Albert "Al" DeMaria was born November 22, 1930, in Harlem, New York, to Mario and Christina (DiNapoli) DeMaria. Al was the youngest child of three. He lost his father at the age of 2 and was raised by his mother in a rough area of New York City during the Great Depression. Al's intense love for flying began around the age of 5, so by the time he got to high school he knew he wanted to attend the Manhattan High School of Aviation Trades in New York City. They taught math and science, as well as the fundamentals of aviation and aviation mechanics. At the age of 14 he got a job at a small airport in the outskirts of New York City. He pumped gas in exchange for flying lessons. He earned his pilot's license at the age of 16, which ironically was before he could earn his drivers License. In the late 1940's he tried to enlist in the Air Force, but was rejected due to a bought with Rheumatic Fever when he was a kid. He was disappointed, because he had always dreamt of becoming an Air Force pilot. Despite this set back, his passion for aviation remained.
In 1963, Al moved to Miami, Florida. He started his own successful business, Mark Products. It specialized in designing, engineering, and installing laboratory casework and equipment. Al incorporated flying into his work life. He would take his small planes around the state of Florida to make sales calls. Over the years he purchased several small aircraft. He would keep them for a few years, fix them up, and then sell them. He owned over fifteen single engine aircrafts, including Cessnas, a Comanche, a few Cherokees, etc. There was not a weekend that went by that Al could not be found at Tamiami Airport in Southern Florida. He would be either working on his planes; talking to fellow pilots in the coffee shop; or working at the Air Museum, assisting in the refurbishing of WWII Aircraft. Al did a stint as president of the Florida Air Pilots Association; was a member of Angel Flight that would assist in the transport of children to locations where they could receive proper medical attention; and was an active member of the Civil Air Patrol (CAP), which assisted in locating and retrieving of downed aircraft in the local area. Al logged almost 3,000 hours in his 51 years as a licensed private pilot and earned multi-engine aircraft and instrument ratings. His flight hours were meticulously recorded in logbooks capturing every one of his flights.
Albert DeMaria's passion stayed with him until he went to join God's Air Force, April 6, 2013.