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A storybook of 27 years at Boeing Field
Del Bair Says:
This is Jim Galvin and his wife Marion.
Narrator Says:
There aren’t likely many people out there who can tell you as much about King County International Airport as Del Bair can. Del turned 84 on April 30th.
These days he lives at the Green Brier apartments in Woodinville. And if he’s forgotten anything about his near 30 years at the airport, all he’s got to do is refer back to this notebook. It’s a meticulous collection of pictures, names, and notes about all the people he worked with from 1947 to 1974. It doesn’t take long for Del to start telling the stories of the people pictured in his notebook.
Del Bair Says:
Clayton Scott? Clayton was the first man to fly solo across the Arctic Sea, and he was Boeing's chief test pilot for years and years, and he was 'Mister Aviation' really, and a great personality.
Narrator Says:
Del is originally from Utah, but he says he grew tired of the harsh winters, and moved out to the Pacific Northwest some time after he graduated high school.
Del Bair Says:
There's Gil Cook who was one of the owners of Washington Aircraft.
Narrator Says:
He worked a few different jobs at KCIA. First he was an aviation instrument technician, having received his training in the military.
Del Bair Says:
This man started an instrument repair shop and I went to work for him, and then I started my own and these three people were my first employees.
Narrator Says:
Del also served in World War II, he was stationed with the Navy in the South Pacific.
Del Bair Says:
And everywhere I went in the Navy I was given special privileges because I was a trained specialist, and they were in short supply.
Narrator Says:
A year after the war ended, Del returned to Seattle and the mild climates he had fallen in love with before he left for the war. He went on to own this jewelry shop where President Truman stopped to have his watch repaired during a visit to Seattle, and finally owned an instrument company of his own.
Del Bair Says:
This is Harold Hansen, Harold was very much involved, he brought the first surplus, the Avalon Beavers, and he was responsible for rebuilding them, for over a period of many years.
Narrator Says:
Del calls himself an amateur aviation historian, but with Seattle's rich aviation history, he would likely give the pro’s a run for their money.
Del Bair Says:
George Westinghouse was the grandson of the George Westinghouse, and he brought me an altimeter that his father had brought home from France in World War I. This was a guy designing a helicopter that never quite got off the ground. This is west coast airlines first jet-powered plane, jet prop, and Don Burkhart was the pilot.
Narrator Says:
Page after page of Del’s notebook is filled with those faces and their stories. Take for instance Horace Pentecost. His 'Hoppi-Copter' invention, a sort of personal helicopter was completed in 1945, and if you’ll pardon the pun, never really got off the ground.
Del Bair Says:
This was a man named Horace Pentecost, and he designed what he called a 'Hoppi-copter', you wear it on your back.
Narrator Says:
One recurring theme as Del flips from page to page is that many of the people in his notebook have passed away.
Del Bair Says:
This is Willy Willingham, he retired in his 60's, he's been an active pilot all that time, and he went deer hunting with a crew of his friends and they lost him and never found him again. This was one of my best friends, he was an expert engine mechanic, he rebuilt a million, he was killed in an accident, on a trip I was supposed to be on, and I had to cancel at the last minute.
Narrator Says:
In that way, Del’s notebook not only reminds him of all the people he knew over the years at the airport, but also immortalizes all the memories he accumulated with them. Much time may have passed since Del’s days at King County International Airport, but to him it seems like just yesterday.
Del Bair Says:
This is Charlie Redmon, he was one of my good friends, and this is his surface patrol boat, he sold it to Caribbean Airlines.
Narrator Says:
And everything he experienced in almost 30 years at KCIA, Are never farther away than the turn of a page.
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