Louise Thaden was born Louise McPhetridge in Bentonville,
Arkansas on November 12, 1905. She earned her pilot
certificate in May 1928.
By April of 1929, she had set international women's records
for altitude, endurance and speed, becoming the first -- and
only -- pilot to hold all three marks simultaneously. Also in
April, she became the fourth female pilot in America to earn a
transport pilots license.
On August 26, 1929, Louise Thaden won the first-ever Women's
Air Derby, and later that year was a founder member of the
International Organization of Women Pilots, the Ninety-Nines.
In 1936, with her co-pilot Blanche Noyes, she became the first
woman to win the Bendix Trophy Race and set a transcontinental
speed record for women in the process.
Although she retired from racing in 1937, Louise Thaden remained
active in aviation and encouraged women to pursue aerospace careers
through her writing. In later years she served on the Defense
Advisory Committee on Women in the Service and held numerous
positions with the Civil Air Patrol. She died on November 9,
1979.
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