OCR Text |
Show CHANGED FLIGHT ORDERSPROBED Air Lines Clash With Board Questioners j United Air Lines clashed with the federal board ot Injuiry. at a hearing hear-ing Saturday into destruction of the U. A. L. luxury Mainliner, over questions ques-tions put by W. D. Hammond, chairman chair-man of the state aeronautics commission. com-mission. Sparks flew when Mr. Hammond cross-examined a U. A. L dispatcher dispatch-er concerning the disputed preliminary prelimi-nary flight plans, which sent the Mainliner on its wsy from Cheyenne. Chey-enne. Wyo., toward Salt Lake City the night of October IT. j The prelinflnary plan Indicated flight by Instruments from Rock ' Springs to Salt Lake Cily. A final plan changed the procedure to intermittent in-termittent Instrument flying at 10.000 feet. The plane crashed with 19 aboard, ostensibly while flying on the Intermittent Inter-mittent instrument plan. Major R. W. Schroeder, vice president presi-dent and manager of operations for United Air Lines, interrupted Mr. Hammond's questioning, after two hours, with a demand that Miller C. Foster, chairman of the inquiry board, read the hearing's opening statement regarding the personnel of the board and methods of questioning. ques-tioning. The major apparently objected to Mr. Hammond asking questions directly, di-rectly, instead of submitting them to the chair in writing. He charged! the questions (directed by Mr. Ham-mondl Ham-mondl were misleading, in that! they did not take into consideration that the preliminary plan 'was "merely a scrap of paper which ' could have been junked as fsr as this flight was concerned." ! "I am attempting to clear the! (ConnmiM nn Pi Throe I I (Column JTuurf CHANGED FLIGHT ORDERSPROBED Contain fraea Pae Oaej record." Major Schroeder said, 'to show that tha final plan between tha dispatcher and th pilot could have been oral and that there la no law of th department requiring It to be on paper. Th actual flight plan Is th final one transmitted to Salt Lake City by dispatch." Despite the major's spirited objections objec-tions and hia demanda for a reading read-ing of the original hearing procedure proce-dure methods, which he indicated did not allow Mr. Hammond's method meth-od of questioning. Mr. Foster overruled over-ruled him and Mr. Hammond re-aumed re-aumed hia questioning- of Roy M. Uallager. Cheyenne. A. U. I- dispatcher dis-patcher who cleared Pilot Karl p. Woodgerd on his fatal trip toward Salt Lake City. rian Altered Examination of Mr. Uallager revealed re-vealed that prior to the Mainliner s takeoff from Cheyenne he and Pilot Woodgerd prepared a plan of flight and that a preliminary plan of flight, partially prepared by Mr Uallager, Ual-lager, called for Instrument flying at 12.000 feet elevation from Rock Springs to Salt Lake City. Just before the plane departed, however, additional weather reports caused Pilot Woodgerd to decide on flying by intermittent Instruments at 10.000 feet. He craahed at an elevation of 10.330 feet. Mr. Gallagrr teatified that in the preliminary plan ha wrote "Instru-menta, "Instru-menta, Rock Springs Salt Lake City." He did not fill tha "altitude" column. Just before the departure, he aaid Woodgerd told him: "I. will change the instrument clearance to intermittent Instruments Instru-ments at 10.000 feet." Altltudo I'nchanged "I told him 'Okeh.'" Mr. Gallager aaid. "Change tha flight plan." He teatified that the flight plan record! th understanding he had with Pilot Woodgerd "aa to altitude, alti-tude, but not aa to procedure as o instruments after Rock Spring." He did not notice that Pilot Woodgerd Wood-gerd had failed to change tha altitude. alti-tude. However, Pilot Woodgerd dictated a flight plan dispatch to Mr. Gallager, Gal-lager, calling for intermittent instrument in-strument clearance between Rock Spring and Salt Lake City at 10.000 feet. This dispatch, according to Mr. Gallagher and Major Schroeder and Frank A. Caldwell. UAL chief dispatcher, dis-patcher, waa th official flight plan and the only on known by Intermedial In-termedial stations and Bait Lake Citv. Objrrtlona Atrraiwd The preliminary plan subsequently subsequent-ly disappeared, but a carbon ropy of it waa Introduced at the hearing, and Mr. Gallagher aaid he never would have known of Pilot Woodgerd Wood-gerd s failure to change the preliminary pre-liminary plan if the carbon copy had not been found. Mr. Hammond's questions dwelled on Mr. Gallagher's failure to know of the lack of change, since he signed the preliminary plan. His continued questions finally brought Major Schroeder to hia feet with the demand of having the first day's record of the hearing read. The tenor of hia demand indicated that he objected to Mr. Hammond's method of questioning, and he ttaid that the board of inquiry consisted of three membera appointed by the department of commerce, hinting that Mr. Hammond officially wan not a member of the board and. therefore, should submit his questions ques-tions in writing to the chair. Mr. Foster read the record, which disclosed the board consisted of the three men appointed by Secretary Sec-retary of Commerce Roper and two members of the atate aeronautics commission, and, furthermore, that questions to be submitted in writing were to come from persons ln the room, not members of the board. Schroeder Overruled There should be no room for misunderstanding during this hearing," hear-ing," Mr. Foster ruled, "and I will allow you, or your representatives, to ask any questions you desire of any witness after the witness has answered the questions current at the time." Mr. Hammond then resumed his interrogation of Mr. Gallagher. Questioners drew nearer to a possible pos-sible answer of what put Pilot Karl D. Woodgerd off his course a Mr. Gallager took the stand late ' Friday. I And as he testified, haltingly. nervously, examiners still had the I words of a witness who preceded him ringing in their ears words jwhirh added more evidence to conclusions con-clusions the luxury liner crew whs Drying frantically to ue a static-i static-i fouled radio. ; H. M. Hucke, Chicugn. chirf com-l com-l m (mirations engineer for 1 1 A L. aaid he thought the pilot's head set was plugged into an auxiliary "jackbox" rereiver which was tuned to the Knight radio range. Previous teatimony indicated the copilot, co-pilot, John B. Adams, waa trying over another receiver and by voice i transmitter. Ironically enough, had an unconnected uncon-nected loop antenna on the ship been in operation, the static might have been overcome and tragedy averted. Device Not Connected The ship was equipped with four antennae, Mr. Hucke testified, but the loop antenna, one especially designed de-signed to overcome static ln range signal reception, was not connected. It was a new arrangement and was to be connected at a field other than Cheyenne. But Mr. Hucke voiced hope that .some day fatal static may be over-'come. over-'come. He is in charge of the atatic laboratory plane which gained nationwide na-tionwide recognition when it wan put in opcrHtion laM spring. "We have succeeded to point in static elimination) where it is merely a matter of time until a good solution to the problem is obtained." ob-tained." Mr. Hucke ttaid. "It won't I be a 100 per cent solution, but a good one," |