Evening star., 1947-07-04
Lands Expected 10 Ask
Federal Authority on
Altitude Of AirIiners
By W. Il. Shipper, Jr.
Stor Ssoff coyrssoondsot

LEESBURG, Va, July 4.-Several
recommendation to President Tru-
man probably will result from the
preliminary inquiry which ended
here last night into the disastrous
crash of a Capital airliner in the
nearby Blue Ridge foothills, June IS.
The, first seems likely to be for
Federal orders" instead Of Federal
advice" in enforcement of altitude
minimums for commercial aircraft
especially those following estab-
lished air lanes over mountains or
populated areas.
During two days of questioning
witnesses, Chairman James M. Lam
dis Of the Civil Aeronautics Board,
who also heads the Presidents spe-
cial board of inquiry tried to learn
who has responsibility for fixing al
titude limits beneath which passen-
ger airplanes cannot fly.
Emphasis Put on Approval.
Probing the crash of the Wash
ington-bound airliner, which carried
all so on board to their deaths near
the top of the Blue Ridge Range Is
miles northwest of here, Mr.. Lands
kept returning to the point that
a Federal traffic officer had approved
the request of a commercial pilot to
violate his own companys regula-
tions as to altitude.
At one time Mr.. Lands termed
the refusal of the Civil Aeronautics
Administrat ton traffic controllers to
accept responsibility as constituting
a department of utter confusion"
The outcome may be that recon-
mendations will be made to the
White House to standardize altitude
regulations and tighten Federal en-
forcement.
Another possible safety recon-
mendation may be the scrutiny of
the operation of instruments which
give pilots their altitude by measur-
ing air pressure. 1t seemed likely
from evidence that the Capital pilots
either misread their altimeters, or
were misinformed by them, and
began to let down out of the clouds
>on the approach to Washington too
soon to clear the last mountain
barrier.
Radar' Device Considered.
An improvement in the near
future may be the installation of
absolute" altimeters operated by
radar echoes from the distractions
underneath or in front of airplanes.
The members of the Presidents
board recently flew in a Trans
World Airline Constellation equipped
with a device which flashed lights
and sounded sirens as danger warn
ings.
Evidence was introduced yesterday
to show that operation of pressure
altimeters sometimes is adversely
affected by transforms similar to the
Ohe in which the airliner was flying
when it plowed into the Blue Ridge
The possibility that engine failure
might have been responsible for the
accident was advanced by Capt.
M. C. Carlow, Alexandria, veteran
Capital Airlines pilot, who spoke in
behalf of the Air Line Pilots AsSoci-
alton (AF'L).
Capt. Carlow presented chart of
the fatal flight from Pittsburgh
based on terraine. air speed, reported
positions from the pilots and the
crash site
Flight Engineer Recommended.
1t was pointed out, however, that
the chart, which showed very
steep drop in altitude just before
the crash, was based on reported"
positions without regard to testi-
mony of eye witnesses who saw the
transport flying at low altitude in
the valley west of the mountain a
few minutes before it struck the
crest.
Another spokesman for the pilots
association, Carl F. Eek of Chicago,
a safety engineer for the union, rec
commended among other things a
flight engineer as the third member
of cockpit crews on four-engined
airplanes.
Mr.. Eek asked the CAB experts
to press development of combined
infra-red camera and television re-
ceiver to make instrument flying
obsolete" He also asked that con-
trollers at busy airports during
traffic jams give priority to pas
senger aircraft on scheduled flights,
Mr.. Eek suggested that another
radio beacon be established in the
vicinity of Martinsburg, w. Va. as
an added check point. and that CAA
flight clearances be standardized.
The hearing was recessed in
definitely last night, subject to recall
If and when new evidence may be
laun1NroG