The J47 engine became the first jet engine certified for commercial aviation — the jet age was reaching cruising altitude. GE made 35,000 J47s, making it the most produced jet engine in history. But Sorota wasn’t there to see it. His father died and he left the company to take over a handful of apartment buildings the family owned. “I didn’t want to go, but I had four siblings,” he said. “I was the oldest and had to take care of business.”
