Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and Careers in Aviation Inc. will revisit aviation's early days by sponsoring a national barnstorming tour with a difference. In 1926, not long after the Wright brothers' first flight, John Paul Riddle, one of the school's founders, was giving aerial joyrides in Jennys and Wacos to drum up business for his fledgling flying business in Cincinnati, Ohio.

On Jan. 24, Jamail Larkins, a 19-year-old aviation business student at Embry-Riddle's Daytona Beach, Fla., campus, will update that tradition when he begins a 20-city national tour piloting a new Cirrus SR20 aircraft. His mission: get youngsters in middle schools and high schools along the way thinking about careers in aviation.

Embry-Riddle's partner in the tour is Careers in Aviation, an organization that seeks to raise young people's awareness about opportunities in aviation. Sponsors are Aeroshell, AirShares Elite, Cirrus, Cox Communications, Lift, and Michelin.

"We're very happy to join with Embry-Riddle in bringing this educational opportunity to young people across America," said Shawn Raker, president of Careers in Aviation. "It's a perfect way to spread the news about the many exciting careers in aviation and that the industry needs talented young people."

The national tour officially starts in Lakeland, Fla. Every Thursday, Larkins will fly the Cirrus to a different city, where he will visit schools, make presentations, and discuss aviation with students.

Students in schools included on Larkins' tour will be invited beforehand to write an essay answering the question, "How do you envision the next century of flight?" Judging will take place prior to each school visit. Winning essayists will be given the opportunity to fly with the Embry-Riddle student in the Cirrus the following Saturday.

Larkins, who is the national spokesperson for Careers in Aviation, will put students who want to learn more about aviation in touch with a Careers in Aviation representative or an EAA Young Eagles coordinator in their area.

Besides Lakeland, other stops on Larkins' national tour of middle schools and high schools are: 

Embry-Riddle and Careers in Aviation are in discussions with school districts in additional cities to be announced later.

Larkins started flying at the age of 12. Two years later, the Augusta, Ga., native became one of the youngest certified pilots in the United States when he soloed a powered aircraft in Canada. He completed his US solo shortly after his 16th birthday in a Cirrus SR20. He currently flies a high-performance Christen Eagle II aerobatic aircraft.

FMI: www.erau.edu/dreamlaunch