Jason Daniel Depew: Gone way too soon

With his favorite plane, the Icon A5 seaplane

Possibly his first airplane.

This is a hard one to write. In fact, it's so hard to write that I'm going to copy and paste an excellent obituary written by someone else.

Our oldest son, Jason, was a pilot in the United States Air Force. When he quit the Air Force, he became a pilot for Delta Airlines. Jason always kept himself physically fit. The FAA requires all pilots to pass a cardiac health exam every six months. According to the doctors administering the exam, Jason's heart was in great shape.

Except for one day. On Thursday, October 31st, 2024, Jason and his wife, Jennifer, were out on a run. Jennifer turned one way to go home, and Jason turned the other way to go further. Some time later, a neighbor observed Jason running up the street, nearing his home, but "having trouble" as he ran. When Jason was in front of the next-door neighbor's house, he collapsed.

One neighbor called 911. Another neighbor checked his pulse and started CPR. Another neighbor ran to get Jen.

Depending on what statistics you glean from the Internet, only 10% to 40% of people who receive CPR after a heart attack survive. Jason was not one of the lucky ones. By the time the EMTs got there, he was turning blue. They had to shock him twice to get his heart going.

His brain did not recover from the extended lack of oxygen. Jason lingered on life support in the ICU of the Pepin Heart Institute at AdventHealth Tampa for five days, before his family chose to discontinue life support. His death affected many people, starting with his immediate family and radiating outward to touch hundreds, possibly thousands, of people worldwide. 

Here's the official obituary. Tailwinds and strong thermals, my son.

Jason Daniel Depew (LTC - USAF Reserve)
13 Jan 1980 – 4 Nov 2024

Jason Daniel Depew, 44, of Lithia, Florida, passed away on November 4, 2024, surrounded by family and loved ones at Tampa’s Pepin Heart Institute after an unexpected cardiac event.

Jason was born on January 13, 1980, in Provo, Utah, to Robert Ray Depew and Valerie Jean Kent Depew, and spent most of his childhood in Loveland, Colorado. From a young age, it was clear that Jason was born for the skies. During youth soccer games, while all the other kids were chasing the soccer ball, you’d find Jason staring up at the sky, watching (and identifying) the planes soaring overhead.

In high school, he participated in track and cross country, played the bass clarinet in the concert and marching band, and the baritone saxophone in the jazz band. He was a proud Eagle Scout, repairing portions of the trail to Longs Peak (one of Colorado’s famous 14,000+ foot mountains) for his Eagle Project. He loved camping and spending time in the mountains.

He led the Loveland High School JROTC battalion and earned his private pilot’s license at the age of 17.  Both propelled him toward his dream of attending the United States Air Force Academy, where he continued to excel as both a leader and a pilot, becoming a soaring (glider) instructor to other cadets. At the Air Force Academy, Jason discovered the perfect nexus of his dual passions, flying and people, when he earned his rating as a soaring instructor pilot. Being a soaring IP set Jason on the path to mentoring others throughout his life.

 

Jason took a break from the Academy to serve a 2-year mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in Russia and Belarus, where he became fluent in Russian. His belief in God and his core values made him a man of integrity, kindness, service, and duty. He returned to the Academy following his mission and graduated in 2004 with a B.S. in Computer Engineering and earned the distinction of “Outstanding Cadet in Soaring.” 

After receiving his Air Force commission in the US Air Force, Jason attended Undergraduate Pilot Training at Laughlin AFB in Del Rio, Texas. He went on to qualify in the B-1, U-28, and E-11A, with several deployments to the Middle East, Africa, and the Philippines, flying 312 combat missions. He also served as an instructor pilot in the T-6. During his Air Force career, he was stationed at Laughlin AFB (Del Rio, Texas), Dyess AFB (Abilene, Texas), Ellsworth AFB (Rapid City, South Dakota), and Hurlburt Field (Ft. Walton Beach, Florida). Throughout his Air Force career, he modeled duty and continually invested in others by mentoring, teaching, and supporting his fellow airmen. While building his Air Force career, he also earned a M.S. in Human Factors from the University of Idaho. Jason was most recently assigned as an Academy Liaison Officer (ALO), helping the next generation of Air Force officers and pilots apply to the US Air Force Academy. 

In 2006, Jason's routine dental check-up landed him in the chair of Air Force dentist Dr. Jennifer Michelle Bailey. They fell in love and were married on July 28, 2007 in Rapid City, South Dakota. In 2017, Jason and family moved to the Tampa area, where they have resided since. Through their 18-year marriage, they had 2 wonderful children (Bailey and Jason Jr), supported each other’s careers and dreams, traveled the world, and worked together to build a life that allowed them to pursue their passions freely, the greatest of which was time spent together as a family. 

He realized his lifelong dream of owning his own aircraft in 2008 when he purchased a Cessna 170, leading to years of good memories taking friends and family flying along the Florida coast. Jason enjoyed the added challenge that his taildragger afforded, sometimes turning over the rudder pedals to a student during taxi and using the inevitable ground loop as an education opportunity. He later sought out other aircraft in which to keep up his tail wheel endorsement. In 2023 Jason upgraded his Cessna 170 to a Pipistrel Sinus motorglider. One of his greatest joys of late was teaching his children to fly in their motorglider. Jason possessed an airline transport pilot license in multi-engine aircraft as well as commercial privileges for single-engine land and sea airplanes and gliders as well. He was qualified as a flight instructor in multi-engine and single-engine land and sea airplanes as well as gliders. Additionally, Jason was a qualified instrument instructor. Jason possessed type ratings in more than 5 aircraft types.

In 2016, Jason left active duty in the Air Force to become a pilot for Delta Air Lines, with the ambitious goal of earning a type rating in every Delta fleet aircraft. Jason was well on the way to his goal, having been a first officer of the DC9, B717 and A220. He advanced to Captain and continued flying the A220, and most recently the B737. Jason was also the host for the Delta ALPA Podcast, supporting 17,000 pilots at Delta Air Lines. 

Combining his love for flying and his passion for helping others, he helped co-found The Pilot Network, a professional networking community for pilots. He helped grow the network from 50 to over 50,000 pilots. He frequently wrote articles that guided pilots on navigating a career and life in the industry, and helped organize and host an annual conference of 2000 pilots, connecting them with employment opportunities in the aviation industry. He has been instrumental in helping thousands of pilots land their dream job. Inspired by his writing for The Pilot Network, in 2019 Jason published a book about personal finance for pilots entitled “Pilot Math Treasure Bath.” 

He was a two-time NAFI Master Certified Flight Instructor with thousands of hours instructing in everything from turboprops and jets to gliders and seaplanes. He loved every hour spent in the air and found great fulfillment investing in others by sharing his vast aviation knowledge and experience as a gifted teacher.

 

Jason is survived by his wife Dr. Jennifer Depew; his children Bailey and Jason Jr; his parents Ray and Valerie Depew; grandmother Yvonne Kent; siblings Kellie (Scott) Newman, Lori (Nick) Stockton, Sandra (Joshua) Murphy, and Christopher Depew; father-in-law Dan Bailey and his wife Becky Bailey; brother-in-law Andrew (Terri) Bailey; and numerous aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, and friends. He is preceded in death by his mother-in-law, Rosemarie Bailey.

Visitation will be held at Serenity Meadows Funeral Home, 6919 Providence Rd, Riverview, FL on Saturday, November 16, 2024 from 11 am – 1 pm . A memorial service will follow from 1 – 2 pm, and a Fly-in and Celebration of Life barbecue will be held at Wimauma Air Park, 6505 FL-674, Wimauma, FL later that afternoon.

In lieu of flowers, the family invites you to make a contribution to Paws N Pilots or EAA’s Young Eagles Program, two charities Jason loved (the latter of which took Jason on his first private flight when he was a pre-teen).

He's flying now.