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Wall of Honor Level:
Air and Space Friend

Honored by:
Clare E. Plank

Lyle was born on Aug. 15, 1911 in Nebraska and was raised in the small town of Crete. After graduating from high school, he enrolled at Doane College (Crete) but was unable to complete his studies because he was needed in the family retail shoe business. In 1941, he was bit by the flying bug when, after winning a bet with a local flying instructor, he was paid off in flying lessons. In 1943, Lyle was hired by United Airlines, took his Airline Instrument Training in Denver and was assigned to United's Chicago domicile, initially flying DC-3s out of Midway Airport. In 1944, Lyle qualified for overseas flying with United and began flying C-87s and DC-4s, as copilot, with the Air Transport Command (ATC), later flying troops into Japan, aboard United aircraft, at the end of the war.
After the war, Lyle returned to domestic flying with United and was promoted to Captain in1946. Based in Denver, Colorado until 1962. Lyle flew DC-3s,DC-4s, DC-6s, and DC-7s on both East and West runs, until he was transferred to Los Angeles in 1962. Transitioning into the Jets, he flew Boeing 720s and DC-8s between the West and East Coasts, until his retirement in 1971, completing 28 years in commercial aviation. After retirement he became a Life Member in Retired United Pilots Association (RUPA).
Lyle's other passions were civic affairs and airline labor issues. Building on his youthful experience as President of the Nebraska Junior Chamber of Commerce, Lyle was elected as International President and Chairman of the Board of Sertoma International service organization in the late 1950s. In 1956, he received United's President's Award as the United employee who had made the most significant contributions to community service during the year. Also active in the Airline Pilots Association (ALPA), Lyle served on ALPA's Negotiating Committee in 1965 and 1966 and was instrumental in obtaining the most favorable contract, to that date, for United's pilots. Following his retirement from United, Lyle became Executive Director of the National Speech and Hearing Association, a position he held at the time of his death on August 31, 1974.