Newspapers / Piedmont Aviation Employee Newsletter / Jan. 1, 1960, edition 1 / Page 3
Part of Piedmont Aviation Employee Newsletter / About this page
This page has errors
The date, title, or page description is wrong
This page has harmful content
This page contains sensitive or offensive material
January, 1960 THE PIEDMONITOR PAGE THREE DC A Poem Tells Moral Although none of us likes to advertise mistalses, passing on experiences to others sometimes alerts others to the fact that routine matters can be important. Recently at Washington a flight was dispatched with a gear pin still in one of the landing gear struts. While we agree this is a serious matter, DCA agent Austin Morrison reflected “poetically” on the mishap. Perhaps his parody on “The Night Before Christmas” is the best way to bring the incident, and the moral, to the attention of all PIEDMONITOR readers. —Ed. It was twenty minutes after de parture. And all through the house Not a creature was stirring, Not even a mouse. While Charlie shined his boots, Tom read a paper. Gene drank his coffee; I inhaled the vapor. Then on the radio there arose such a clatter, We sprang from Operations to see what was the matter. Away to the gate we flew like a flash, Threw open the gate, ran over the trash. And what to our wondering eyes should appear, But a landing gear pin in the right landing gear. In was 389 returning to gate To remove the pin—twenty min utes too late. The smoke and the soot settled all around And gave a look of disaster to agent on the ground. There was the little old captain smiling so fierce we felt sick. We knew in that moment it must be Captain Stick. Now, I tell you the captain was very nice. Say something about him? No dice. We removed the pin; he was on his way. This will never happen again, not tomorrow, not today. There’s a moral to this story. Think of it every night: Because there’s no pin in the left, Doesn’t mean there’s none in the right. Social Security Tax Goes Up Social Security tax was in creased one-half of one per cent — from two and one-half to three — effective January 1. The increase means that an em ployee who earns $4,800 or more a year will pay $144 instead of the $120 paid in 1959. The company, which matches employee deductions, paid out $90,752.44 in 1958 taxes as its share alone. The new rate will QoHxyiati 15 YEARS SERVICE L. J. Lambert, Chief Storekeep er, INT, January 14 10 YEARS SERVICE Palmer Alexander, IBM Super visor, INT., January 16 James C. B u t n e r, Jr., Mech., INT-FB, January 19 Ernest L. Hurt, Sr. Mech., INT, January 5 Ernest R. Sanders, Chief Agent, RIC,January 2 Marvin E. Stokely, F/0, ORF, January 16 5 YEARS SERVICE James L. Brown, Jr., Stockroom Clk., INT-FB, January 10 Billy Jack Heflin, Agent, LEX, January 17 BIRTHS Baby Girl to Ken May (LYH) and wife, November 12 Baby Boy to Ronnie Abshire (CRW) and wife Jane, Novem ber 16 MARRIAGES Betty Poore (LYH) to Syney ■ Ives, December 19 Brownie Wagner (ILM) to Linda Meyer, December 12 PROMOTIONS Jim Dallas, HTS Agent to SHD Chief Agent Will Jett, RDU Asst. Manager to DAN Manager Paul M. Lindsay, F/0 to Reserve Captain Bob Lipscomb, ILM Manager to SHD Manager Sy Pierce, DAN Manager to ILM Manager Bob Turbiville, EWN Chief Agent to RDU Asst. Manager Larry Wall, EWN Agent to Chief Agent increase the company’s share by an estimated $20,000. Along with the increased tax are increased benefits. The max imum benefit an individual could receive ten years ago on the one per cent tax was $46.50. Now, with the three per cent tax, the benefit may go as high as $119. Third In A Series Of Five Control Problems Cited ATA—There are two ways of navigating an airplane from one point to another — (1) visually or (2) by instruments — with a separate set of rules set up for each method. Visual Flight Rules (VFR) prescribe the minimum acceptable weather conditions in which a pilot can fly on the prin ciple of “see and be seen.” When weather conditions fall below the VFR minimum, the pilot must fly under Instrument Flight Rules (IFR). But, his plane must be equipped with the necessary instruments, and he must be certificated for instru ment flight by virtue of special ized training and experience. Under IFR the pilot files a flight plan with the air traffic con^ roller. After checking the flight plans of others, the con troller issues a clearance author izing routes and altitudes to be flown. This ensures that the plane’s path will not conflict with that of other IFR aircraft on the same route. Throughout the flight, the Air Traffic Con trol (ATC) system monitors the plane’s progress and continually passes new instructions to main tain separation from other planes. Airway ‘Road Signs’ The basic element of the ATC system is the airway. It is clear ly defined on aeronautical charts. It has directional “road signs” and distance markers in the form of radio navigation aids on the ground. At the moment there are two separate airways systems, one served by the old low-frequency radio ranges and the other by the newer very-high-frequency VOR and VORTAC stations. Eventually the old ranges will be completely replaced. Shortcomings of ATC The ATC system was original ly designed to handle only bad weather operations. As more and more aircraft took to the sky, more pilots decided to take advantage of the protection the system provides by filing IFR flight plans even in clear weather. During this period, however, there was no great im provement or expansion of fa cilities or personnel within the system, with the result that to day the system is badly over loaded. . The control operation is al most entirely manual. The perti nent facts of each flight—posi tion, heading, speed, altitude, etc.—must be continually relayed from controller to aircraft and back by voice. The controller FLIGHT PLAN is drafted by F/O Pete Dickens (right) for approval by Captain Milt Browning. The flight plan takes into consideration many factors pertaining to navigation and safety in the airspace. depends largely on hand-written strips of paper and manual post ings on his board, although he may have a great many air planes in his sector at one time. High Demand On Airspace Despite the fact that the sys tem has not changed much over the years, the demand upon it has grown to staggering pro portions. In 1958, for instance, control towers handled some 18 million itinerant aircraft take offs and landings. Position re ports from en route aircraft to control centers totaled some 35,316,000. There were about 1,100,000 instrument approaches. For all its shortcomings, the system has established a remark able safety record. Air traffic controllers are doing an excel lent job of maintaining separa tion between IFR flights. But what can they do about VFR flight about which they have no information? Everyone’s Proi)erty Remember, under today’s rules, the air is everyone’s prop erty. The citizen who is properly qualified may use it pretty much as he pleases in clear weather, subject only to some basic rules of the road. He need file no flight plan or make position reports. He hopes he will see and be seen. Yet, he is sharing the air- space with many aircraft on IF"R flight plans. The deficiencies of the ATC system extend across the board —need for greater automation, better communications, more and better navigation facilities, ra dar, personnel and airports of greater capacity. There is no simple solution. There must be a coordinated “package deal” in which im provements are made gradually all over the system. Such a pro gram is underway. It consists of, first, steps that can be taken to ensure a greater order of con trol; second, provision of ade quate facilities for a more effi cient system within a few years; and third, a research and de velopment program for the crea tion of an ultimate system aimed at perfect traffic control. (Next issue: Interim Answers to the ATC problem) £ OPERATION COOPERATION, in its second month, is getting enthusiastic acceptance. Ken Ross, R. E. Turbiville and Bob Reed look over the first of the monthly cartoon calendars which will depict right and wrong station procedures. (—Photo One) Betty Hunter, INT, demonstrates the "voice with a smile" which is the magic ingredient in phone contacts and sales. (—Photo Two) Julian Morton, INT Agent, uses up-to-the- minute information, knowledge of airline procedures and pleasant manners with a passenger at the counter. (—Photo Three) Agent Norris Smith snaps a salute to the captain after a careful check on the ramp. (—Photo Four)
Piedmont Aviation Employee Newsletter
Standardized title groups preceding, succeeding, and alternate titles together.
Jan. 1, 1960, edition 1
3
Click "Submit" to request a review of this page. NCDHC staff will check .
0 / 75