Lowell Bayles
| Lowell Richard Bayles | |
|---|---|
| Born |
January 24, 1900 Mason, Illinois |
| Died | December 5, 1931 (aged 31) Wayne County Airport, Detroit, Michigan |
| Cause of death | Airplane crash |
| Nationality | U.S.A. |
| Aviation career | |
| First flight | 1924 |
| Famous flights |
Cirrus Derby |
| Awards | Thompson Trophy 1931 |
Cirrus Derby
Lowell Richard Bayles (January 24, 1900 - December 5, 1931) was an air race pilot from the "Golden Age of Air Racing." He was the winner of the 1931 Thompson Trophy flying the Gee Bee Model Z. Bayles was killed in the crash of the Model Z during an attempt at the landplane speed record when the plane crashed at over 300 miles per hour (483 km/h) mph.
Bayles was born in Mason, Illinois on January 24, 1900, the oldest child of Hattie and Robert E. Bayles. He graduated from Newton, Illinois High School and attended the University of Illinois in mining engineering, but was forced to leave due to eye trouble. He was working as an electrician in various mines around Illinois when he began taking flying lessons.
Bayles began taking flying lessons from a former World War I instructor pilot. He eventually bought a surplus Curtiss JN-4 Jenny The Jenny was lost when he stopped over in Herrin, Illinois during a gang war between Charlie Birger and the Shelton Brothers Gang. Birger had been bombed from the air and he mistook Bayles' plane for the bomber and had the plane dynamited.
After a stint back in the mines, Bayles began barnstorming around the country. In 1928 he partnered with H. Roscoe Brinton starting a flying service in Springfield, Massachusetts.
Due to the Great Depression, orders for aircraft had stopped and the Granville Brothers Aircraft Company saw the air racing circuit as a way to stay in business. To raise seed money for the air racing operation, the "Springfield Air Racing Association" (SARA) was formed. A group of local Springfield merchants and businessmen who sought to promote Springfield bought shares to fund creation of the racing planes. Bayles added $500 of his own money to be the pilot in the venture.
...
Wikipedia