Ralph Atkin (born Jeffery Ralph Atkin in 1943) is the founder of

SkyWest Airlines SkyWest Airlines is an American regional airline headquartered in St. George, Utah, United States. SkyWest is paid to staff, operate and maintain aircraft used on flights that are scheduled, marketed and sold by a partner mainline airline. The ...

in the United States. He founded

in 1972 and served first as CEO, then as Chairman of the Board for 20 years A lifelong resident of

St. George Saint George (Greek: Γεώργιος (Geórgios), Latin: Georgius, Arabic: القديس جرجس; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was a Christian who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to tradition he was a soldier ...

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

, Atkin served a

mission Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...

for

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

in England in his late teens and early 20s. He has undergraduate degrees from

Dixie State College Utah Tech University (UT), formerly known as Dixie State University (DSU) and similar names, is a public university in St. George, Utah. The university offers about 240 programs (4 master's degrees, 53 bachelor's degrees, 18 associate degrees, 4 ...

and Brigham Young University, an

MBA A Master of Business Administration (MBA; also Master's in Business Administration) is a postgraduate degree focused on business administration. The core courses in an MBA program cover various areas of business administration such as accounti ...

from

Golden Gate University Golden Gate University (GGU or Golden Gate) is a private university in San Francisco, California. Founded in 1901, GGU specializes in educating professionals through its schools of law, business, taxation, and accounting. The university offers s ...

and a doctorate of jurisprudence from the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...

. In 1970 he was elected Washington County Attorney, a position he served in one term. From 1991 to 1993 he was director of economic development for the state of Utah. Atkin has also been associated with the attempted takeover of

Trans World Airlines Trans World Airlines (TWA) was a major American airline which operated from 1930 until 2001. It was formed as Transcontinental & Western Air to operate a route from New York City to Los Angeles via St. Louis, Kansas City, and other stops, with F ...

(TWA) in 2001 and with the startup of

Ghana International Airlines Ghana International Airlines (GIA) was the national airline of the Republic of Ghana between 2005 and 2010. The airline suspended operations on 13 May 2010. GIA operated scheduled and charter passenger and cargo services. Its main base was Kotok ...

Ghana Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...

in 2004. Atkin is a member of the

Utah State Bar Utah State Bar is the regulatory agency established by the Utah Supreme Court to regulate the practice of law in Utah. The Utah State Bar is funded by dues from members, Bar exam dues, continuing education fees, Pro Hac Vice fees, and revenue gene ...

and has a private law practice in St. George. He and his wife, Cheri Bennet Atkin, have eight children and 25 grandchildren. Professional skateboarder James R. Atkin is one of his sons. Atkin is a member of the LDS Church. Among other positions in the church, he has served as a regional director of public affairs. He and his wife have also served as representatives for the church in Turkey.

References

External links

Ralph Atkin Biography

SkyWest Airlines

Ghana International Airlines
Living people 1943 births American aviation businesspeople Airline founders {{Aviation-bio-stub 20th-century American businesspeople Utah Tech University alumni Brigham Young University alumni Golden Gate University alumni University of Utah alumni American Latter Day Saints American Mormon missionaries in England American expatriates in Turkey