Roy T. Hurley*
Class of 1956
- President Curtiss-Wright Company
I was determined to learn all I needed to pursue my dream of working in the aviation industry.
Roy Hurley was born in 1896 in New York City. He never completed his formal education. Instead, he enrolled in several mail-order courses and read library textbooks to learn about his passion, aeronautics. He entered that field as an aircraft engine mechanic at B. F. Sturtevant Company, an aviation factory.
Later, he became a plane inspector during World War I and headed the production staff at Bendix Aviation Company. He served during World War II and was appointed president of Curtiss-Wright Corp. in 1949. He later served as chairman of the board at Curtiss-Wright. His knowledge and experience in the field of aerodynamics accounted for his meteoric rise in his profession.