The primary reason Ortman had
first been chosen to pilot the new Marcoux-Bromberg was
because of his experience flying earlier Keith Rider racing
plane designs. In addition, he was an extremely competent
and skilful pilot.
Rider R-2 [NX52Y] with Earl Ortman
1938 was a very busy year for
Ortman. Not only did he fly the Marcoux-Bromberg in the
Golden Gate International Air Races (where he won the
"unlimited" race), but he competed in the National Air Races
in Cleveland later that year, again in the Marcoux-Bromberg,
placing second in the Thompson Trophy Race. Before the
Thompson, however, he flew in the Greve Trophy Race, which
was limited to those aircraft with a powerplant of 500-cubic
inches displacement, or less.
Ortman flew the Keith Rider R-5
"Jackrabbitt" in the 1938 Greve, and was awarded 4th place,
averaging a slow 192.503 mph.
After the 1938 National Air
Races were history, Ortman was hired to test the Military
Aircraft HM-1, which had been built by the Granville
Brothers, of Springfield, MA. Actually the HM-1 was a
rebuilt military version of "Time Flies," one of the most
beautiful airplanes ever built. Both had been designed by
CAHA member Howell Miller, who worked for the Granville
Brothers at the time.
The HM-1 had also competed in
the 1938 National Air Races in Cleveland, placing fourth in
the Thompson, flown by Leigh Wade. After the race, Ortman
flew the HM-1 from Cleveland to Hartford, Conn.
The HM-1 had been tested and
rejected by the Air Corps, not because of performance, but
because it was not an all-metal aircraft. Ortman had been
hired to gather data about the airplane which would make it
appealing to foreign powers.
A twenty-five mile course was
laid out over East Hartford, Conn., above Rentschler Field,
adjacent to the Pratt & Whitney Aircraft factory. Ortman
made four passes over the course in the HM-1, achieving an
average speed of 369 mph, which was 80 mph faster than the
Seversky P-35, then the newest fighter in the Air Corps
The next phase of the testing
called for determination of climb rates. Ortman was to start
at 1,000 feet and climb to 10,000 feet. He would then dive
back down to 1,000 feet and start up on another climb. On
his final dive, the airplane reached a reported 425 mph. The
stresses placed on the wings were too great and the wings
ripped off. Ortman bailed out, but the HM-1 was destroyed.
It had been reported that a pilot with lesser ability than
Ortman would probably have been killed in this incident,
although poor fuel management between the fuel tanks was
determined to be the cause of the accident.
After World War II, Earl Ortman
returned to the national air racing scene, although the
Marcoux-Bromberg had been all but forgotten by most. In
1946, Ortman piloted a Lockheed P-38 to 5th place in the
Sohio Trophy Race, averaging 303.903 mph. A couple of days
later, Ortman flew in the prestigious Thompson Trophy Race,
and for the fifth time, saw another pilot win the prized
trophy. Flying a North American P-51D, Ortman finished third
behind Tex Johnson's Cobra II and Tony LeVier's P-38, with
an average speed of 367.625 mph.
This had been another example
of Ortman's outstanding ability as a race pilot. Within two
days, he not only performed competently in the stress-filled
pylon races, but he raced in two completely different
aircraft, including the twin-engine Lightning.
The last national air race that
Ortman was to take part in was the 1948 Continental Motors
Race, held in Miami, Fla., which was limited to
Continental-powered aircraft, similar to the "Goodyear" or
"Formula One" class. Flying the Loose Special, he finished
fourth in the race, averaging a slow 127.339 mph.
There were reports that Ortman
was just not himself anymore. He was no longer flying with
the skill and daring of former years. He had always been an
extremely nervous individual, known for going through packs
of Lucky Strike cigarettes and roll after roll of hard candy
when he could not smoke, and some said that he turned to
drinking more heavily toward the end. He was to die shortly
after, in the arms of Bill Sweet, famed announcer of the
National Air Races.
It was only fitting that Sweet
should be with Ortman at the end, after witnessing and
reporting to the crowds the many exciting and harrowing
aerial duels between Earl Ortman and Roscoe Turner and
others during the "Golden Age" of air racing.