BEC KLE Y
Bob Wilson
The magic word for the month of February
of 1958 was SNOW and more SNOW. For
14 days the temperature stayed below zero
and in that time snow of approximately 4
to five inches with drifts up to 3 to 5 ft.
The road at the gate of the airport to the
terminal building was closed and the only
way to get here was by a make shift high
way, and that wasn’t easy.
A fewof you must wonderwhat goeson when
flights are not operating and the weather
is bad. Well,the first thing is to wake up
and see how much snow you have to dig
out in order to get the old bus going,then
comes the best part - trying to get the
engine to turn over. This operation not
only requires a good battery but a strong
and sound mind as 50%of the time it doesn't
work. Then,trying to get to the field and,
if you don't know it - all airports in West
Virginia are located on top of amountain.
This of course is no problem as you already
have prepared yourself with the necessary
tools, which include snow grip tires and
chains, shovel, trunk full of sand with
salt. After topping the mountain and letting
the hitchhiker out ( forgot to mention that
is the other equipment you shanghi in order
to get to the top). So,after that, the road
is level and then the drifts come, and come
“".d come,
You open theoffice and sign on CKT,with
glov?s on of course as the terminal build
ing ftmperature is 30 degrees. After melt
ing the ice in the coffee pot and hdving a
cup of instant, the day starts.
V
During the month of February all equip
ment has been checked, the baggage cart
givenacouple of coats of paint, theoffice
painted and all wood-work cleaned. And
that my fellow employees is what goes on
when the weather is bad at Beckley, W.
Va.
Bob Wilson's new home should be completed
in the next couple of months and it is all
electric - even the heat.
The terminal building at BKW is in the pro
cess of a re-paint job. The hangar is com
pleted except for windows and the new
VOR is on test and should be completed in
the next three months.
The two local newspapers are giving the
people in the area the daily fl ight progress
on the flights for the winter operations -
that is the fl ights that overfly due to weather,
field conditions and non-revenue.
We now have AVIS U-Drive-lt at the field
as wel I as in town .
CHARLESTON
Ruth Miller
CHWhashad itsshare of bad snowy weather
for this winter, although It certainly hasn't
lowered the spirits of the regularparty peo
ple. Bill Scott had a "going away" party
in his home for Jim McNeill who trans
ferred to INT Feb. 1 . It was a surprise to
Mac and from all indications a good time
was had by all.
About twelve of us went bowling on Jan.
25 and although most of us had never bowled
before, we had a "slamming" good time.
High scores for the evening were made by
Bill Scott, Jim McNeill and Bill Cash.
Bill Hanson is a fine bowler and almost gets
down on his knees when he lets go of the
ball (says just praying that he‘11 get a strike
or a spare). We girls did right well too.
Enjoyed a visit from Tom Cowen, CVG.
We all were able to brush up on proper pro
cedures and obtain answers to many of our
questions on SIRP, NOSHO Penalties, etc.
Vacations are beginning and Frank Burns
is next. We bel ieve he plans to spend most
of his time flying as he does on al I his days
off. He pilots for Kanawha Aviation Air
Taxi Service and gets in a lot of hours. . .
just can't stay away from the airport.
V
Alway^enjoy the NRSA visitors and espe
cially those who come HOME for a visit with
their families. Visitswith many thismonth
included Joe High, Jack Kelley, Russell
Grass,all First Officers for PAl,and Evelyn
Fitzhugh-RIC and Mrs. Jirri Kendrick-PKB,
visiting her aunt. (Just a noterif you haven't
seen the Kendrick's little daughter, you
have missed something. All the passengers
comment on her. She's very friendly,and
right after Christmas she traveled with her
dol I, and both dol I and littlegirl are truly
lovely.
CHW has many interested in sports. There
are always discussions about the games be-
- 2 -
ing played: Basebal I, football, basketball,
just name the sport. Cash, Comer, and
MacCormick will miss kidding Me Neill
about W. Va . greatness how happy
they were he wasn’t here to kid about the
Duke-W. Va. basketball game. Every
Tuesday evening after work,several of the
boys go to South Charleston for a basket
ball workout with one of the local church
teams. The Cash family. Bill and Edith,
both play on the St. Albans PTA Men and
Women’s basketball teams.
We're all looking forward to spring and
summer, and the coming F-27. (t‘s true
1 958 holds much in store for ai I .
CHARLOTTE
A. J. Shulley
Charlotte does it again by breaking quota
by 141, going over January a year ago by
100. This is a new record for any Jan,
and if we keep up this pace, it looks like
a busy year for all of us.
Sometimes being helpful can be emborras-
sing and there is nothing in the manuals
to take care of the situation. Not long
ago,a young lady at the counter was asked
by a dutiful agent if he could be of any
help. With a sheepish grin, she remarked,
"No, thank you. I’ve already been helped"
and turned away. It was then that he no
ticed that the stork would arrive most any
day.
Another unusual experience was the case
of a passenger, Mr. Ball, giving up his
seat to an invalid standby passenger and
in so doing delaying his own itinerary. It
just proves that people can be most wonder
ful in an almost impossible situation.
Mother nature dealt us one from the bottom
with the recent record snowfalI. Plenty of
fun for all,and Operation Snowdrift gave
us all a lot of experience. We can now
honestly sympathize with our brother agents
in the mountains and northern stations.
INTRODUCING CHARLOTTE
STATION PERSONNEL
J . D . West was born in Monroe, N . C . in
1923 and after schooling in his hometown,
went to N. C. State. Following this, he
joined the Air Force in 1942 and after re-
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