** I tried to make my students feel they were part of a close group of individuals with the same goals, and tried to make them feel (minus the flying antics) the way we felt at the flight school in Florida in those enjoyable days of the past.
** I felt that sort of camaraderie among flight students made learning to fly seem easier and more enjoyable.

** Soon after beginning as an instructor at Aero Aviation, I was put in charge of the Primary Flight School -that is- I was responsible for the training of all the beginning students who were working toward their Private Pilots Licenses.
** Herb Barrett, the Chief Pilot, was responsible for all of the advanced students - that is - those students working to obtain their Commercial Pilots Licenses, Instrument, and Multi- Engine ratings.

** Often, at the end of the day, the students and others, some of whom were private pilots who owned airplanes based at Westfield, would find their way to our school office for a session of socializing and for the telling of aviation stories.
** This practice is known among pilots as “Hanger flying”.

** Very often, we would use the airplanes to fly to some nearby airport with a restaurant and continue our aviation talk over dinner.
** Upon returning to Westfield, and after everyone had left, I would retire to my loft/bunk above the school office, which occupied a corner of our huge hangar. This loft was where I lived in those early days as I was still planning to return to Florida and was still expecting to be drafted at any time.

** Late at night, I would enjoy looking at the airplanes in the hangar and liked to listen to the wind blowing against the hangars huge sides.
** I always had the radio scanner tuned to various Air Traffic Control frequencies.

** Although I earned very little money, it was a good life which I recall with great fondness.
** I believe this closeness to the airport and the airplanes, at this young age, produced a bond between me and the world of aviation which has lasted a lifetime.

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(Pages omitted)

**

Getting back to my first day as a flight instructor
in early 1971

** On that first day as a flight instructor, I was expecting to conduct a flight lesson with a “primary” student - that is - a new student working toward obtaining a private pilots license.
** Upon entering the school office, I was cornered by Herb Barrett, the chief pilot.
** I had known Herb for a few years as he had also been the chief pilot and had been one of my instructors when I learned to fly at this school, 3 years earlier.
** Now he was my boss.
** Herb was a very experience retired Air Force fighter pilot.
** Although he was a kind and personable man, he was a firm and demanding employer who brought his military style and procedures to our flight school. Herb resembled and sounded a lot like the movie actor, Walter Matthau.
** I admired and respected Herb and was very proud to be working with him.
** Herb expected things to be done exactly as he directed and he accepted no excuses. He also enjoyed a certain amount of a somewhat sadistic sense of humor. He enjoyed such things as sticking a new instructor with a difficult student.
** That was to be my fate on my first day at work.

**

FATHER DUNLAP

** As I walked into the flight office, that first day, Herb told me I was not going to be flying with a primary student as had been originally planned. Instead, I would be flying on an instrument training flight with Father Dunlap.

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** Although I did have an instrument rating, and although I was an airplane flight instructor, I was not an instrument flight instructor, which is a separate FAA License.
** Except for very basic instrument instruction given in the earliest part of flight training, airplane flight instructors do not normally give formal instrument flight instruction.
** Herb informed me that Father Dunlap had already logged enough flight time with an instrument flight instructor to qualify him for an instrument rating and this would only be a practice flight for him.

** Father Robert Dunlap was a defrocked Catholic Priest who was removed from the Priesthood because of his romantic involvement with a wealthy widow.
** Mary Robinson, Father Dunlaps’ lady friend, had been married to a successful doctor, now deceased, and had herself been the private secretary to a high ranking official of the General Electric Company in Pittsfield Massachusetts.
** She owned an elegant estate on a lake near Pittsfield which she now shared with Father Dunlap.
** Upon becoming involved with Father Dunlap, she had, among other things, purchased a new Piper Cherokee 180 airplane for him.
** She also paid for his flight lessons, ground schools, and all the necessary supplies.
** Mary accompanied Father Dunlap, sitting in the back seat of their airplane, on all his training flights, and during all classroom sessions.
** Although in her late 50’s or early 60’s, she was still a very attractive woman. She was very trim and appeared to be in excellent physical condition. She always wore a perfectly tailored business suit and skirt. Her blonde hair was always pulled tightly back in a businesslike fashion.

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** She always carried a steno pad and took down everything said in the classroom and in the airplane. She also wrote down all informal conversations involving Father Dunlap.

** Upon overhearing Herb inform me I was to fly with Father Dunlap, some of the office personnel acted as though I just received a death sentence.

** While walking past them, and out onto the aircraft ramp, I could hear their muffled laughter. They shouted to me to “Hang on” and wished me “Good luck”.
** This should have been a warning to me. I wondered what they were talking about, but, obediently followed Herbs instructions.
** I was ready to meet and greet my very first flight student.

** Father Dunlap appeared to be about 55 years old. Upon seeing him for the first time, I was immediately shocked by his enormous physical size. Although of average height, I estimated his weight to be approximately 400 pounds.
** I now realized why they purchased a Piper Cherokee 180, rather than the less expensive Cherokee 140. The 180 has more engine power and is capable of carrying more weight.

** Looking at Father Dunlap, it was obvious we needed every bit of that extra horsepower.
** I was confident this airplane could lift this excessive weight. However, although my weight was only about 130 pounds, I wondered if the cabin would be wide enough for both of us to sit side by side.

** The front seats in the Cherokee 180 are about 18 inches wide. There is a gap between the seats which is about 6 inches wide. In this space between the seats there is a lever, similar in appearance to the parking brake handle in a car.

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** This lever, when raised and lowered, extends and retracts the airplanes wing flaps.
** The flaps are normally extended (lowered) for landing.

** The Piper Cherokee 180 is similar in appearance to the 140. They are both low-wing, single-engine, airplanes. Like the 140, the 180 has only one door for entry and exit. This door is located on the right side of the cabin.
** In order to enter the cabin, one must step onto a small step-ledge attached to the fuselage behind the right wing and then step up onto the wing. One then takes 2 or 3 steps forward and enters the cabin through the door.
** After we performed the pre-flight inspection, we boarded the airplane for our flight. Mary was the first to enter the airplane. She did this easily and gracefully and sat in the right rear seat, behind the instructors seat, so she could see and speak, crosswise, to Father Dunlap, who would be sitting in the left front pilot seat.
** The right front seat back flips forward for entry into the rear seats, as in a two door automobile.
** After Mary was seated, Father Dunlap stepped up onto the step-ledge and up onto the wing. The airplane shuddered under this heavy load and sank lower onto the wheel struts.
** Father Dunlap then squeezed, backside first, through the door. He had some difficulty in doing this. He became stuck. Mary and I had to push, pull, and shove him through the door, across my seat, across the cabin, and into the pilots seat on the left side of the cabin.
** When he finally maneuvered into the pilots seat, which took a little while, he was sweating and exhausted.
** All of his charts and other accessories, which had been neatly arranged by Mary, were now scattered all over the cabin floor.
** Father Dunlap was unable to bend over to re-gather these items, so Mary and I did this for him.

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** Looking at Father Dunlap sitting in his airplane, I wondered what I was getting into. His right side and legs completely covered his seat, crossed the gap between the seats in which the flap handle is located, and went well onto my seat.
** Father Dunlap said he was unable to operate the flaps and, therefore, had to land at a higher than normal airspeed.
** I silently cursed my boss, Herb Barrett, now realizing why a highly disciplined pilot like Herb would avoid flying with Father Dunlap and would regularly stick some unsuspecting new instructor with this student.

Cherokee 180 Instrument Panel

** Unlike many pilots, I don’t like to use radio earphones, boom microphones, or other similar gadgets while flying.
** I usually use a hand held microphone and rely on the overhead cabin speaker for radio communications.
** I also don’t use any of the many other gadgets available to assist pilots in computing the information and correct procedures necessary for instrument flight. I try to compute everything in my head or use a single clipboard and pencil and paper to make these computations.

** I suspect this preference dates back to my experiences with Father Dunlap.

** Standing there, that day, looking at Father Dunlap sitting in the pilots seat of his airplane, I couldn’t believe my eyes.
** As mentioned, he was an extremely large man who barely fit into the airplane. He had to use a seat belt extension as the normal seat belt was not long enough to fit around him.
** His body occupied all of his seat and part of mine.
** He put on a set of headphones, and plugged its long coiled wire into the receptacle on the instrument panel. Onto this headset, he attached a telephone operator-style boom microphone, with its long coiled wire also plugged into the instrument panel.

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** Attached to each of Father Dunlaps huge legs were gadgets called “Third hands”, which were similar to large paper clip like devices held onto his lap by elastic straps wrapped around each leg. Each of these “third hands” held various instrument charts.
** He attached an incredible amount of gadgets to the control yoke. There were several clamps holding a variety of these gadgets. There were clamps holding a stopwatch, a notepad, and various slide-rule type computers, which are supposed to assist the pilot in computing such things as, the timing of instrument approaches, various holding pattern entry and exit procedures, reciprocal headings, and many other things most instrument pilots compute in their heads or recall from memory.
** As the weather was clear for this flight, Father Dunlap had placed an instrument training “Hood/visor” on his head.
** This hood was in the “up” position and was to be lowered after take-off to restrict his vision to the instrument panel and to prevent him from seeing outside the airplane during this instrument training flight.
** Father Dunlap appeared to be completely covered by these gadgets, wires, charts, and things, to the point where I wondered how he could even move. It was an incredible sight like I had never seen before and will never forget.

** In the rear seat sat Mary Robinson, steno pad in hand, and ready to assist Father Dunlap in copying various clearances and instructions.
** I was amazed. I had never seen a pilot with a secretary before.

** During the training required to obtain a flight instructors certificate, we are informed of our responsibility to evaluate student pilots and to discourage those persons who we feel are not suited to flying from continuing with flying lessons.

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** I have always been uncomfortable with the idea of, what I consider to be, “Playing God” with other peoples lives.
** I have, rather than discouraging people from learning to fly, chose to spend extra time with difficult students in the hope that they will either improve, or, that they will become discouraged and decide to quit on their own.
** In the case of Father Dunlap, there were some other factors which had to be considered.
** Our aircraft salesman, Bud Crawford, had become a close personal friend of mine. It was Bud who got me this job at Aero Aviation. It was also Bud who sold Father Dunlap and Mary Robinson their airplane.
** The company made a large profit on the sale of this airplane and Bud had received a sizable commission.
** Although Father Dunlap obtained his Private Pilots License as a young man, many years earlier, one of the conditions of this aircraft sale was that our company would provide Father Dunlap with an instrument rating.

** So, I was told, Father Dunlap was here to stay.
** Looking at Father Dunlap sitting in his airplane that day, ready for our training flight, squeezed into the pilots seat, and almost covered with all sorts of aviation paraphernalia, I seriously reconsidered my thinking on whether or not an instructor should discourage a student from learning to fly . . . This was not what I expected on my first day.

** Father Dunlap and Herb had previously planned this instrument (IFR) flight. It was to be a round trip flight from Westfield to Albany New York. We reviewed what they had already gone over. We planned to make the instrument approach to the Albany Airport, but not actually land there.
** We anticipated the round trip, including the time needed to execute the ILS approach, would take about two hours.

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** (When the weather is good, aircraft are allowed to operate under Visual Flight Rules (VFR).
** When operating VFR, aircraft are essentially unregulated and are not required to be in contact with Air Traffic Control. In fact, unless flying near a busy airport, some VFR aircraft are not even equipped with radios.
** In order to fly under VFR, an aircraft must be operating in good weather -that is- high cloud ceilings and with good visibility.
** An aircraft may not fly VFR within the clouds or in other conditions of bad weather and/or poor visibility.
** But, on an Instrument Flight Plan, operating under Instrument Flight Rules (IFR), and regardless of whether the weather is good or bad, the aircraft route and altitude are directed from the ground by various air traffic control (ATC) facilities. The pilot is required to follow these ATC directions by flying the assigned course and by maintaining the assigned altitude.
** In doing so, the IFR aircraft is assured separation from all other aircraft which are operating under IFR.
** (Aircraft operating under IFR in good weather are not guaranteed separation from aircraft which may be operating under VFR).
**The directions from ATC to aircraft operating under IFR are called a “clearance”.
** This clearance is normally given to the pilot, prior to take-off, by the control tower of the departure airport.
** This is usually done on a separate radio frequency from the primary control tower frequencies. (All radio frequencies are listed on IFR charts which the IFR pilot is required to have).
** Since the same radio frequency is used by the Tower for issuing clearances to many different aircraft, this clearance is sometimes delivered very quickly.

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** It is the responsibility of the pilot to correctly “copy” this clearance and to repeat it back to the Tower to be sure it has been correctly copied.
** Correctly copying IFR clearances is something a student instrument pilot is required to practice. Pilots develop their own shorthand in order to quickly and accurately copy these IFR clearances.
** Having to correct an inaccurately copied clearance can disrupt the operations of a busy airport and delay the flow of traffic. This is not so much a problem at less busy airports like Westfield. But, at “High-density” airports, like Boston, New York, or Washington DC, the clearance delivery radio frequency may be so congested it is sometimes difficult for a pilot to even “Break-in” to request the clearance.
** Under these extremely busy conditions, ATC having to correct an inaccurately copied clearance can be very disruptive to the efficient operation of the airport.
** This is particularly true when the weather is bad, as, under conditions of low cloud ceiling and low visibility, all aircraft are required to operate under IFR.
** In addition, all aircraft are required to operate under IFR at altitudes above 18,000 feet.
** Therefore, almost all scheduled airlines operate under IFR regardless of the weather.

** A pilot may not operate an aircraft under IFR unless he or she possesses an FAA Instrument Rating.
** This is what Father Dunlap was working to acquire.
** An Instrument Rating is considered somewhat difficult to obtain as it requires substantial studying, knowledge, training, and practice, for a pilot to safely operate an aircraft under IFR within the highly complex FAA Air Traffic Control System.)

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** As we taxied out to the runway that day, I was pinned between Father Dunlap and the door and was barely able to move.
** It had been almost impossible to close the cabin door.
** Because of his enormous size, Father Dunlap seemed to be having difficulty in moving the flight controls.
** I asked him to demonstrate that he was able to do so.
** After moving his seat to its most rearward position, and adjusting the various gadgets attached to him, he was able to adequately move the controls to my satisfaction.

** As we reached the runway, Father Dunlap performed the engine “Run-up”. This is a procedure, done prior to take-off, in which the pilot checks the various aircraft systems, such as the engine magnetos, the carburetor heat, the indications of the engine gauges, and in which he or she reviews the pre-take off checklist.
** Father Dunlap did all these things correctly and we were ready for take-off.
** After the run-up, the tower advised us that they had our clearance. (The clearance must be coordinated between the various ATC facilities which will be handling the IFR flight before being issued to the pilot.) They requested we advise them when we were “ready to copy”.
** This notice gives the pilot time to find his or her pencil and paper or otherwise prepare to copy the clearance.
** Father Dunlap had lost his pen. Mary then provided him with one from the rear seat. Father Dunlap advised the Tower that we were “ready to copy”.
** The Tower began our clearance.
** We were cleared to the Albany Airport via direct to the Chester VOR (The Chester VOR is an aircraft radio navigation beacon located on a hilltop about 10 miles Northwest of Westfield) and then direct to the Albany VOR (the Albany VOR is located at the Albany Airport).

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** We were to maintain an altitude of 6000 feet.
** We were, after take-off, to contact the Bradley Departure Control (The FAA Radar Facility at the Bradley International Airport, 12 miles South of Westfield, controls the IFR traffic operating at the Westfield Airport) on their radio frequency of 124.8, and we were to “squawk” 3525.

** (The squawk is a 4 digit numerical code the pilot enters into the aircraft’s transponder. The transponder is a small radio on the aircrafts instrument panel, similar in appearance to a car radio. The transponder sends a coded radio signal which enables Air Traffic Control radar to more easily identify and differentiate between aircraft).

** Again, the very short clearance to be copied was - ”Cleared to the Albany Airport, via direct Chester, direct Albany, maintain 6000 feet, contact Bradley Departure on 124.8 , squawk 3525”.
** I was relieved this clearance was relatively simple and I was sure Father Dunlap had copied it correctly. However, Father Dunlap incorrectly read it back. For the second time, the Tower delivered our clearance, and for the second time Father Dunlap read it back incorrectly.
** The Control Tower delivered this simple clearance for the third time. This time, before Father Dunlap had a chance to try to read it back, Mary leaned over from the rear seat and handed Father Dunlap a piece of paper on which she had correctly written, in longhand, our clearance.
** Father Dunlap then correctly read the clearance back to the Tower from the paper Mary provided to him.
** I knew this was not a good start for our flight or for our relationship.
** Together, prior to take-off, we reviewed our clearance on the IFR charts, set the communication and navigation radios, and set the assigned code into the transponder.

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** Father Dunlap then informed the Control Tower that we were “ready for take-off”.
** The tower advised us we were “cleared for take-off.”
** Father Dunlap taxied our airplane onto the runway, lined up with the centerline, and applied full power for take-off.

** I had flown in the Cherokee 180 airplane before and was always impressed with the extra power and with the rapid acceleration. As Father Dunlap advanced the throttle, we were immediately thrust rearward and were pinned to our seat backs as the airplane roared down the runway.
** At 80 miles per hour, Father Dunlap abruptly pulled back on the control yoke. The airplane lifted off the runway and entered a steep climb which further pinned us against our seat backs. I informed Father Dunlap he was climbing too steeply and began to apply some forward pressure on the control yoke in order to reduce this steep angle of climb.
** However, before I could do so, something unexpected happened I had never seen before and haven’t seen since.

** Just after lifting off the runway, and just after our airplane entered this very steep climb, I heard the horrible sound of ripping and bending metal and saw an incredible sight.

** I saw Father Dunlap disappear from his former front seat position.
** His seat mounts had ripped from the aircraft floor, and his seat, with him still in it, was thrown into the back seat area of the airplane.
** Fathers Dunlaps’ head was now on the left rear seat and his legs and feet were kicking wildly on the cabin roof above the pilots seat.
** All of his gadgets and charts, which had been previously attached to various parts of the airplane, and to various parts of Father Dunlap, were now flying around inside the airplane.

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** The long coiled wires, which were attached to his headset and boom mike, and which had been plugged into the instrument panel, had ripped out of their sockets and were springing around inside the cabin.
** It was a scene I will never forget.
** Fortunately, Father Dunlap released his grip on the control yoke as he fell backward. Had he not done so, I am sure I would not have been able to overcome his tremendous strength and weight and the airplane would have probably started to loop back onto the runway, stalled, or otherwise gone out of control.
** But he did let go. I quickly took control of the airplane and shallowed the angle of climb. I informed the Control Tower that we were canceling our flight and would be landing as soon as possible. The Westfield Tower acknowledged this message immediately and cleared us to land.

** As Westfield is a relatively small airport, all of us who worked there, including the FAA personnel who worked in the Control Tower, knew each other and were friends.
** It was Al Dunn who was working in the tower that day.
** As it is very unusual for an airplane to return for landing so soon after take-off, Al knew something must be wrong.
** He asked if we needed any assistance.
** I informed him we had experienced a problem, but we were OK.

** Meanwhile, in our airplane, Mary had begun screaming and trying in vain to push Father Dunlap back into the upright position.
** Father Dunlap was screaming at Mary to help him up and was still kicking and struggling to right himself, and I was attempting, with all this chaos going on, amid this blizzard of debris and wires floating around inside of our airplane, to circle back for a landing.

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** The airplane shook in response to Father Dunlaps wild movements, but, we landed safely.

** As we taxied back toward our school parking ramp, Father Dunlap still could not get upright. His head was still on the rear seat beside Mary, but, he had stopped struggling and he had stopped kicking.
** I was shocked, confused, and very quiet.

** My first day at my new job as a Flight Instructor had not been what I expected.

** While taxiing back to the ramp, I radioed our school office on our school radio frequency and informed them that we would need assistance in removing Father Dunlap from his airplane.
** As our school office constantly monitored the control tower radio frequency, they had been listening, as always, to our conversations with the tower and they already knew something was wrong.
** As we stopped in front of our hangar, a group of people had gathered. Some of our office personnel, some of our other students, and my boss, Herb Barrett, were waiting for us.

** Our mechanics were also there to assist Father Dunlap and to assess the damage to his airplane.

** I got out of the airplane as the mechanics climbed aboard.

** I didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. I could see everyone there was struggling to control their laughter.

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** Everyone but Herb.
** He sternly asked me what the Devil had happened.
** I explained.
** Herb walked around the airplane, looked inside to see Father Dunlap being assisted by the mechanics, and just stood there, scratching his head.

** I wondered if I would be fired from my very first flying job on my very first day.

** As he walked back toward his office, Herb told me he had scheduled me for several flights the following day and I should be sure to check the flight schedule.

** That night, I couldn’t sleep.
** As I thought of what happened that day, I suddenly began to laugh out loud.
** I laughed for a while before falling asleep.

** It was quite a first day for a flying career.

** In spite of this disastrous first encounter, Father Dunlap, Mary Robinson, and I, became good friends.
** Father Dunlap proved to be a very warm, friendly, and generous person, as did Mary.
** They often invited me to spend time with them at their estate on the lake.
** I enjoyed their company very much.

** I flew with Father Dunlap a few more times after that first unforgettable flight.
** He had great difficulty learning instrument procedures.

** After a while, he began to schedule his lessons farther and farther apart and eventually dropped his lessons.

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** To my knowledge, Father Dunlap never did get his Instrument Rating.
** They eventually sold their airplane and did not continue flying

** As all this happened long ago, I often wonder what became of my good friends Father Robert Dunlap and Mary Robinson and I hope they had a happy life together.

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Catch The Wind

Chapter 9

The Bomber
OR
(My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys)

*** (Earlier in this book, this writer stated that, in the past, pilots were given a great deal of deference by the public and by the various government agencies.
** We were given an incredible amount of freedom, seemed to run the system, and could do almost anything we wanted to do).

- - - - - - - - - - -

** By far, the most important customer of Aero Aviation was a very famous multi-millionaire from New York City.
** He was the grandson of one of the well known robber baron businessmen of the turn of the previous century and was as well known as the likes of J.P. Morgan or Andrew Carnagie.
** He shall remain nameless in this book, but we called him “the Boss”.
** The Boss owned a large executive transport airplane which he kept in the Aero Aviation Hangar at Westfield.

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** The airplane was a Lockheed Lodestar Super Ventura, a World War II military transport which had been converted into a very plush executive private airplane.
** We nicknamed this airplane “The Bomber”.
** As this huge airplane took up a great deal of space in our hangar, the Boss paid a substantial amount of money to our company for the rental of this space.
** As this airplane was very old and very complex, it was always in need of some sort of maintenance.
** We were able to keep our mechanics busy, even during slow periods, by having them work on the Bomber.
** When the Bomber flew, our company made large profits on the sale of the huge amounts of fuel the Bomber consumed.

** The Boss lived in a penthouse suite on Park Avenue in New York City.
** The pilots who flew the Bomber for the Boss lived in the Westfield area in order to be close to the airplane.
** The co-pilot, John Green, was a citizen of Bermuda. He also worked as a part time flight instructor for our company. He was a soft spoken and pleasant person.
** The pilot/captain of the Bomber, Gene Striker, was exactly the opposite of his co-pilot.
** He was about 55 years old. He was a large and muscular man with wild and wavy white hair. He looked like the former Governor of Texas, John Connally.
** Gene was an extremely aggressive and sometimes belligerent man. ** Everyone was afraid of him and tried to avoid him. ** When he gave an order, everyone jumped.
** I also tried to stay out of his way. I often watched him, from time to time, as he screamed at the owner of our company, Jack Matthews, at his co-pilot, John Green, and/or at our mechanics, when he felt they had not done something exactly as he ordered.

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** However, although I tried to avoid him, he always treated me well and our relationship was cordial, if not friendly.

** One day, soon after I began working for Aero Aviation, John Green, the co-pilot, told me they planned to make a flight in the Bomber to the Island of Bermuda, where the Boss had a home.
** As mentioned, John was a citizen of Bermuda.
** John Green and the Boss were both experienced scuba divers. While diving off Bermuda a few months earlier, John and the Boss found a previously un-discovered Spanish galleon sailing ship which they learned sank in a storm in the 1700’s.
** As these ships were known to have transported large amounts of gold, the Boss and John registered this wreck with the Bermuda government for salvage.
** The purpose of this trip to Bermuda was to take the Boss, John Green, and a group of their friends, to begin their dives to this sunken ship to search for gold and other treasures.
** John and the Boss were going to remain in Bermuda in order to conduct their treasure hunt and they needed a temporary co-pilot to assist Gene Striker in flying and navigating the Bomber back to Westfield.
** Gene asked John to ask me if I was interested in making this flight and serving as co-pilot on the Bomber on the return flight.

** I heard many rumors of how Gene treated his co-pilots, including John Green. He was famous for constantly criticizing and reprimanding his co-pilots. Gene never allowed his co-pilots to fly the airplane, which was unusual.
** Most captains routinely share the flying duties with their co-pilots, but not Gene.

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** I recalled a story I heard about the time the owner of Aero Aviation, Jack Matthews, flew as co-pilot with Gene.
** As they sat down in their seats to begin the flight, Jack began to tune the radios to the appropriate control tower frequencies, as is the co-pilots normal responsibility. ** As Jack started doing this, Gene abruptly and forcefully slapped Jacks hands down off the radios, glared at him, and screamed “Keep your God-damned hands off the doo-dads”.
** But, I decided, in spite of the risks of flying with Gene, this trip to Bermuda in the Bomber would be a great adventure and a great experience.
** So, I agreed to make the flight.

** We left Westfield very early on a Saturday morning.
** The weather was clear. It was a beautiful day for flying.
** John Green had already gone to New York to meet with the Boss and plan their dives.
** Gene and I were to fly alone in the Bomber to LaGuardia Airport in New York City.
** We were to pick up the Boss, John Green, and about 10 or 15 people who would accompany them to Bermuda.

** Pulling the Bomber out of our hangar was an ordeal.
** Our mechanics attached a truck to the landing gear and slowly and meticulously, under the watchful eye of Gene Striker, pulled the huge airplane out onto the ramp.
** Gene and I got aboard.
** I was amazed at how plushly appointed and decorated the interior of the airplane was. There was carpet on the floor and walls, leather couches and lounge chairs, a full bar, TV’s, stereos, etc . . . . . . I was impressed.

** The Bomber had a huge flight deck where the pilots sat which was separated from the passenger cabin by a door.
** In addition to the pilots seats, there were navigation tables and plenty of room to walk around.

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** There were hundreds of switches, gauges, dials, and circuit breakers, all over the walls and ceiling.
** I had no idea what any of those things were.

** I knew Gene did not need nor want my help in flying the airplane. He did everything himself. I knew I was only there because FAA Regulations require that an airplane of that size must have at least two pilots on board.
** As we sat down into the pilots seats, I remembered what I heard about the way Gene reacted when Jack Matthews tried to tune the radios.
** I immediately told Gene I was not going to do anything or touch anything unless he told me to.
** Gene said that would probably be a good idea.
** He started the enormous 2000 horsepower, 18 cylinder, Pratt & Whitney Double Wasp R-2800 Radial Engines.
** Even at idle, we could feel the tremendous power of these engines.
** Gene began taxiing to the runway. I was amazed at how much work it was for him to control this airplane.
** The airplanes I flew seemed incredibly easy to operate compared to this unruly monster. Gene struggled to taxi and steer the Bomber. He began to sweat.
** When we received our take-off clearance from the tower, Gene pulled a lever on the floor. This lever locked the tailwheel in place and helped the airplane go straight down the runway during the take-off roll.
** He then applied full power to the engines.
** We accelerated down the runway. I was further impressed with the power of the engines and at how rapidly we gained speed. As the Bomber was a “Tail dragger”, Gene had to get the tail of the airplane up off the runway during the take-off roll.
**

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** As this is a somewhat difficult maneuver, especially in a large airplane, I could see that Gene was very skillful at controlling the Bomber.
** We lifted off the ground at 120 MPH and the airspeed continued to increase all the way up to 250 MPH.

** We headed southwest toward New York City.
** So far, I hadn’t done anything. I asked Gene if there was anything he wanted me to do. “Not yet”, he said.
** He pointed to the airspeed indicator. It indicated 260 MPH. “Pretty fast, huh”, he said.
** “Amazing”, I replied.
** Gene smiled. We proceeded toward LaGuardia Airport.

Lockheed Lodestar PV-1

** (Until about that time, if the weather was good, aircraft were allowed to overfly the crowded airspace over major cities without contacting air traffic control (ATC). Aircraft were only required to contact ATC within 5 miles of a major airport and only if below 2000 feet of altitude.
** However, in the late 1960’s, because of increased air traffic and the danger of mid-air collisions, the FAA established Terminal Control Areas (TCA’s) around all the major airports in the US.
** These TCA’s were large areas of airspace, averaging 20 to 30 miles in diameter, extending up to 7000 feet in altitude.
** While still free to enter and/or overfly these busy areas, aircraft first had to be identified and tracked on radar while inside the TCA).

** Gene was an old school pilot who hated anything new and who particularly hated having to comply with the new rules pertaining to entering the TCA’s.
** As we neared the boundary of the New York TCA, I noticed Gene had not yet tuned the communication radios to the frequency of the LaGuardia Radar Approach Control.

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** I was concerned, but, I did not dare to question Gene.
** As we got even closer to New York, Gene seemed oblivious to the requirement that we contact the approach control prior to entering the TCA.
** As we crossed the boundary of and entered the TCA, I suspected maybe he had forgotten about the new rules and I knew it was my duty as co-pilot to assist him.
** So, I decided to take a chance.
** I told Gene I believed we were already in the TCA.
** I expected Gene to rip my face off, but he didn’t.
** He grumbled and cursed and tuned the radio to the proper frequency.
** He tried to call LaGuardia Approach Control.
** They didn’t answer us.
** He tried again. . . . . They still didn’t answer.
** Under these circumstances, an aircraft is expected to remain outside the TCA until receiving permission to enter.
** However, although we were now well inside the New York TCA, we still had not received clearance to enter it. We kept proceeding toward LaGuardia Airport.
** As it was only 6:45 AM, I mentioned that maybe there was no one in the Radar Facility. “They’re there”, Gene said.

** As we were now only a few miles from the Airport, Gene decided to bypass the radar approach control and contact the control tower directly. He radioed the LaGuardia Tower and told them we were about 5 miles Northeast of the airport and we were inbound for landing.
** The tower controller began to chastise Gene for entering the TCA without permission.
** Gene was already very agitated. He told the controller that we tried to call the approach control, but, they had not answered. He sarcastically asked if the controller expected him to stop the airplane in flight while he waited for the Approach Control to answer.

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** The tower controller replied that he expected Gene to stay out of the TCA until receiving clearance to enter it.
** Gene told the tower controller that maybe the controllers in the radar facility should wake up and do their jobs.
** The tower controller answered that maybe Gene should go back to school so he could learn to understand the FAA Regulations.
** Gene told the tower controller his 90 year old grandmother could do a better job of controlling air traffic.

** It was still very early and there were no other airplanes in contact with the Tower.
** Gene and the tower controller argued all the way in to the airport.
** The conversation got hotter and hotter as we got closer to LaGuardia. I was shocked and amazed.
** I never heard a pilot say such things to a controller.
** As we turned onto final approach, Gene and the Controller were still arguing.

*** (LaGuardia Airport is on the coast of Long Island Sound. The runway lengths have been extended onto landfills which have been built out into the water.
** At the threshold of the runway we used, there is a dike which is about 15 to 20 feet high. This dike helps keep the sea water off the runway and also diverts the jet blasts of the departing airliners up and away from the pleasure boats anchored in Flushing Bay).

LaGuardia Airport / New York City

** Gene made a lower than normal final approach to the runway and we barely cleared the dike.
** As we crossed over it, the tower controller sarcastically said, “You cleared that dike by only about 3 feet”.
** Gene snapped back, “It was exactly 3 feet”.
** They continued their argument as we taxied to the ramp.

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** When we arrived at the Marine Air Terminal (The area of LaGuardia used for private airplanes), I was relieved the ordeal between Gene and the Tower Controller was finally over.
** I was wrong. . . In fact, it was just beginning.

Marine Air Terminal / LaGuardia Airport

** As we got out of the airplane, a fuel truck was already filling our tanks for the trip to Bermuda.
** Before the fueling was finished, Gene said, “Lets go”.
** I followed, but, I didn’t know where we were going.
** We got into a jitney bus which took us across the airport to the main airline terminal. It was now 7:00 AM.
** We walked through the terminal and through a series of hallways and corridors to an elevator. Gene had not said a word since we left the Marine Air Terminal.
** Gene spoke to someone on a telephone near this elevator.
** I couldn’t hear what he was saying.
** We got into the elevator and up we went.
** The elevator door opened.
** We were high up in the LaGuardia Airport control tower. We had a birds eye view of the entire airport, including all of the runways and taxiways.
** We could see all the airliners parked at the main terminal and the Bomber and the other airplanes parked across the airport at the Marine Air Terminal.
** We could also see the buildings in Manhattan, the waters of Long Island Sound, and, of course we could see the controllers in the control tower sitting at their consoles and controlling the air and ground traffic at the airport.
** It was still early and there was very little activity at the airport.

** I didn’t know what Gene had in mind, but I knew I didn’t want any part of it.
** Gene shouted, “Which one of you sons of bitches was the one I was just talking to on the radio?"

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** The elevator had already left.
** I began nervously pushing the down button to recall the elevator, but it didn’t come back.
** The tower chief ran up to us.
** He obviously knew Gene as he called him by name.
** “Gene”, the tower chief said, “Please calm down”.
** Gene would not be pacified. Gene put up his fists and yelled, “I’ll fight you bastards individually or collectively”.
** I pushed the elevator button a little harder and faster, but it still wouldn’t come back.

** After a 10 minute screaming match between Gene, the tower chief, and the controller who had worked our arrival, Gene finally calmed down.
** It was obvious Gene had done this sort of thing before and was well known to these controllers.

** I’m sure one of the reasons the tower controllers were so tolerant of Gene was they knew the owner of the Bomber, the Boss, was one of the richest and most famous people in the World, and Gene was his personal pilot.
** Still, it was a situation which would never be tolerated in the security conscious and intolerant environment of today.
** Today, our entering the New York TCA without clearance and Gene’s behavior in the tower would be met with a completely different response.

** We went back to the Marine Air Terminal to wait for our passengers to arrive. I remember thinking Gene Striker was everything I heard he was . . . . . and more.

**

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** (As mentioned, the Marine Air Terminal at LaGuardia Airport now serves as the private aircraft terminal. This famous building on the coast of Long Island Sound, in the 1930’s and 1940’s, during what has become known as “The Glory Days of Aviation”, served as the terminal from which the giant 4-engine Pan American World Airways Sikorsky Flying Boats (Clippers) departed on their around the world voyages, hence the name “The Marine Air Terminal”.

PanAm Flying Boats

**
This trip to LaGuardia Airport with Gene Striker was my first visit to the Marine Air Terminal.
** Over the next 15 years, I would visit this legendary place countless times.
** As LaGuardia is the nearest airport to Manhattan, (The center of most activity in New York City), it is the preferred airport for all those actually going into the City, as opposed to JFK Airport, which is much farther out and is used mostly for connecting and international flights.

** As most prominent and/or wealthy people travel by private aircraft, the Marine Air Terminal at LaGuardia is frequented by a “Who’s - who” of America, and of the world.
** During my years as a pilot, I made many-many trips to New York City and spent many-many hours at the Marine Air Terminal.
** I often saw Jackie Kennedy Onassis and her children leave for and arrive from Greece in her husband Aristotle Onassis’ private Learjet.
** I also saw many other famous people, such as singer John Denver, actor Cliff Robertson, singer James Brown, and many-many other well known personalities of the business and entertainment worlds, as well as many well known political figures, at the Marine Air Terminal at LaGuardia.
** It is the center of the universe for corporate and private air travel.)

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** As Gene Striker and I got back to the Bomber, our passengers were beginning to arrive. Their limousines drove out onto the ramp and up to the airplane.
** We were all introduced and we left for Bermuda at about 8:30 AM. The controllers in the LaGuardia Tower were very courteous and polite when we taxied out and took off.
** Gene, as always, was in the left, or, captains seat, and John Green was in the right, or, co-pilots seat.
** I sat at a table behind them during the take-off.
** This position had been the navigators seat when this airplane served as a military transport during World War II.

** We climbed to our cruising altitude of 11,000 feet and headed Southeast, out over the Atlantic Ocean, toward the Island of Bermuda.
** There were many ships entering and departing New York Harbor.
** I watched the New York skyline disappear behind us.
** After leveling off, Gene engaged the autopilot, slid his seat back, and began to read a magazine.
** John Green asked Gene if it was OK if he went back into the passenger cabin to be with the Boss and his group.
** Gene said it was OK with him.
** As John opened the door to the passenger cabin, we could see there was a party going on back there. There was loud music playing and people were dancing. A uniformed waiter was walking through the cabin carrying a tray which contained snacks and drinks.
** The waiter, seeing the door to the flight deck open, brought us some sandwiches and soft drinks.

*** (For a new pilot, like myself, to be aboard a flight like this was a unique experience. I felt very fortunate to be on this trip aboard the Bomber and to be among those people).

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** At our cruising speed of 275 MPH, it took almost 3 hours for the Bomber to reach Bermuda from New York, so, I tried to relax during the flight.
** I began to read a magazine, but, I couldn’t concentrate.
** While at flight school in Florida, we did some overwater flying to the Islands of the Bahamas, which are a hundred or so miles off the Southeast coast of Florida, and we had been out of sight of land many times before.
** However, Bermuda is almost 800 miles out into the North Atlantic Ocean, which is much farther out to sea than the Bahamas.
** I kept looking at the ocean all around the airplane.
** It was a beautiful sight.
** I also kept watching the fuel quantity, oil pressure, and the other gauges on the instrument panel.
** Everything was normal.

** John Green returned to the flight deck to instruct me on the use of the LORAN (Long Range Navigation) system so I could plot our position on the return flight.
** I studied many advanced navigation systems while at college, including celestial, inertial, LORAN, and others.
** But, the LORAN set in the Bomber was extremely old and, unlike the new and more modern LORAN receivers, it was complicated to use.
** It took about 5 minutes to plot a fix.

*** (In those days, the LORAN navigation system was implemented and was maintained worldwide by the US Navy for use by its ships, which travel at about 20 to 30 miles per hour.
*** However, the Bomber flew at almost 300 MPH.
** In the 5 minutes it took to plot our position using this older LORAN receiver, the Bomber traveled almost 25 miles. Therefore, the position fix obtained using this LORAN set was only a close estimate).
*** (The LORAN system is now maintained by the U.S. Coast Guard).

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** John explained how to use the LORAN receiver and, before long, I was able to determine our approximate position by using this LORAN set.
** John said Gene would probably not ask for a position fix on the way back, but, I should probably be ready to give him one in case he did.
** I knew that was good advice.

** As we approached Bermuda, the Boss came into the flight deck. He told us his yacht was anchored over the sunken Spanish ship and asked if we could make a low pass over the yacht so the people on board would know we had arrived. (No cell phones)
** Gene said we could.
** The yacht was anchored about 5 miles Northwest of Bermuda. Flying over it required only a minor deviation from our course.
** We descended to about 200 feet above the water. As we passed over the yacht, Gene banked our wings, left and right, as a greeting. The people standing on the deck waved as we flew overhead.
** I remember thinking how very beautiful the blue and turquoise ocean and the pink beaches of Bermuda looked from the airplane.

** We landed at the US Naval Air Station on the Island of Bermuda and parked on the civilian side of the airfield.

US Naval Air Station / Island Of Bermuda

** After we landed, more limos drove up to the Bomber.
** We all shook hands and the Boss, John Green, and their party went on their way.
** Gene and I prepared the airplane for the return flight.

** Gene got out of the airplane first.
** As I got out, Gene was having a loud conversation with the driver of the fuel truck.
** This driver appeared to be about 18 years old.

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** Gene seemed upset that this fueler parked his fuel truck too close to the Bomber. (It seemed to be parked OK to me.)
** The driver seemed a little frightened.
** I couldn’t hear exactly what Gene was saying, but, he seemed to be inquiring as to how this fuel truck driver might feel about having a size 12 shoe inserted into a certain part of his anatomy.
** The driver scrambled back into his fuel truck and quickly repositioned it a little farther away from the Bomber.
** I felt a little bad for this driver, but, compared to the incident that morning in the LaGuardia Airport control tower, this incident was relatively mild.

** We flew non-stop from Bermuda back to Westfield.
** Gene navigated by using a high powered radio navigation beacon which is located on Nantucket Island, off the Massachusetts coast.
** The return flight was uneventful.
** Gene read his magazine, while I, sitting at the LORAN navigation table, kept track of our location in case Gene asked for a position fix . . . . He didn’t.

** As we neared Nantucket, Gene asked me to get back into the co-pilots seat. He then did something which, I was told, he had never done before.
** He asked me if I wanted to fly the Bomber.
** I really had no desire to fly the airplane as flying an airplane during the cruising portion of a flight is not very exciting or challenging.
** Not wanting to appear unappreciative of this kind gesture, I told Gene I would very much like to.
** Gene disengaged the autopilot and I took the controls.

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** As we passed over Nantucket, Gene told me to make a left turn to the Northwest, toward Westfield.
** While in the turn, he asked how the airplane felt.
** I said it felt “Big.”
** He laughed and said he was going to re-engage the autopilot. I had flown the airplane for about 5 minutes.
** I thanked Gene. I felt honored.

** After we landed at Westfield, I went into our company flight office. A few minutes later, Gene came in. He asked how much he should pay me for my services as co-pilot.
** I was surprised.
** I told him todays flight to Bermuda had been a fantastic experience and I didn’t expect to be paid.
** He said, “How about two-hundred dollars.”
** I repeated I didn’t expect to be paid as I really didn’t do anything.
** He shoved the money into my shirt pocket, shook my hand, and left.
** I felt rich.
** Two hundred dollars was over two weeks pay for me.

** That was a day I will never forget.

- - - - - - - - -

** A couple of months later, Gene telephoned me. He said John Green was on vacation and he wanted to know if I was interested in making another flight with him in the Bomber.
** I said I would like to and asked him where we were going.
** He said I wouldn’t believe it so he would tell me later.
** He said it would only be a short trip and we would be home by that evening.
** When we got to the airport, before take-off, I asked Gene again where we were going.

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** “You won’t believe what the Boss wants us to do,” he said, “I’ll tell you later.”
** We took off in the Bomber.
** I could see we were headed toward New York City.
** Gene told me to call LaGuardia Radar Approach Control on the radio to obtain clearance to enter the New York TCA, which I did. We landed at LaGuardia Airport without incident and parked at the Marine Air Terminal.
** “Are you ever going to tell me where we’re going”, I asked Gene. “You’ll find out soon enough”, he said.
** A few minutes later, a pick-up truck drove out onto the ramp and up to our airplane.
** “There’s our passenger”, Gene said. I looked to see two men loading a washing machine onto the Bomber.
** “The Boss wants us to deliver this beat up old washing machine to him at his home on Marthas Vineyard“.

** (Marthas Vineyard is another resort island off the coast of Massachusetts, near Nantucket Island).

** “Can you believe it”, Gene said. “It costs over a thousand dollars an hour to operate this airplane. The Boss could buy 10 brand new washing machines for what it’s going to cost him to bring this beat up old one out to Marthas Vineyard.”
** Gene cursed and swore for the entire flight. I sat there and listened to him vent his frustration on the Gods.

** While I always got along well with, and I guess I liked Gene Striker, I often wondered how such a man could be the personal pilot of someone of the stature of “the Boss”.
** One day, a few weeks after that flight to Marthas Vineyard, I was having lunch with John Green at the Westfield Airport Restaurant, so, I asked John if he knew.
** John said the Boss felt a strong sense of loyalty to Gene.

** The story he told me sounded like something out of a Hollywood movie.

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** It seems that one day, a few years earlier, while skiing at Aspen Colorado, the Boss had a serious accident requiring immediate treatment.
** As Aspen is remotely located deep within the Rocky Mountains, the medical facilities there were unable to treat him. To make matters worse, there was a severe blizzard in progress and all the roads to and from Aspen were closed.
** According to John Green, Gene Striker flew through the blizzard and through the mountains around Aspen, managed to find the airport through the snow, and picked up the Boss, who had arrived by ambulance.
** Gene then flew the Boss to Denver, arriving there just in time to receive the necessary medical attention, thereby, saving his life.
** According to John, Gene and the Boss became very close friends after that incident.

** By the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, most people of the economic stature of the Boss had acquired jet airplanes for their personal transportation.
** The Bomber, although plushly appointed, was an old fashioned airplane, more typical of the 1930’s or 1940’s. The Boss had been pressuring Gene for some time to get rid of the Bomber and get them a jet.
** But, Gene, being very set in his ways, was intimidated at the prospect of learning to fly a high altitude and high performance jet airplane and resisted this pressure from the Boss for a long time.
** Because of this friendship with Gene, the Boss kept the Bomber for a lot longer than he should have.
** A year or so after our trip to Bermuda, the Boss, having given up trying to persuade Gene to get rid of the Bomber, decided to sell the airplane and to discharge Gene and John.
** This was also a major economic blow to our company.

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** After years of pressuring Gene to sell the Bomber, we later learned that the Boss had finally purchased a luxurious private jet and hired a different crew to fly it.

***

* * * * * * *
(Regarding the independent and sometimes defiant actions of Gene Striker and some other pilots of that era, I submit the following - -

**** I believe the Federal Aviation Regulations are reasonable, have been formulated with the goal of enhancing the safety of flight, and must be respected and adhered to.
** I do not approve of nor condone some of the actions described in this and in some other chapters.

** - - Having said that, I also submit the following - - -

** Flying an airplane is an endeavor filled with many variables and uncertainties. Only the pilot knows the safest course of action at any given moment.
** Sometimes (hopefully rarely), following the rules might actually place an airplane in a more dangerous situation.
** ( For example - when low on fuel, it may be necessary to descend below legal landing weather minimums during an instrument approach ).
** There are many other similar scenarios . . .
** It must be remembered that, unlike Doctors, Lawyers, or many other professionals, we pilots must suffer the consequences of our decisions, along with our passengers.
** In spite of our sometimes “Fun-loving” behavior, pilots have often risen to almost “Superhuman” levels of performance in order to save their passengers, their airplanes, and, themselves.

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*** Some people believe that an independent and strong willed nature may be a desirable asset in dealing with the pressures and responsibilities of flying.

*** In recent years, beginning in the 1980’s, the FAA has tightened the rules regarding aviation.
** Many of the events described in this book, if occurring today, would certainly result in FAA investigations and possible disciplinary actions.
** Today, pilots are now routinely issued violations for even minor infractions of FAA Regulations.
** However, as described above, not all infractions of the rules are the result of a deliberately careless or reckless action.

** In earlier times, there was co-operation between air traffic controllers and pilots.
** We seemed to work together.
** Today, because the FAA now disciplines air traffic controllers for not reporting pilots for even minor infractions of the rules, the pilot/controller relationship sometimes seems to have deteriorated into an almost adversarial situation.
** Controllers seemed to have been transformed from their former positions as organizers of air traffic to their new function as the “Air Police”.
** Today, this added pressure, and the fear of being issued a violation, has, in my opinion, weakened pilots command authority, reduced our spirit of independence and our willingness to make difficult decisions.

** (Although the aviation safety record may have improved since the 1980’s, I still long for and miss the freedom and independence we pilots once enjoyed).

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