Edward Rickenbacker drove this Mason racer in the American Grand Prize AAA race held on the Santa Monica Road Race Course in February of 1914.
Gallery of Edward Rickenbacker
1915
San Francisco, United States
Edward Rickenbacker driving in the 1915 American Grand Prize at San Francisco.
Gallery of Edward Rickenbacker
1955
Edward Rickenbacker, then chairman of the board of Eastern Airlines, Harlow H. Curtice, then president of General Motors Corporation, and Edward B. Newill, then vice president of General Motors Corporation.
Gallery of Edward Rickenbacker
1942
Edward Rickenbacker, Adelaide Rickenbacker, and Lieutenant-general Henry H. Arnold.
Gallery of Edward Rickenbacker
1942
Edward Rickenbacker shaking hands with Henry L. Stimson.
Gallery of Edward Rickenbacker
1943
Edward V. Eddie Rickenbacker holding a press conference.
Gallery of Edward Rickenbacker
1943
Samoa
American fighter ace Edward Rickenbacker is reunited with Sergeant James Reynolds outside a hospital in Samoa.
Gallery of Edward Rickenbacker
1918
Portrait of American fighter pilot Edward Rickenbacker.
Gallery of Edward Rickenbacker
1918
210 Sweeney Blvd, Hampton, VA 23665, United States
American fighter pilot Edward Rickenbacker, a commanding officer in the United States 94th Aero Pursuit Squadron, poses next to a fighter during World War I.
Gallery of Edward Rickenbacker
1918
France
Edward Rickenbacker and Air Service Pilots of the 94th Aero Squadron in France, June 1918.
Gallery of Edward Rickenbacker
1918
Edward Rickenbacker in his SPAD S.XIII.
Gallery of Edward Rickenbacker
1919
Captain Edward Rickenbacker
Gallery of Edward Rickenbacker
Edward Rickenbacker is flanked by 94th Aero Squadron pilots.
Achievements
1950
Edward Rickenbacker on the cover of Time magazine.
Membership
Awards
Croix de guerre 1914–1918
The Croix de guerre 1914–1918 that Edward Rickenbacker was awarded.
Legion of Honor
The Legion of Honor that Edward Rickenbacker was awarded.
Medal of Honor
The Medal of Honor that Edward Rickenbacker was awarded in 1931.
Army Distinguished Service Cross
The Army Distinguished Service Cross that Edward Rickenbacker was awarded.
Medal for Merit
The Medal for Merit that Edward Rickenbacker was awarded.
World War I Victory Medal
The World War I Victory Medal that Edward Rickenbacker was awarded.
Tony Jannus Award
The Tony Jannus Award that Edward Rickenbacker was awarded in 1967.
210 Sweeney Blvd, Hampton, VA 23665, United States
American fighter pilot Edward Rickenbacker, a commanding officer in the United States 94th Aero Pursuit Squadron, poses next to a fighter during World War I.
Edward Rickenbacker, then chairman of the board of Eastern Airlines, Harlow H. Curtice, then president of General Motors Corporation, and Edward B. Newill, then vice president of General Motors Corporation.
Edward Rickenbacker, center, is helped to a jeep by Colonel Robert L. Griffin, Jr., left, and an unidentified member of the rescue plane's crew, after being flown to a South Pacific base following his rescue after 22 days afloat in a rubber raft.
(Eddie Rickenbacker's WWI memoirs were first published in ...)
Eddie Rickenbacker's WWI memoirs were first published in 1919 and reveal the bravery of men leaping into dangerous contraptions 15,000 feet above the Earth, fighting for their cause and fighting for life.
Edward Vernon Rickenbacker was an American fighter ace in World War I and an early automobile race driver. He also served as President, Eastern Airlines from 1938 to 1959.
Background
Ethnicity:
Edward Rickenbacker's parents were Swiss German-speaking immigrants.
Edward Rickenbacker was born on October 8, 1890, in Columbus, Ohio, United States. He was the third of 8 children to Wilhelm Rickenbacher and Elizabeth Basler.
Education
After Rickenbacker’s father died in 1904, he had to leave his education at 13, and earn to support his family. He took whatever jobs he could get and sold eggs, milk, newspapers. This was followed by a succession of jobs in a glass factory, foundry, brewery, shoe factory, and monument work. Rickenbacker was interested in engines and automobiles, so he pursued correspondence course in engineering.
Career
Edward Rickenbacker started his career in 1906 when he got a job as a mechanic with a racing car driver and part-owner of Frayer-Miller Automobile Co., Lee Frayer, and accompanied Frayer on races. While working for various automobile companies one after another, he rose from mechanic’s jobs to management ones. He also worked as a salesman for an automobile company Columbus Buggy Co.
In 1912, Rickenbacker went to work for automobile designer Fred Duesenberg. He also participated in car-racing and got a name for himself by winning several racing prizes. In 1914, at Daytona Beach, he set a new record of 134 miles per hour. Rickenbacker also raced for companies, including Peugeot and Maxwell. He continued to suffer injuries, and also lost part vision in one eye, but continued with his adventures. In November 1916, he went to California for Vanderbilt Cup Race, where he met the pilot and aircraft manufacturer Glenn Martin, with whom he enjoyed his first flying experience.
When the United States entered the war in 1917, Rickenbacker enlisted and was sent to Europe to be a driver on General John Joseph Pershing's staff. However, he had no intention of spending the war behind the wheel of a jeep. Rickenbacker wanted to fly fighter planes, and by August 1917, he had managed to get into flight training for the army air corps in Tours, France. He was assigned to the Ninety-fourth Aero Pursuit Squadron, also called the "Hat in the Ring" Squadron. He shot down his first plane on April 29, 1918. Within a month he shot down his fifth and became an ace. In September 1918, he was promoted to captain and commander of the squadron. Rickenbacker reached a personal total of twenty-six kills on November 10, 1918, just one day before the end of the war.
Rickenbacker was discharged from the Army Air Service in 1919. Post this, he was given the rank of Major, which he never used. He felt the rank of captain was the only one that was earned and deserved. Back in the United States after the war, Rickenbacker launched his automobile company, Rickenbacker Motor Company, with the help of some executives. The first car with his design of 4-wheel brakes was produced in 1922. But severe competition and the recession led the company to bankruptcy in 1927. He had to pay a debt of around a quarter a million dollars. For a brief period in 1926, he launched Florida Airways, but this commercial aviation experience too was short-lived. In November 1927, Rickenbacker bought a major stake in the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. He served as president of the company from 1927 to 1941, when he closed in order to save valuable fuel during the war’. He later sold it to Anton Hulman Jr. in 1945.
In 1934, Rickenbacker accepted the job of general manager at Eastern Air Lines. The company had been newly formed from Eastern Air Transport and was not doing well, losing $1.5 million in 1934. Under Rickenbacker's management, however, things began to turn around. In 1938, Eastern made $38,000 in profits, and Rickenbacker was made president. He held this post until 1959 and also served as chairman of their board of directors from 1954 to 1963.
By the end of the 1930s, the United States was once again approaching war, but this time Rickenbacker was not enthusiastic. However, when war came, he did not refuse to serve his country. He acted as a representative of the secretary of war, traveling to various military bases as an inspector and advisor. In mid-1943, Rickenbacker went to the USSR and China for 3 months to assess the use of American equipment by the Russians.
In the 1960s, Rickenbacker became a well-known speaker. He shared his vision for the future of technology and commerce. He also wrote two autobiographical books, Fighting the Flying Circus and Seven Came Through: Rickenbacker's Full Story. Edward Rickenbacker died on July 23, 1973.
(The true account of 21 days adrift in a life raft by a fa...)
1943
Politics
Edward Rickenbacker had made himself unpopular in Washington, District of Columbia, in 1934, for criticizing President Franklin D. Roosevelt's hostility to the aviation industry.
Politically, Rickenbacker was always an arch-conservative. In the 1960s he devoted more time to speaking for conservative causes. He said that conservatives must face up to liberalism. At the same time his opinions about world affairs changed from resistance to Communist ideological domination of the world to fear of Communist-inspired race war in Asia and Africa.
Views
Quotations:
"Aviation is proof that given, the will, we have the capacity to achieve the impossible."
"I would rather have a million friends than a million dollars."
"Courage is doing what you are afraid to do. There can be no courage unless you are scared."
"The four cornerstones of character on which the structure of this nation was built are: Initiative, Imagination, Individuality and Independence."
"Fighting in the air is not a sport. It is scientific murder."
Membership
Edward Rickenbacker was a member of the Siwanoy Country Club.
Personality
Those who knew Edward Rickenbacker said that he was a brave yet kind and humble man. John F. Ross said that Rickenbacker was the character trait of courage.
Edward Rickenbacker an avid golfer, often playing at the Siwanoy Country Club course near his home in Bronxville.
Rickenbacker was a naughty child and led a gang of boys called Horsehead Gang.
Physical Characteristics:
On February 26, 1941, a DC-3 in which Rickenbacker was traveling as a passenger, crashed near Atlanta, killing 2 pilots and 11 passengers. He was seriously injured with a broken pelvis and hip socket, several broken ribs, fractured skull, and head injuries, damaged left eye, and more wounds. With many grave injuries, he tried to help and console others. Rickenbacker returned to work after nearly 1 year.
Captain Rickenbacker suffered from a stroke in 1972 but recovered from it. Later they went to Switzerland for his wife’s treatment, where he died of pneumonia on July 23, 1973.
Interests
Sport & Clubs
Golf
Connections
Eddie Rickenbacker married Adelaide Frost Durant in 1922. She was 5 years his senior and had been married previously. They later adopted David Edward and William Frost.
Father:
William Rickenbacher
Mother:
Elizabeth (Basler) Rickenbacher
Mother:
Adelaide Pearl Rickenbacker
Brother:
William Rickenbacher
Brother:
Louis Rickenbacher
Brother:
Dewey Rickenbacher
Brother:
Albert W Rickenbacher
Sister:
Mary Rickenbacher
Sister:
Emma Rickenbacher
Sister:
Louisa Richenbacher
Son:
William Frost Rickenbacker
Son:
David Rickenbacker
Friend:
Hans C. Adamson
References
Enduring Courage: Ace Pilot Eddie Rickenbacker and the Dawn of the Age of Speed
For the first time, Enduring Courage peels back the layers of hero to reveal the man himself. With impeccable research and a gripping narrative, John F. Ross tells the unforgettable story of a man who pushed the limits of speed, endurance and courage and emerged as an American legend.
2014
Eddie Rickenbacker
A gripping biography of Eddie Rickenbacker, an American fighter ace in World War I and Medal of Honor recipient, who lived on the frontline of aviation, military and civilian.
2013
Rickenbacker's luck: An American life
Eddie Rickenbacker was one of those rare heroes who enjoyed enduring fame. His remarkable victories as a fighter pilot in 1918, his many brushes with death throughout a long life coupled with the courage with which he confronted danger, his willingness to express his views openly, and his success in the airline business– all these made him a renowned popular hero in his day and beyond.
From the captain to the colonel
An account of Eastern Airline's history and of the personalities who shaped it, from its early years led by Eddie Rickenbacker, to the present leadership of Frank Borman.