Linden Stanley Blue (born 1936) is an American aviation executive. He is the co-owner and vice chairman of
General Atomics
General Atomics is an American energy and defense corporation headquartered in San Diego, California, specializing in research and technology development. This includes physics research in support of nuclear fission and nuclear fusion energy. The ...
, the U.S. military contractor that manufactures the
Predator drones
The General Atomics MQ-1 Predator (often referred to as the predator drone) is an American remotely piloted aircraft (RPA) built by General Atomics that was used primarily by the United States Air Force (USAF) and Central Intelligence Agency ( ...
used by the United States Marine Corps, Air Force, and the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA). He is also the managing director of the aircraft manufacturer
Spectrum Aeronautical
Spectrum Aeronautical is a business jet developer based in Carlsbad, California with its development center located in Spanish Fork, Utah.
An engine failure while flying a single-engine Stinson Voyager over the jungles of Honduras in 1958 nearly ...
.
[Pooter, Matt; Predator Maker Linden Blue Blasts Barack Obama; San Diego Reader; 9 November 2011]
/ref>
Early life
Blue was born in 1936 in Meeker, Colorado, Meeker, CO. Blue's father was James Elliot Blue, a real-estate developer. Blue's mother was Virginia Neal Blue, the first female treasurer of the state of Colorado. His parents owned Blue and Blue Realtor in Denver, a residential real-estate firm. The family moved from Meeker to Denver when Blue was three, but during his childhood the boy spent part of every summer in Meeker. "Shortly after the end of World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
,” he later recalled, "the city fathers of Meeker decided they needed an airport. My grandfather was a member of the Lions Club; they took on the project of clearing a mesa right outside of the city for the first airport in Meeker". This project, which took place "when he was about 8", sparked his lifelong interest in aviation.[Linden Blue: From Disease-Resistant Bananas To UAVs; Airport Journals; 1 October 2005]
/ref>
Education
Blue and his brother, Neal, who was a year older, graduated from Denver's East High and Yale University, where they were both in the Air Force ROTC.
He earned his BA from Yale University
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...
in 1958, and attended the six-week Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...
.
Career
He earned his private pilot's license
A private pilot licence (PPL) or, in the United States, a private pilot certificate, is a type of pilot licence that allows the holder to act as pilot in command of an aircraft privately (not for remuneration). The licence requirements are dete ...
on 17 December 1955. An engine failure while flying a single-engine Stinson Voyager
The Stinson Voyager was a 1940s American light utility monoplane built by the Stinson Aircraft Company.
Development
First developed as the Stinson HW-75 and marketed as the Model 105 in 1939, the design was a high-wing three-seat braced monopla ...
over the jungles of Honduras
Honduras, officially the Republic of Honduras, is a country in Central America. The republic of Honduras is bordered to the west by Guatemala, to the southwest by El Salvador, to the southeast by Nicaragua, to the south by the Pacific Oce ...
in 1958 made Blue a believer in twin-engine aircraft.[ Both the ]Spectrum S-40 Freedom
The Spectrum S-40 Freedom was a business jet developed by Spectrum Aeronautical. The aircraft was first announced at the 2006 NBAA Conference in Orlando, Florida.
Design and development
The S-40 is expected to be classified as a very light jet, ...
and Spectrum S-33 Independence
The Spectrum S-33 Independence is a very light jet designed and built by Spectrum Aeronautical using a carbon fiber construction process that makes the airplane weigh about two thirds as much as a comparably sized aluminum-frame airplane.
The a ...
are designed to be twin-engine aircraft.
He belonged to the Yale Aviation Club. He and his brother flew around the U.S. and then flew around Latin America and the Caribbean. They became known as the "Flying Blue Brothers" and received extensive attention in the U.S. media, making the cover of LIFE magazine
''Life'' was an American magazine published weekly from 1883 to 1972, as an intermittent "special" until 1978, and as a monthly from 1978 until 2000. During its golden age from 1936 to 1972, ''Life'' was a wide-ranging weekly general-interest ma ...
on 8 April 1957. The next year, the brothers started a banana and cacao plantation in Nicaragua in partnership with the family of former President Anastasio Somoza.
In 1961, during a flight from Nicaragua
Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...
, he was forced to land in Havana
Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center. , Cuba and was jailed for 12 days, just prior to the Bay of Pigs invasion
The Bay of Pigs Invasion (, sometimes called ''Invasión de Playa Girón'' or ''Batalla de Playa Girón'' after the Playa Girón) was a failed military landing operation on the southwestern coast of Cuba in 1961 by Cuban exiles, covertly fina ...
.
SAC and Denver real estate
In 1961, he joined the Strategic Air Command
Strategic Air Command (SAC) was both a United States Department of Defense Specified Command and a United States Air Force (USAF) Major Command responsible for command and control of the strategic bomber and intercontinental ballistic missile ...
; his brother joined the Air Transport Command
Air Transport Command (ATC) was a United States Air Force unit that was created during World War II as the strategic airlift component of the United States Army Air Forces.
It had two main missions, the first being the delivery of supplies and ...
. Linden served for three years as a SAC security officer, stationed in Denver. After completing his term of service, he and his brother entered the commercial real estate business in Denver with Colorado and Western Properties (C&W).
William Mathews White Jr. sold his entire holdings in Great Western United
The Western Sugar Cooperative is a grower owned American agricultural cooperative originating from the Great Western Sugar Company in 1901.
History
The Great Western Sugar Company was incorporated in February 1901 by Charles Boettcher and other ...
to C&W on the day he was forced to resign from his company in September 1971. White Jr. had spent the previous few years turning a pair of flour and sugar companies into a conglomerate, bringing in land marketing companies, Shakey's Pizza, and more. After the stock deal, James Neal and C&W's Arthur T. Cowperthwaite were then elected to the Great Western board. By February 1972 White amended the statement, indicating he had sold just under half of his shares, but both James Neal and Cowperthwaite would remain on the board.
Cordillera Corporation
Forming the Cordillera Corporation, Blue and his brother branched out "into construction, and then ranching and some natural resources—oil and gas", he later explained. Blue serves as Chairman of the executive committee of the Denver-based firm, which specializes in real estate, gas utilities, and oil and gas production.
Denver city council
Entering politics, Blue was elected Denver councilman at large, serving in that position for four years.
Harvard Business School
Blue then attended Harvard Business School
Harvard Business School (HBS) is the graduate business school of Harvard University, a private research university in Boston, Massachusetts. It is consistently ranked among the top business schools in the world and offers a large full-time MBA p ...
, where he completed a 13-week advanced management program.
Gates Learjet
In 1975 Blue was hired by Gates Learjet, where he first worked as head of strategic planning, then as executive vice president and general manager of the aircraft division. He later ran the avionics division as well. He stayed at Gates Learjet until 1980, influencing the firm "to be more aggressive in product development and to create higher performance aircraft through aerodynamics".
Beech and Raytheon
Blue was president and CEO of Beech
Beech (''Fagus'') is a genus of deciduous trees in the family Fagaceae, native to temperate Europe, Asia, and North America. Recent classifications recognize 10 to 13 species in two distinct subgenera, ''Engleriana'' and ''Fagus''. The ''Engle ...
from 1982 to 1984. While at Beech, he became a director of Raytheon
Raytheon Technologies Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense conglomerate headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It is one of the largest aerospace and defense manufacturers in the world by revenue and market capitaliza ...
, but left that firm because of "a major disagreement" over the construction of a new airplane model. In the mid-1980s, he and his brother acquired what is now known as the Rocky Mountain jetCenter Network.
General Atomics
In 1986, Blue and his brother Neal Blue purchased General Atomics
General Atomics is an American energy and defense corporation headquartered in San Diego, California, specializing in research and technology development. This includes physics research in support of nuclear fission and nuclear fusion energy. The ...
, a San Diego-based nuclear physics and defense contractor that had been founded by General Dynamics in 1955 "for the purpose of harnessing the power of nuclear technologies for the benefit of mankind". General Dynamics had then sold the firm to Gulf. Since 1986, Linden Blue has been Vice Chairman of General Atomics.[Arria, Michael; The Curious Ascent of General Atomics; VICE; 31 May 2012]
/ref>
He and his brother developed a plane called the '' General Atomics MQ-1 Predator, Predator'' to help the Contras
The Contras were the various U.S.-backed and funded right-wing rebel groups that were active from 1979 to 1990 in opposition to the Marxist Sandinista Junta of National Reconstruction Government in Nicaragua, which came to power in 1979 fol ...
in Nicaragua
Nicaragua (; ), officially the Republic of Nicaragua (), is the largest country in Central America, bordered by Honduras to the north, the Caribbean to the east, Costa Rica to the south, and the Pacific Ocean to the west. Managua is the cou ...
. It has since been used extensively by U.S. forces in Iraq and Afghanistan. On 16 November 2001, a Predator drone killed al-Qaeda
Al-Qaeda (; , ) is an Islamic extremism, Islamic extremist organization composed of Salafist jihadists. Its members are mostly composed of Arab, Arabs, but also include other peoples. Al-Qaeda has mounted attacks on civilian and military ta ...
commander Muhammad Atef. Another important General Atomics product is the ''Warrior
A warrior is a person specializing in combat or warfare, especially within the context of a tribal or clan-based warrior culture society that recognizes a separate warrior aristocracies, class, or caste.
History
Warriors seem to have been p ...
'', which is useful in long-endurance surveillance, communications relay, and weapons delivery. General Atomics won the first Homeland Security contract for an unmanned aircraft system to patrol the U.S. borders.
Blue is now vice chairman of General Atomics; his brother Neal is chairman and CEO. Its San Diego facilities "contain over one million square feet of engineering and test facilities, precision manufacturing installations and advanced technology laboratories". It also has operations abroad. Its affiliates include General Atomics Electronic Systems (GA-ESI), ConverDyn, Cotter Corporation, Heathgate Resources, Nuclear Fuels Corporation, and Rio Grande Resources Corporation.
General Atomics has been described as "one of the world's leading resources for high-technology systems development ranging from the nuclear fuel cycle to remotely operated surveillance aircraft, airborne sensors, and advanced electric, electronic, wireless and laser technologies". It "was also one of the early makers of Magnetic Resonance Imaging devices".
Spectrum Aeronautical
Blue is currently managing director of Spectrum Aeronautical, which designs and develops high technology business jets.
Board memberships and other professional activities
Blue has served on the Board of Overseers of the Center for Naval Analysis; as a trustee and executive committee of the Hudson Institute; as a board member and president of the Green Foundation; as a board member of the National Parks Foundation; as chairman of the Airports and Airways Committee of the General Aviation Manufacturers Association; as a board member of the Burnham Institute; as a board member of the UCSD Foundation; as chairman of the Board of Jobs for San Diego's Graduates; as a board member of Jobs for America's Graduates; as vice chairman of the Denver Planning Board; as a board member of the Denver Symphony, Denver Center for the Performing Arts; as president of the American Council of Young Political Leaders; and as a member of the board and executive committee of the Business and Industry Political Action Committee. Blue is on the board of the Hudson Institute. He is on the board of directors of Jobs for America's Graduates.
Honors and awards
In 2009, Neal and Linden Blue were inducted into San Diego's Entrepreneur Hall of Fame.
Blue's contributions to the aeronautical, energy, and military sciences were recognized by the Industrial Research Institute
Innovation Research Interchange (IRI) is a division of the National Association of Manufacturers, a nonprofit association based in Washington, D. C., United States. IRI was founded as a private non-profit in 1938 and merged with the NAM in 2022. IR ...
in 2010 when he was presented the IRI Achievement Award
The IRI Achievement Award, established by the Industrial Research Institute (IRI) in 1973, is awarded "to honor outstanding accomplishment in individual creativity and innovation that contributes broadly to the development of industry and to the be ...
. ] It "recognizes outstanding accomplishment in individual creativity and innovation that broadly contributes to the development of industry and to the benefit of society". Edward Bernstein, president of IRI, said, "IRI is honoring Mr. Blue for his exceptional innovations in military strategy, advanced energy research, and inspirational entrepreneurial skills. Throughout his career, Mr. Blue has constantly integrated technologies into entirely new business areas and markets".
In 2010, Blue was inducted into the International Air & Space Hall of Fame
The International Air & Space Hall of Fame is an honor roll of people, groups, organizations, or things that have contributed significantly to the advancement of aerospace flight and technology, sponsored by the San Diego Air & Space Museum. Sin ...
at the San Diego Air & Space Museum
San Diego Air & Space Museum (SDASM, formerly the San Diego Aerospace Museum) is an aviation and space exploration museum in San Diego, California, United States. The museum is located in Balboa Park and is housed in the former Ford Building, ...
.[Sprekelmeyer, Linda, editor. ''These We Honor: The International Aerospace Hall of Fame''. Donning Co. Publishers, 2006. .]
Political activities
Blue is a longtime Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
donor. In 2011, Blue and Herbert London
Herbert Ira London (March 6, 1939 – November 10, 2018) was an American conservative activist, commentator, author, and academic. London was the president of the Hudson Institute from 1997 to 2011. He was a frequent columnist for ''The Washingt ...
criticized President Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, Obama was the first Af ...
in an article for employing "the European model of entitlement, regulation and income redistribution as his guide....It may be one of the few examples in history when a blatantly failed system is employed as a model for success".
Personal
Blue has a brother Neal Blue. In 1970, his mother, Virginia Melba Neal Blue, died. In 1986, his father, James Elliot Blue, died.
In November 2012 it was announced that he plans to marry Ronne Froman
Veronica Froman-Blue, better known by her maiden name Veronica "Ronne" Froman (RADM, USN, Ret.), is an American retired naval officer. She was the first woman to serve as commander of the United States Navy Region Southwest, a position known as t ...
, a retired Navy
A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval warfare, naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral zone, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and ...
admiral and former chief operating officer for the city of San Diego
San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...
.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blue, Linden
People from Meeker, Colorado
American financiers
1936 births
Living people
Yale University alumni
American aviation businesspeople
Businesspeople from San Diego
Hudson Institute
20th-century American businesspeople