Born: 12 November 1905, United States
Died: 9 November 1979
Country most active: United States
Also known as: Iris Louise McPhetridge
The following is republished from the Federal Aviation Administration and was written by Theresa Kraus, Ph.D. This piece falls under under public domain, as copyright does not apply to “any work of the U.S. Government” where “a work prepared by an officer or employee of the U.S. Government as part of that person’s official duties” (See, 17 U.S.C. §§ 101, 105).
“There is a decided prejudice on the part of the general public against being piloted by a woman . . .”
In 1929, she became the first pilot to hold the women’s altitude, endurance and speed records in light planes simultaneously.
In 1936, Thaden and her co-pilot Blanche Noyes won the Bendix Trophy Race in the first year women were allowed to compete against men.
During the first National Women’s Air Derby in 1929, women flying the race faced “threats of sabotage and headlines that read, ‘Race Should Be Stopped.’”
Louise Thaden defeated her colleagues in the derby – a transcontinental race from Santa Monica, California, to Cleveland, Ohio. Twenty women were entered in the race.