), in 1939. Jerry's inspiration to embark on a career in aviation came from his first airplane ride at seven years old. His older brother, Gene, gave him a ride in a two-seat Porterfield, taking off from a grass field. At sixteen, Jerry started taking flying lessons, and earned his wings in 1956 in an Aeronca Champ 7AC.

After graduating from college, Tritt entered the U.S. Navy. He was on active duty from 1962-1967, supporting the Air Force's Military Airlift Command (MAC). He flew missions to and from Vietnam, as well as other parts of the world, on C-130s and C-141s. He also flew the T-34, T-28, TS2A, and T-33 during his military career. Tritt was an Instructor Pilot and Post-Mod Overhaul Test Pilot as well.

After being released from active duty in 1967, Tritt became an airline pilot, joining Pan Am as a Boeing 707 co-pilot-in-training. He moved almost immediately to their new division -- Pan Am Business Jets -- and began to fly the Myst�re 20. During the early years, Tritt flew many VIPs, including Charles Lindbergh and Pan Am founder Juan Trippe.

Throughout the Falcon program, Jerry became familiar with every one of the production aircraft, and was involved in issues ranging from certification to production test-flight protocol and checklists. In his lifetime, Jerry flew over 18,000 hours, 3000 of which were in military aircraft.