Eddie Rickenbacker
Eddie Rickenbacker
Edward Vernon Rickenbackerwas an American fighter ace in World War I and Medal of Honor recipient. With 26 aerial victories, he was America's most successful fighter ace in the war. He was also a race car driver and automotive designer, a government consultant in military matters and a pioneer in air transportation, particularly as the longtime head of Eastern Air Lines...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionWar Hero
Date of Birth8 October 1890
CityColumbus, OH
CountryUnited States of America
Flying is one of the safest jobs in the Army as long as you don't drop out. If you do drop out, you are a dead man, and dropping out means, usually, that you have made a mistake or let go of your grip.
And I have yet to find one single individual who has attained conspicuous success in bringing down enemy aeroplanes who can be said to be spoiled either by his successes or by the generous congratulations of his comrades. If he were capable of being spoiled he would not have had the character to have won continuous victories, for the smallest amount of vanity is fatal in aeroplane fighting. Self-distrust rather is the quality to which many a pilot owes his protracted existence.
There is a peculiar gratification in receiving congratulations from one's squadron for a victory in the air. It is worth more to a pilot than the applause of the whole outside world.
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.
I can give you a six-word formula for success: "Think things through - then follow through."
Courage is about doing what you're afraid to do.
Aviation is proof that given, the will, we have the capacity to achieve the impossible.
I believe that if you think about disaster, you will get it. Brood about death and you will hasten your demise. Think positively and masterfully with confidence and faith, and life becomes more secure, more fraught with action, richer in achievement and experience. This is the sure way to win victories over inner defeat. It is the way a humble person meets life or death.
I don't care what you cover the seats with as long as you cover them with assholes.
I can see that aerial warfare is actually scientific murder.
The biggest lesson I've learned . . . was that if you have all the fresh water you want to drink and all the food you want to eat, you ought never to complain about anything.
The four cornerstones of character on which the structure of this nation was built are: Initiative, Imagination, Individuality and Independence.
Think positively and masterfully, with confidence and faith, and life become more secure, more fraught with action, richer in experience and achievement.