Convairiety, Volume 5, Number 26, December 17, 1952 Page: 3 of 8
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December 17, 1952
CONVAIRIETY
Page 3
NEWSREEL—Cameraman Mark Irwin of Convair SD looks down on passing scene at SD Division
as he records operations from cab of overhead crane. Movie, which took about a week to make,
gives searching insight into activities at both SD plants in span of less than half hour, inset shows
typical scene.
Flying' Movie Camera Records Varied
Operations Underway at SD Plants
Delivery Near
For Delta 340
In 1929 Delta inaugurated pas-
senger service from Dallas to
Jackson, Miss., Atlanta and Bir-
mingham, flying single-engine
Travelaires across the “Deep
South.” Even through the de-
pression the line showed a steady
growth, gradually taking on new
equipment and new routes. Delta’s
routes now extend from Chicago
to Miami and Fort Worth to
Charleston, with interchange serv-
ice to major points in the north
and the west coast.
Thanks to several globe-trot-
ting Convair service engineers,
the first model 340 will not be
an unfamiliar airplane to Delta
personnel. The Convair men are
George Pohlman, John Nowak,
Frank Hollingsworth and John
Crenshaw, who recently returned
from Atlanta where they con-
ducted maintenance courses while
Ludvig Knudsen, SD flight engi-
neer, was teaching ground school
for pilots.
“Everyone we met was highly
enthusiastic about the model
340s and expecting a high degree
of performance,” Pohlman said.
Using animated system mock-
ups, visual aid machines and
photos (Convairiety, July 2,
1952), the maintenance instruc-
tors taught simultaneous classes
five days a week for two months.
In addition, concentrated one-
week courses were conducted at
eight major outlying stations for
those unable to attend the At-
lanta course. These points were:
Chicago, Cincinnati, Dallas, New
Orleans, Shreveport, Charleston,
Jacksonville, Miami.
Pohlman taught electrical sys-
tems and instruments; Nowak,
structures and rigging; Hollings-
worth, hydraulic systems and
power plants; Crenshaw, air con-
ditioning, jjressurization, anti-
icing systems. During the last
month of the period Knudsen wvas
available for flight school.
The Delta experience was the
third “traveling” school conduct-
ed by Convair service engineers
on the model 340 for customer
airlines. Others are scheduled
for 1953. “Alumni” thus far in-
clude Braniff and Continental in
addition to Delta.
Through the roving eye of a high flying movie cam-
era, members of Convair’s Board of Directors last week
saw the San Diego Division as few have seen it except
crane operators and perhaps a few stray sparrows.
At a special showing, directors
viewed a 900-foot, 16 mm film
recorded from the tops of build-
ings and work stands as well as
from the cabs of overhead cranes
moving through the division’s
major production buildings. The
brain child of B. F. Coggan, SD
Division manager, the movie was
originally designed as a produc-
tion efficiency tool to inspect
operations from points of vantage
virtually impossible to reach by
any other means. However, when
shown to the corporation’s Oper-
ating Policy Council recently,
United Takes up
Pioneer's Order
Purchase of five Convair-Liner
model 340s, originally ordered
by Pioneer Air Lines, has been
arranged by United Air Lines.
Scheduled for delivery to Pio-
neer late in 1953 and early in
1954, the airplanes will be re-
programmed in the plant at San
Diego to include special United
equipment and interior styling,
J. V. Naish, Convair executive
vice president, said.
W. A. Patterson, United presi-
dent, said UAL studies indicate
additional 340s will be required
in 1954 to handle traffic. Gen.
Robert J. Smith, Pioneer presi-
dent, explained his company re-
linquished the contract following
failure to obtain an allocation of
critical materials from Civil Aer-
onautics Board, and indicated
that United, as a much larger
carrier, probably would not meet
similar difficulties.
Gen. J. T. McNarney, Convair
president, recommended that it
be shown to the Board of Direc-
tors as a live report of what is
going on at the SD Division.
Coggan, who narrates the film,
pointed out that from a practical
standpoint it is valuable in in-
specting the plants from an en-
tirely new angle, directly over-
head. General conditions, layout
problems, etc., that are obscure
when viewed from the ground
become startingly clear through
the camera’s eye.
The division manager indicated
that he intends to have similar
film reports made from time to
time. Industrial engineers felt
that the idea may be adopted by
other concerns in industry as a
quick means of inspecting facili-
ties in inaccessible areas, report-
ing progress in layout, noting
storage conditions, etc.
Although easy to look at, it
was more difficult to take. Cam-
eramen Gene Keefer and Mark
Irwin did the bulk of the shoot-
ing, sometimes squeezing into
narrow quarters for some shots,
carefully placing the more than
100 pounds of camera, magazines
and battery.
“It was really a squeeze in one
of the crane cabs,” Irwin recalled.
“When we finally managed to
place the camera there was only
a quarter-inch clearance between
the top of the magazine and the
beams overhead!”
The film, which Coggan indi-
cated he hoped to show ultimate-
ly to all supervision at San Diego,
starts with airplane views of both
plants at SD, comes down to
earth to touch on views of newly
acquired warehouse space, then
offers good sequence film re-
ports on major projects at both
plants. Particularly effective is
moving down the model 340 line
with ship after ship appearing to
slip past in a steady stream.
Ten-Year-Old AVO
Delivered, by Goshl
“Better late than never,”
quipped G. G. Stogsdill, super-
visor of Office Services at
Convair FW, when questioned
about an AVO that had been
“lost” for 10 years.
Stogsdill explained that “we
may be a little late sometimes,
but we get your mail to you
eventually!”
The misplaced AVO was dat-
ed 26 June, 1942, addressed to
E. E. Barbe, then chief of
Plant Protection. It requested
that E. G. Hoag, of Tool De-
sign, be furnished with a key.
The signature at the bottom
was that of the late C. L. R.
Smeltzer.
Weights Engineers
Hold Dallas Meeting
A pictorial report on Korea,
presented by Lyman Josephs of
Chance Vought, highlighted the
recent meeting of the Texas
chapter of the Society of Aero-
nautical Weights Engineers when
that group met Dec. 4 in Dallas.
Among m e mbers attending
from Convair FW were V. L.
Salzman, Dept. 12, chapter chair-
man; and the following Dept. 6
employees: Elsie Gargis, secre-
tary-treasurer; Harry Rowland,
program co-chairman; and Jerry
Ray, director. The SAWE meets
j every six weeks alternately at
! Dallas and Fort Worth.
NARRATOR—Explanation of scenes in "newsreel1' is carried on
sound track in voice of B. F. Coggan, SD Division manager, shown
here making recording.
(Continued from page 1)
already have completed initial
model 340 ground school and
maintenance personnel also have
been given thorough training.
“The remainder of the training
necessary is chiefly familiariza-
tion and flight and continuation
of pilot ground school.”
Delta’s present order is for ten
model 340s. However, Chicago
and Southern Air Lines also has
ten of the ships on order built
to the same specifications. Should
a proposed merger of the two
TRAINING AID — George
Pohlman, right, Convair SD serv-
ice engineer, discusses training
aid used in recent Convair-Liner
model 340 maintenance course
for Delta Air Lines mechanics
with J. M. Boxley, Delta technical
training coordinator.
companies be approved by the
Civil Aeronautics Board, the re-
sulting company known as Delta
C. & S. Air Lines will have a
score of 340s on the flight line.
Delta is one of the nation’s
pioneers in aviation. In the mid-
20s the company gained attention
as the world’s first crop dusting
concern and also operated an
international air mail-passenger
route from Peru to Ecuador in
South America. Directing that
route was C. E. Wollman, now
Delta’s president and general
manager.
Material Storage Shifted at SD
From Plant 2 to Bay Front Lease
Convair San Diego was in the
midst of a withdrawal on one
hand and an expansion on an-
other hand this week.
With the close of the B-36
modernization program at SD,
personnel are vacating the Insti-
tute of Aeronautical Sciences
building near the seaplane ramp.
Field Operations already has
shifted to Building 4 at Plant 1
and Flight also will move to
Building 4 between now and early
January.
Henceforth,. with Flight and
Field Operations centered at
Plant 1, the lamp area will be
devoted chiefly to experimental
work (such as R3Y static testing)
and seaplane flight operations.
At another part of the SD Di-
vision a transfer of some magni-
VACUUM
(jfecLtl&tA
5ob .
4 b
‘Wonderful suction, hasn’t it?’
tude is taking place, however,
with the shift of tons of raw
materials and equipment to stor-
age area recently acquired at
1995 Bay Front, San Diego, the
Westgate-Sun Harbor Co. plant
formerly devoted to tuna packing.
R. B. Watts, Convair vice presi-
dent and general counsel, report-
ed that Convair has taken a
three-year lease on the area to
provide both additional office
quarters and warehouse facilities.
Approximately 145,000 square
feet are involved.
Convair began the job of tak-
ing over last month, involving
the shift of tools and equipment
and materials currently stored at
Plant 2. Transfer will make room
for expanding operations at that
plant. The move is being made
by truck and is being carefully
keyed in with dsy-to-day material
requirements so as not to disturb
normal manufacturing activities.
Approximately 100 persons
from Sub-Contracts (Dept. 26)
and about 50 from Material
(Dept. 5) are scheduled to move
to the new location. Awaiting
Sub-Contracts personnel are spa-
cious, air conditioned offices af-
foi'ding more icom than previous-
ly available in Buildings 19 and
5 quarters, as well as easier ac-
cess for outside business contacts.
Approximately 4,000 pallet
loads are involved in the shift of
materials to the new warehouse
area. Parts, equipment and ma-
terials are valued at several mil-
lion dollars. The move will be
completed shortly after the first
of the year.
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Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporation. Convairiety, Volume 5, Number 26, December 17, 1952, periodical, December 17, 1952; Fort Worth, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1117986/m1/3/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company, Fort Worth.