Northwest Aerospace News December | January Issue No. 12 | Page 10

A
fearless entrepreneur, T. Higbee Embry, and a barn-
storming life-long learner, John Paul Riddle, struck up
a partnership on the 22nd anniversary of the Wright
brothers’ flight at Kitty Hawk. It was 1925 and with
no real roadmap these two aviation junkies jumped
headlong into the winds of the future with only
their shared passion and instinct that a tailwind
would carry them where they needed to go. Little
did they know that tailwind would turn into a global
jet stream that would forever guide and contribute to
the overall growth of aerospace worldwide.
The Embry-Riddle Company launched a multi-faceted
journey into aviation to include services like airmail carri-
ers, aircraft sales, flight schools, thrill rides, and air shows.
They were even credited with starting the first travel agency
when they began selling seats to passengers on scheduled
mail routes. Within five short years, Embry-Riddle’s flying
school was one of the first to be certified under the newly
established Department of Commerce - Air Commerce Act.
As is typical with high growth companies, Embry-Riddle
suffered setbacks, growing pains, and hard knocks that in-
cluded the retirement and eventual death of Embry in 1946.
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NORTHWEST AEROSPACE NEWS
Riddle’s dream of building an “Air University” came to
fruition by 1939 after relocating to Florida, finding a new
partner, John McKay, and launching the Embry-Riddle
School of Aviation, known today as Embry-Riddle Aero-
nautical University (ERAU). The impending threat of
WWII drove enrollment and program expansion to include
military flight training, an engine division, and an instru-
ment division. The impact Embry-Riddle had on the suc-
cessful provision of skilled and trained airmen, mechanics,
and technicians to the war effort was unprecedented.