Einar Riis

Einar Riis (19 October 1922 – 30 May 2006), was a Norwegian Consul in Rome, aircraft broker, husband of Mrs. Amelia Riis, daughter of shipowner Kristoffer Olsen. He was born in Vestre Aker, Oslo, Norway on 19 October 1922 and died in Arvika, Sweden on 30 May 2006.

Einar Riis grew up in Ljan, just outside Oslo, Norway, the 3rd of 4 brothers. During the war he was active in the Norwegian Resistance Movement, and participated in several famous sabotage actions against the occupying forces. Among these the temerarious sinking of German military ships in the harbor of Oslo (Operation Mardonius), described in the Norwegian Resistance hero Max Manus' book "Det vil helst gå godt" and in the movie Max Manus: Man of War.

In the later stages of the war, Riis fled to Canada via Sweden. At the Royal Norwegian Air Force Base in Canada called Little Norway, Einar trained to become a Spitfire pilot.

After the war, E. Riis moved first to France then to Italy. He served as honorary Consul for Norway in Rome and was Olympic Attache' for the Norwegian Team in the 1960 Rome Summer Olympics. In 1956 Einar married Amelia Olsen, daughter of shipowner Kristoffer Olsen sr., founder of the Olsen & Ugelstad shipping company.

E. Riis worked initially as a shipping broker and entered at the same time the aviation business (“Einar Riis in the Daily American 1960”). He was responsible for the Italian branch of the Norwegian airline Braathens, but soon started his own company, the E. Riis & Company, acting as legal representative for hundreds of international air carriers flying into Italy, handling traffic rights, organizing cargo and passenger charters, as well as sale and purchase of large transport category aircraft. He was shareholder of Aerolinee Itavia. In Oslo he started the "E. Riis Flyrederi" company, owning three Douglas DC-3 aircraft at Fornebu airport.

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