The thermal decomposition of ethyl and propyl iodides, along with select isotopomers, up to 1300 K was performed by flash pyrolysis with a 20-100 mu s time scale. The pyrolysis was followed by supersonic expansion to isolate the reactive intermediates and initial products, and detection was accomplished by vacuum ultraviolet single photon ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometry (VUV-SPI-TOFMS). The products monitored, such as CH3, CH3I, C2H5, C2H4, HI, I, C3H7, C3H6, and I-2, provide for the simultaneous and direct observation of molecular elimination and bond fission pathways in ethyl and propyl iodides. In the pyrolysis of ethyl iodide, both C-I bond fission and HI molecular elimination pathways are competitive at the elevated temperatures, with C-I bond fission being preferred; at temperatures >= 1000 K, the ethyl radical products further dissociate to ethene + H atoms. In the pyrolysis of isopropyl iodide, both HI molecular elimination and C-I bond fission are observed and the molecular elimination channel is more important at all the elevated temperatures; the isopropyl radicals produced in the C-I fission channel undergo further decomposition to propene + H at temperatures >= 850 K. In contrast, bond fission is found to dominate the n-propyl iodide pyrolysis; at temperatures >= 950 K the n-propyl radicals produced decompose into methyl radical + ethene and propene + H atom. Isotopomer experiments characterize the extent of surface reactions and verify that the HI molecular eliminations in ethyl and propyl iodides proceed by a C1, C2 elimination mechanism (the 1,2 intramolecular elimination).