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 Ira Bortles, 97 year old pioneering aviator, folded his wings Sunday 6th May 2007, to join his loving wife Evelyn, who departed just under two years ago.

Ira grew up as a hard working farm boy in the tough, unforgiving dry-land farming region of NE Colorado. Inspired by Lindberg’s historic cross-Atlantic flight, Ira determined to become a pilot as well. A gifted mechanic, he wired his father’s iron-wheeled Fordson tractor with lights – perhaps the first ever – so he could cultivate and plant 320 acres of wheat at night, the only time that the tractor was available. This was to pay for his $2,000 tuition at the Curtiss Wright Flying School in Denver, Colorado.

The day before harvest, his crop was hailed out and his flying hopes were dashed with it. Believing in his dream, his father borrowed the funds Ira needed, and he soloed in October 1929, in a Challenger Fledgling. His dream, his transformation from farm boy to aviator had been accomplished, and soon was with the Clinesmith Flying Circus, barnstormed in Colorado, Nebraska and Kansas in his OX-5 Robin; and was a contract aviator until he joined Northwest Airlines in 1939.

He was later to be the first to fly a jet airliner into Japan, Korea, and the Philippines for NWA. Later, he established a record that stands today: the fastest Honolulu-Portland time in a 707. His 1969 mandatory retirement at 60 from Northwest allowed him to fulfill another dream, to slooowly sail to Hawaii with his youngest son Lynel.

In 1950 he, Evelyn and two oldest sons Larry and Dan, moved into his new home on West Mercer Way, in which he lived to the last.

He is survived by his three sons, 9 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren.
A service celebrating Ira’s earthly arrival and departure to new heights will be held at the Mercer Island Emmanuel Eposcopal Church on Tuesday, 15th May at 2 PM, with a reception following the service. You may contact the family at l.bortles@amphiltech.com or at 206-418-6337. You may also view highlights of Ira’s life – and make your own blog comments – in the comment box at the bottom of this page.

Last year, after hearing nearly countless stories by Dad of his early days of barnstorming and doing the “weather hop” in biplanes, I found a fellow offering biplane rides at the local Arlingon municipal airport. When I told Dave Howie what I wanted to do, he said he would be honored to take him up.So, on a fine day in March 2005 brothers Dan and Lynel met Dad and me at Arlington, and we inspected Dave’s beautiful 1929 Fleet biplane, as well as another gentleman’s restored TravelAir. As I noted in my logs the day prior, “The planes’ owner, Dave Howie, is really keen to meet Dad and talk with him about his early flying days. He’s also told me that a fellow who retired from Northwest just a year ago – Bill Parents – will be there to meet Dad too, who remarked ‘Ira Bortles! He’s a legend!’ “

Then on 12th March I wrote: “We had a GREAT time yesterday at Arlington Airport! The weather was perfect and our host – Dave Howie, the owner of a 1929 Fleet biplane – was tremendous!

Ira’s log books – beginning in October 1929 – were a focus of attention and discussion, right down to the details on each flight’s weather conditions, his mid-air engine stalls and field landings, his passenger shooting three coyotes and his helping in spotting an escaped fugitive. One of the fellows exclaimed “He’s flown all of the old great planes!”

Dad had expressed some reluctance at taking a spin in the biplane, probably due to his back pain, but as soon as he had his hand on the plane Dave asked him if he wanted to get into the air, he said “let’s go!”

Upon landing, he couldn’t stop smiling.

Dave then took him to the airport restaurant in his beautifully restored Model T Speedster where he talked to more pilots keen to hear his stories. After that we had a private showing of Paul Allen’s collection of vintage WW II warplanes – US, German, Japanese and Russian. Even included an original German V2 rocket!

Returning home, Dad couldn’t stop exclaiming what a wonderful day he had had, with his memories, the planes and his three sons.”

Ira’s Biplane Flight Video Clip

Ira Bortles’ Flying History

Private Pilot License Number 11469, granted 15 October 1929

Born in December 1909 in Council Bluffs, Iowa. Bortles moved to northeastern Colorado in 1917. He attended the Curtiss Wright Flying School in Denver, Colorado, soloing in October 1929, in a Challenger Fledgling, with Ray Wilson his instructor. Receiving a limited commercial pilot rating in April 1930, Ira barnstormed in a Hisso Eaglerock. He then flew with the Clinesmith Flying Circus in South Dakota and Minnesota in a Challenger Robin during the summer of 1931. In 1932 he barnstormed in Colorado, Nebraska and Kansas in his Robin.

In 1933 Ira instructed in an 0X5 Long Wing Eaderock Nebraska and Colorado in 1933. Responding to new opportunities, he flew an Axelson Travelair and a Kinner Bird out of Laramie, Wyoming during 1934-35. For the next two years, Ira contracted with The US Weather Bureau to fly daily weather flights to 17,000 feet with a Wright J-6-7 Travelair 4-D.

For the period 1936 to 1939, Ira did aerial mapping with Wallace Aerial Surveys in Spokane, Washington for the U.S. Government. Flying Stinsons and 71 Fairchilds, he mapped Missouri, Iowa. Colorado. Wyoming, Pennsylvania and Washington.

In 1938 he was commissioned a 2nd and then a 1st Lieutenant in the 116th Observation Squadron in Washington. He was also in the Air National Guard in Spokane. Washington. He was flying 0-38s, C-47s and BC1A.

In July 1939 Ira joined Northwest Airlines, retiring in December 1969. During his career with Northwest, Ira flew domestic, Hawaiian and Orient routes – with 3 years in mainland Alaska, the Aleutian Islands and Canada on contract to the ATC in support of the US Northern WWII program during 1942-44. The NWA aircraft. Ira has flown were the Lockheed Electra 10-A, Constellation 1049; the Douglas DC-3, DC-4, DC-6, DC-7, DC-8; the Boeing 377, 707 (720-320); the Martin 202; and the Curtiss. Wright C-46.

Wings Folded

The Seattle Times
Sunday 7, 1969 by Marjorie Jones

Mercer Island Pilot Retires After 30 Years with Airline

The final Northwest Airlines flight of the old barnstormer, Ira Bortles, hardly could have have been more dramatic, he said.

As he was touching down at the Seattle-Tacoma Airport after a flight from the Orient, the fire trucks were called out and all other emergency procedures followed. It might have been staged but it wasn’t.

“It was a real emergency.” Bortles chucked as he relaxed at his home at 6753 W. Mercer Way, Mercer Island.”We lost hydraulic fluid in the utility system and it called for emergency procedure.”

It was a safe landing and added to Bortles” perfect record after 30 1/2 years as a pilot for Northwest Airlines.

” I never hurt a passenger, although I once had to squirt carbon dioxide on an unruly drunk, and I’ve never had to bailout,” he said.

BORTLES’ flying career was inspired by the Lindberg flight in 1927 and goes back to 1929 when he graduated as a member of the first class in a school operated by Curtis Wright in Denver.

The 50 hours of instruction cost $1,300. Bortles worked day and night to help his father get in his crop at Haxtun Colo., to get the money. Then he had a job with rubber firm in Denver, arising at 4 a.m. to get in his flying hours before work.

” I was down to 145 pounds, but it was worth it,” he said. “I’ve done what I wanted to do all my life.”

He recalled the simple navigation techniques of early day flying.

” I used a road map and if I got lost I’d fly over a railway station, get the name from it and go on from there,” he said.

Bortles did stunt flying for a “flying circus” and was a wather pilot in Spokane. He then bought a plane with a downpayment of $500, mostly borrowed from a friend.

HE DID aerial surveys for mapping many states, including part of Washington. While doing this in 1938 he wasmarried and flew to Pennsylvania with this bride to map that state.

Bortles joined Northwest Airlines in 1939 and has been in the Seattle area since 1947. He has flown 28,000 hours and has no idea how many miles.

Not a smoker and a “very light” drinker, Bortles exercise 30 minutes a day and often swims an hour or so. Except for the next couple of weeks, he has no intention of staying out of the cockpit.

“I think I’ll go up to Alaska and get involved in flying there, perhaps in connection with the oil field,” he said. “I don’t want to lose my touch.

Lynel Bortles, 18, a nephew whom the Bortles adopted, said his dad is “in better shape than I am.”

The Bortles have two sons, Larry, 30 a businessman in Honolulu, and Dan, 29, who lives in Medina and works for the National Bank of Wahington, Tacoma.

Bortles, whose company praised him as a “most successful pilot” and thanked him for a job “well done,’ someday may give up his pilots wings for water wings.

He’s thinking of buying a sail boat and touching down on some of the far-distant ports in the orient he has gotten to know so well as a pilot.