Ryann Willis

Historian

My name is Ryann Willis and I am the granddaughter of Jack Maddux, the aviation pioneer. When my grandmother died at 99, I was given her trove of never-seen-before photos of my grandfather and his airline. Included was a wonderful album of newspaper clippings created by my grandfather’s publicity department.

Five years of researching, organizing, identifying and digitizing Maddux Airlines documents and images has led me to have fallen in love with all things aviation. I hope to get my pilot’s license in the near future.
I am currently a member of the Aero Clubs of Southern and Northern California, The National Aviation Hall of Fame and the National Aeronautic Association.

I have finished a book about Jack Maddux and a second one, The McCains: Fortune Favors the Brave, about my first cousin, the former Arizona senator and presidential candidate John S. McCain, from the maternal side of my family.

I have been an art dealer and consultant for 25 years and also worked for Chanel, Inc. and Apple Inc. I am a proud graduate of UCLA.