Michael Chowdry
Michael A. Chowdry | |
|---|---|
| Born | 1954 Pakistan |
| Died | Error: Need valid birth date (second date): year, month, day |
| Occupation | Entrepreneur |
| Known for | Founder of Atlas Air |
Michael A. Chowdry (1954 – January 24, 2001) was a Pakistani-American entrepreneur who founded the American cargo airline Atlas Air in 1992. Prior to his untimely death in a plane accident in 2001, he was listed on the Forbes 400 with an estimated net worth of $920 million, ranking him among the most affluent American business figures of Pakistani heritage.
Early life and education
Chowdry was born into a Muslim Punjabi family in Pakistan and relocated to England at the age of 15. He was the son of retired military officer Chowdry Ghais Akbar Buttar and the grandson of government official Chowdry Mohammad Akbar Buttar. In 1976, he moved to the United States and completed his studies at the University of Minnesota Crookston in 1978, earning a degree in Agricultural Aviation. His early professional experience included piloting crop dusters, selling Piper aircraft to finance his education, providing flight instruction to farmers, and operating government-contracted flights transporting Native Americans to the Mayo Clinic.
Career
During the early 1980s, Chowdry ventured into trading landing rights at airports with limited capacity. He launched Aeronautics Leasing in 1984, which leased commercial aircraft to prominent airlines such as Pan American, British Airways, and Trans World Airlines. In 1992, he founded Atlas Air, headquartered in Purchase, NY, which grew to be valued around $1.39 billion. Atlas Air operates Boeing 747 aircraft servicing 101 cities across 46 countries. By 1993, the airline had initiated flights to Taipei and Europe and proceeded to become publicly traded in 1997.
Plane crash
Michael Chowdry lost his life on January 24, 2001, while flying his personal Czech-built Aero L-39 Albatros jet trainer alongside Jeff Cole, aerospace editor for the Wall Street Journal. Both men perished in a crash near Watkins, Colorado. He left behind his wife Linda and two children. In 2021, Linda released a memoir titled No Man's Son - A Flight from Obscurity to Fame, recounting her late husband's life and achievements.