Wien was born in Lake Nebagamon, Wisconsin, but the family moved to a homestead in 1905, to a place now called Cook, Minnesota.
After a few more flying jobs, on 2 Sept. 1922, Wien had enough money to put a downpayment on a Thomas-Morse S-4, which he owned for two weeks, unable to make the final payment.
Then on 6 July, Wien and Bill Yunker, made the first flight from Anchorage to Fairbanks, flying from Delaney Park Strip to Weeks Field.
Then, on 19 Aug. 1924, Wien made the first bush flight to Livengood, Alaska in support of the mining operations located there, making the trip in under an hour when it took several days via dog sled.
In Feb. 1925, Wien purchased a Fokker F. III from Atlantic Aircraft in New Jersey and had it shipped to Rodebaugh's newly formed Fairbanks Airplane Company.
[2]: 38 [3] Noel and Ralph Wien went into partnership with Gene Miller, and purchased a very used Hisso Standard from the Fairbanks Airplane Co. in 1927.
[1]: 183, 194, 199 [2]: 39–40 At the end of the summer of 1927, Noel went into business for himself, purchasing a Stinson Detroiter he could fly year round, from Hubert Wilkins.
Noel, and his Wien Alaska Airways, started a regular weekly round trip flight between Fairbanks and Nome.
[1]: 255–256, 260 [2]: 55–58 In March 1929, Noel and Ralph bought and refurbished a Stearman from Arctic Prospecting and Development Company, which had crashed and was abandoned on Walker Lake.
The flight was at the request of the Swenson Herskovitz Trading Company to fly furs out of an ice bound Elisif.
[1]: 288–291, 294, 299 [2]: 128–129, 244–246 Wien and Vic Ross achieved the "biggest scoop of the year" in 1935, according to Ira Harkey, when they delivered Alfred Lomen and his film of the Post-Rogers crash to Seattle for International News Service, ahead of a competing flight chartered by the Associated Press.
They then made the first Seattle to Fairbanks passenger flight on 28-31 Aug.[1]: 305–318 [2]: 248–252 In 1935, Wien contracted polio, but survived with only a limp in his right leg, and continued to fly.