Paul Ernest Richter Jr. was an American aviation pioneer, co-founder of Standard Air Lines and executive vice president of Trans World Airlines (TWA), operations chief of staff of the Naval Air Transport Service during World War II and chairman of the board, president of TACA Airlines from 1947 to 1949.

Western Airlines was a major airline in the United States based in California, operating in the Western United States including Alaska and Hawaii, and western Canada, as well as to New York City, Boston, Washington, D.C., and Miami and to Mexico City, London and Nassau. Western had hubs at Los Angeles International Airport, Salt Lake City International Airport, and the former Stapleton International Airport in Denver. Before it merged with Delta Air Lines in 1987 it was headquartered at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX). Throughout the company's history, its slogan was "Western Airlines...The Only Way to Fly!"