Who Killed Eastern?

As Eastern Air Lines bites the dust, I cannot fail to grieve, for it was the focus, the obsession, of my father’s life for the last half of his long career. Lest there be any doubt as to who was in charge, he spelled it out in big letters for the slow-witted: Chairman of the Board, Capt. E. V. Rickenbacker; President, Capt. E. V. Rickenbacker; Chief Executive Officer, Capt. E. V. Rickenbacker; General Manager, Capt. E. V. Rickenbacker. He and Laurance Rockefeller held working control of the stock, too.

The Civil Aeronautics Act had been passed in the late 1930s and served as a barrier to new competition in the airline industry. For thirty years no new airline was founded. When I finished my duties as a pilot in the Air Force and returned to New York in 1955, Laurance Rockefeller very kindly took me to lunch and permitted me to understand that my father wasn’t getting any younger and it would be a good thing to have another Rickenbacker coming along in the airline.

WR

About the Author

William F. Rickenbacker

Featured Tags

As Eastern Air Lines bites the dust, I cannot fail to grieve, for it was the focus, the obsession, of my father’s life for the last half of his long career. Lest there be any doubt as to who was in charge, he spelled it out in big letters for the slow-witted: Chairman of the Board, Capt. E. V. Rickenbacker; President, Capt. E. V. Rickenbacker; Chief Executive Officer, Capt. E. V. Rickenbacker; General Manager, Capt. E. V. Rickenbacker. He and Laurance Rockefeller held working control of the stock, too.

The Civil Aeronautics Act had been passed in the late 1930s and served as a barrier to new competition in the airline industry. For thirty years no new airline was founded. When I finished my duties as a pilot in the Air Force and returned to New York in 1955, Laurance Rockefeller very kindly took me to lunch and permitted me to understand that my father wasn’t getting any younger and it would be a good thing to have another Rickenbacker coming along in the airline.