The Seattle World Cruiser Association is a tax-deductible, publicly supported, nonprofit corporation, operating under the federal guidelines of 501.c(3) tax code for charitable organizations. Our business address is 550 Airport Way, Renton, Washington, 98057.

Our mission is to develop, implement and maintain programs which promote aviation history through public educational activities and projects.

We provide educational presentations to aviation and community groups as an ongoing process to promote public awareness, in recognition of Seattle's rich aviation heritage.

Our present project is the building of a reproduction Douglas World Cruiser. The Douglas World Cruiser was the first aircraft to fly around the world, in 1924. Flown by United States Army Air Service pilots in specially-built Douglas World Cruisers, DWCs, between 6 April and 28 September, 1924. The flight began with a "shake-down cruise" from Santa Monica, California on March 17th and the world flight officially started from Seattle's then Municipal Airport at Sand Point, on the shores of Lake Washington.

The SEATTLE II will feature authentic appearance, modern construction materials, and equipment updates for safety, reliability and performance.  When completed, the aircraft will celebrate the 1924 first world flight by following, as closely as possible, the original route around the world. At the closure of this flight, the aircraft itself, will be a permanent reminder of the great design of Donald Douglas, the vision, intelligence and courage of those who promoted, planned and flew this historic flight.

Our initial project has been our Build-A-Rib Program, where we will be working with community organizations, local youth groups, Civil Aviation Patrol Cadets, and other interested groups, by helping them accomplish their aviation merit awards and promote community awareness. The program began with the world flight and local aviation history, followed with a lesson in aerodynamics, using the airfoil to explain "lift". The conclusion of this introduction led to building an actual, full size, seven and one-half foot wing rib. Builders signed the ribs they were finished with varnish. These ribs have become part of the wings of the SEATTLE II, our reproduction of the World Cruiser, and will be flown around the world in a later phase of the program.

The build-a-rib program has brought Seattle World Cruiser to the next level, the Seattle II Program, which educates around the history of technologies, science, engineering, and math. This phase explores local and global technologies and translation of design. We are introducing technologies to students in historical and modern context of design solutions and as-built problems, using high-tech applications in reverse-engineering the historical documents and artifacts of the original World Cruisers of 1924.

We maintain a website that records these educational events, as well as the construction progress of building the aircraft. We hope these programs will provide a new and fresh community face on aviation, by bringing together aviation aficionados of all ages and provide learning opportunities for today's youth who are our aspiring pilots, engineers, scientists, teachers, and historians of tomorrow. Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University faculty member and Doctoral candidate, Diane W. Dempster, M.Ed., presides over these programs. As an educator and licensed pilot, she is available to mentor learners about aviation as an educational opportunity, recreational sport, and career field.