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Show 74 HERALD SUNDAY FEATURE PAGE SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 14, 1953' Utah County. Utah constantly' aware and alert to their awesome responsibilties and capable of instanteous reaction in emergencies, just to mention a few of the prime requisites. When, they finally qualify, they are truly a handpicked "breed of tigers" who know how to assume and wear.the mantle of responsibility, and wear 1t with an ingrained sense of solemnity and respect. Once a man is accepted for flight testing, his realistic and gruelling training begins. Take a Hill, pilot who is about to test an "'Voodoo" for the first time. Before he ever 'sets foot in the cockpit,' he has simulated his flight many, many times, relentlessly under the guidance of more perienced counterparts. What's more, in the process, he actually never leaves the ground! How is this done? It's easy to explain. He spends hour after hour practicing in a training device which is .the exact replica of an cockpit. He gets to know the procedures, the dials, the knobs, the switches and all of the other intricate electronics equipment like the back of his hand. In fact, he learns everything he needsto test an and to do it right the first time he's airborne. Test pilots at Hill must be a patient lot. They have to Zy.yrt s play a waiting game. Their AIRBORNE The isolated desert country of western furn comes after a sleek or Utah makes, a colorful 'background for this JfiXOl "Voo- they're referred to check-oas "century series" in the Air in Hill doo" as it returns from a Force comes rolling off the repair lines after being V heads for an'isoiated testing area consumption in fact, every perpainstakingly 'overhauled by ' Hill's maintenance experts. near Greaf Salt "Lake, north of formance yardstick1 that makes Wendovfer Air. Force Base. The the plane tick. Real Test Begins Rather than try;, to memorarea, about 30 miles wide and 50 Once Major Duncan gets the miles long, is a restricted zone ize his findings, and being enword that a "bird" is redy, he the beaten off means which tirely" too busy to make writcomselects the pilot, gives himv,a and of other ten military notes, the pilot has a new path briefing, and the flight mercial planes. The pilot and his badget to keep him importtesting process begins in earnest. aircraft are monitored every secant company, a small portapthe radar to ond RAPCON, checks the able tape recorder which he If everything by Hill. at center control a wears on his knee. His speech lengthy proach pilot's satisfaction in. on the ground, he About 45,000 feet over, the testis recorded by. it and his remarks are taped for traning area, the pilot levels off his swings his "century" aircraft-t- o the end of the runway. In a mat- plane. Then for about a half hour scription later into an official ter of .seconds he increases the or so he and .his aircraft Come report after he returnsto Hill. power, kicks in the afterburner to know each other intimately. Mission Completed He checks 'flight, sub and superand he's racing over the concrete When he completes the requirribbon and thundering quickly sonic speed and handling characfuel ed and involved tests, the pilot into the air. As he climbs he teristics; instruments, engine, HILL AIR FORCE BASE What kinck.of a man does it take to 1 or test1 a 'supersonic type aircraft more than eight miles above, the earth, after it has been completely overhauled? Air Force test pilots at Hill Air Force Base are real professcientifically trained, sionals' types methodical, "solid-citize'who do a job' that istoextremely our navital .and necessary tion's defense. They are a far cry from the "hell far leather," wholly irresponsible variety so clamorously portrayed in the af- '. erage TV show or movie. "Supersonic Testing A qualified . authority on this v subject-iMajor William C. Dun-- ! can, chief of Ogden Air Material Area's 'flight test division. He . and seven fellow test pilots t Hill Field spend a' total of about 150 hours in the air high over Utah ..each month, flight testing between 40 to 50. aircraft, mostly supersonic, after the 'birds' have repaired or moamea in tne j been maintenance hangars at tne huge ' Hill base. A typical test pilot, according to Major Duncan, is a devoted family man, with more than 2,000 jhours. of fair time, some of it in .combat, .ahd possesses a rich background . of experience and 'know-how- ? in flying, jet aircraft. There are many Air Force .pilots who lit this description. But what is the special something that a man for a flight .singles-o- ut , testing, assignment? Briefly, the main ingredients are a razor-shar- p mind, emotional stability, sobriety, above average ability1 as a liberally pilot all sprinkled with a, pinch ' of the daring. Most important is the desire to; test supersonic aircraft. .F-10- F-1- 02 F-1- F-1- v4a , J .. ' C 1 : .: :, - c,..4 - -- F-1- 02 30-min- ut ute last-minu-te But, as Major Duncan points out, there's still more to it 'than that.. Flight testing an aircraft -- "pfe-fligh- t" sound is an exacting art. It is essential that pilots be perfect physical' specimens; that they be v ' . 1 Lifl!!ynmiMDciii MIGHTY "MINI" Ma j. William C. Duncan, chief of flight test at Hill AFB, readies his aircraft for a test flight over the wastes of Great' Salt Lake. Miniature tape recorder records story of flight. 01 F-1- 'Breed of Tigers' 1 , " F-1- 01 -- ' s , , f I -- 1 j . 01 h : . p ,. as -- 1 - Utah Flight air -- s - ts Pi . n" ' Test TesiK Supersonic Speeds SUNDAY HERALD aMjmjBOQqtjiaM&. " a. . . a ... . . . .. . j&I&Ii r AFB's flight test area. At the controls is test pilot Lt. Carl E. Breeden from Hill. Test pilots prove efficiency of planes overhauled or repaired and okeh them points his aircraft to Hill and descends for a landing. If he pronounces it "OK", the plane is turned over to the using command, ready for its assigned mission. If he's dissatisified in .ny way with its performance, the pilot passes the word to the maintenance expert and trained mechanics to make it right. If the repairs require further flight testing, the plane will be taken aloft and checked out again. Hill's t e s t pilots wouldn't change their flight testing assignments for any other. They know that the "combat-ready- " tag on our first line jet aircraft means they are poised for instant re Sv; S yyyyyyyy taliation if an aggressor should attack. The critical and unsung role that Major Duncan and his men play in "proving out" maintenance and overhaul is hardly ever spotlighted, but nonetheless '. yy Ci V 7', ym yi:-- V4 it is another daily chore that's essential to keep our air power the best in the world. Elvis Presley Set For Duty in Germany FORT HOOD, Tex. (UPD Pvt. Elvis Presley, now a truck, driver in a tank company, will leave this Army post next Friday, for assignment in Germany. fa..... A a Yf PROVING GROUNDS Shown is Hill AFB's flight test area arid its relationship to Salt Lake City, Ogden and ly other Utah communities. Supersonic aircraft are tested after being repaired' at Hill. thor-oug-h- . Kit - " ' . s Offer Protection to Homes, Utilities, Roads, Businesses New Terraces Cut Provo Peak Flood Hazard By JOAN GEYER pioneer structures in Kolob Basin are still standing within sight of terraces, gigantic new which have altered the southwest face of Provo Peak. The surgical-lik- e incisions, rean ailing 23,306 - acre pairing watershed, are Visible in Utah Valley from the mouths of Rock and Slate Canyons.. They were inspected from the Pro10,000-folevel of 11, vo Peak last week by city and civic officials during a U.S. Ford tour over estry a newly cut scenic! loop road. The loop winds at elevations of about 8,000 feet from Pole Canyon road into Rock Canyon along the west' slope of Provo Peak behind the frontal peaks of Squaw, and Bucksome affords It ley. spectacular views of the Wasatch from Granite Mountain to the north to Nebo and Sanpete to the south, with breathtaking overlooks of Utah Valley. The road now ends at Kolob Basin which- 't over I ooks Springville and Spanish Fork. Next year, it will be extended another two miles to Camel's Pass, linking: in to Hobble Creek Canyon. Kolob, lying between Buckley Mountain and higher Provo Peak, is a saddle with drainage one way down Slate Canyon; the, other down Little Rock Canyon above Springville fish ' hatchery. Pioneer Work It was in Kolob Basin that Utah's first pioneer mountain repair work bgan in 1933, recalled Dr. yasco Tanner, B r i g h a m Young, University professor, and chairman of Provo Chamber of Commerce flood control committee. Former Mayor Mark Anderson, who directed a CCC (Civilian Conservation Corps) State Forest camp in Kolob in 1933, led the tour group to d control dams almost a quarter century old. Rocks had been piled together in gullies, bound with fencing mesh, and are still sturdily standing to carry on their function of "walking water" down mountain to curb its violent potential. Jlood-con-tr- Hand-hew- n cat-carv- ol ed 068-fo- ot ot , Service-sponsore- The Provo project began ' last year with contouring of Dry Hollow at the head of Rock Canyon. This year the forest service is spending about $26,000 to contour two major basins southwest of Provo Peak at the head of Slate Canyon and. another $1500 for reseeding bald slopes with ; soil-holdi- J grasses. ng - wide slashes which the mountain are cut at 75 to intervals by D-- 7 cats, which daringly walk up a 50 per cent slope, but work 70 per cent slopes blades in by pushing , front to cu their own roads. The cat returns to incise a three-fodeep V oh inner"! side of i the ledge , to drain 12-fo- ot look like giant steps upon 100-fo- ot 12-fo- ot ot 12-fo- ot v- m. 11-mi- le from south Provo Canyon to north Hobble Creek. .. There are many factors making From a this front wall-lik- e mountain front, elevation drops from 11,068 to 4,800 feet. From the valley floor, short drainages, narrow and ledgy, widen out near the heads of d basins, which terminate in precipitous slopes., Precipitation, only 16 inches In the valleyf is 40 inches on "high ridges. Abrupt rise of the mountains from the sunbaked valley floor, makes for storms of high intensity. flood-pron- e. Daring- Operation The At first glance these mounwater inward; then piles up earth at intervals to cross-datain drainage funnels seem well The rehabilitation is being car- covered with brush, conifers and ried out under the Provo Peak low vegetation. At closer range, Soil and Water Management it is apparent that sparse weeds front on high parks fail to cover the Project along an - vy,-..g)- steep-walle- nudity of the mountain. Gully systems have clawed down these drainages tearing fissures as deep as 60 feet. The ecol6gic balance on these slopes is very delicate," says; the forest service in official report; "And grazing, though it may have been relatively light and of little consequence to the livestock industry, has caused material damage and a rapid downward trend in soil and vegeta- tion." caying stone and plant litter at rate of only about one inch in 100 years. When white men came to the valley, the, mountain earth bfneath tall forb grass in high parks was two feet deep and had been at least 2,000 years building. Range Overgrazed "But this was not understood," he said, and the mountains were first grazed; then overgrazed." As cover disappearmud-roc- k and floods, flows ed, have increased during the past 60 years in frequency and. During 1930, serious floods discharged from Snow Slide Gulch in Provo Canyon and Rock and Slate Canyons. During the afternoon of July soil-holdi- se-vers- ity. , Dr. .Tanner says the earth fleshing bare rock bones of the mountains has evolved from de- - of record in Central Utala 'origm,,mWjm0m,m inated in Rock and Slate Canyons. Water and debris overflowed barriers at the moutks of these canyons and covered 25 N.l'VfcViM' acres of land and filled 75 rods of main irrigation canals with BLADE IS MOUNTAIN SURGEON Cats like one shown in lower right can "walk up" a mountain slope and work on even steeper slopes ahead of them with blade: Level "road" becomes a ter- -: by) "building" their own road to cut race after V on inner side nearer the mountain and cross-- 1 to create of water trap pits on the terraces. From distance the series damming treated slope looks like a . colossal amphitheatre. Distance between,-- , terraces, is 75 ' to 100 feet. Equipment is .parked at Cold Springs camp between Rock Canyon and ' ' "Kolob Basin. ' 12-FOO- T 50-fo- ot : cat-return- s 3-fo- ot . . - "y'-yy",. ? V Sr --''- i zy&z. z y I 43 TSpfS" From site" of .rfr. .r? r, ' j i -- 1 erties. . Youths Face Charges Of Setting 2 Fires ng Utah's first flood SALT LAKE CITY four-whe- el (UPD-Ad-minist- rators of the Salt Lake County Detention Home said they have determined the youths responsible for iwo fires at the home Thursday night. Claude C. Dean, superintendent of the institute, said a full report for disciplinary . action will be t.n 4 I t U V CUIln C VVNU aI, wucu nl W UJ iUOU the investigation is complete. Firemen quickly extinguish e d -- forest road which crawls up the precipitous flank of Provo Peak. Cats on the high rim above were signaled to halt work because of hazard from falling boulders. Big rocks had to be cleared from MAYOR POINTS TO FLOOD CONTROL CUTS BELOW PROVO PEAK Provo the trail before the bomb-carriG. Marion Hinckley r standing on a 9,000-foledge points to vertical gullies could cross the face of Provo sjMayor to horizontal terraces cut to repair Provo and sick Peak clawed in watershed below Peak. wide steps in two major the mountain. U. S. Forest Service cats have cut This access road will be will to slow above and reseed bald areas with basins Slate Canyon runoff obliterated when, contour -- level ot of the 11,068-fopeak con-vegetation. Fan of gullies at 10,00-fowork is completed this fall, deep fissures, which present acute hazard to city below in says Clarence Thornock, Uinta verge into 50 to event of cloudburst or quick spring runoff. forest supervisor. : m ed , sky-climbi-ng RANGER SHOWS DEPTH OF TERRACE, CUT IN POLE CANYON - Fores t carved last year on a bald .Hanger Jerry W. Hill stands in inner V of terrace-cu- t, flat in Pole Canyon north, of Rock Canyon to slow erosion. Note cross-daof earth behind the ranger.. Trapped "water cann ot race down-slop- e off carrying topsoil, butj must seep into the watershed. Forest service is experimenting with various grasses to learn which are best suited to Wasatch with newest considered, "chee" grass (not to be confused with .cheat grass) which must be planted by roots. te Under agreement reached i n 1956, the U. S. Forest Service agreed to rehabilitate the watersheds, while Utah County, Provo, and Springville agreed to repair debris basins at canyon mouths.N control experimental work the world famous Davis watershed the group used a converted bomb- carrier with drive to negotiate a - a violent 1951, - out-dati-ng , 21, storm swept Provo and nearby areas with a torrential downpour that washed' debrJc into Provo water supply at two canyon points; sent a flash flood roaring down denuded slopes east of Provo to smash into homes; blocked East Union Canal at two points with mud and rocks, and flooded fwo Utah State Hospital wards. Some of the most valuable land in Utah lies vulnerable at the base of Provo Peak's watershed. In the path of potential flood lie hundreds of homes, city .water lines, power, gas, and phone facilities, streets,- roads and "valuable business prpp- many-canyon- hand-worke- soil-destroyi- On July i5-minu- f 5 v uuuiMii.niM.uuuy - CAT WITH ng er ot 12-fo- ot soil-holdi- ng ' ot 60-fo- ot several burning overstuffed chairs, in the girls' section and several j. mattresses in the boys' area. " California production leads th nation La of grapes, peaches, - pears, apricots, olives, 'figs, lem- ons, avocados, walnuts, almonds, lettuce and melons. |