More than 100 Air Force pilots ask not to be promoted
   WASHINGTON (August 16, 1997 01:10 a.m. EDT) - Unhappy with con-
 ditions in the Air Force and lured by the promise of high paying
 careers with airlines, more than 100 Air Force pilots have asked
 not to be considered for promotion to major.
     Although "a handful" of officers typically write to promotion
 boards to say they do not wish to be considered, the letters this
 year appear to represent an unprecedented rejection of careers in
 the service, a spokesman said.
     "There has never been anything like this," said Capt. Mike Rein,
 public affairs officer for the Air Force Personnel Center at Ran-
 dolph Air Force Base near San Antonio, Texas.
     He said the letters "came from all over the Air Force, from many
 different bases," and did not appear to be the result of an organ-
 ized protest.
     The pilots typically wrote that they had decided to leave the
 Air Force and did not want to stand in the way of another captain's
 possible promotion, he said.
     "We have had people in the past who have written the (promotion)
 board, asking not to be promoted, but there have been only a hand-
 ful," Rein said.
     The Air Force did not release the exact number of pilots who
 opted against promotion, saying only that "more than 100" had asked
 that their names be removed from consideration.
    Even with the letters, the Air Force selected 905 pilots, 274
 navigators and 1,397 "nonrated" captains for elevation to major this
 week, Rein said.
    This was the largest number of promotions to major since 1991.
    The declined promotions by pilots appears to be part of an over-
 all problem of officer retention in the Air Force, said Capt. Byron
 James, an Air Force spokesman at the Pentagon..
    "It's a problem that has the attention of our senior leadership,"
 James said. He said many pilots were unhappy with a heavier work
 schedule resulting from overall service downsizing and overseas
 deployments, especially in Europe and the Middle East.
     In addition to that, he said, many Vietnam era pilots who have
 been flying for airlines are reaching retirement age, "and the air-
 lines are hiring." In that connection, officials have pointed out
 that senior Air Force pilots typically earn more money than start-
 ing pilots for the airlines.
     A recently-leaked Pentagon memo said Air Force pilots are leav-
 ing the service at faster rates than those who fly for the Army,
 Navy or Marines.  That memo said part of the problem was the fact
 that pilots don't trust senior officers in the Air Force.
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    AERO SPACE MUSEUM OF CALGARY E-MAIL BULLETIN AUGUST 15, 1997
    The Calgary Aero Space Museum is proud to add Cessna AGwagon
 Serial No. 0007 (C-GXQM) to its collection of aircraft that share
 a historical past in Alberta.
                         HISTORY OF MODEL
    On February 19, 1965, the prototype of the Cessna Model 188 was
 introduced. This single-place, low-wing monoplane, specifically
 designed for agricultural duties was named the AGwagon.
   The success of the AGwagon prompted Cessna to design the AGpickup,
 the AGtruck, and the AGhusky.
                         HISTORY OF G-CXQM
    Greg W. Scott, president of Air Support Alberta Ltd., High River,
 acquired C-GXQM in 1986 from former High River owners Bob Arn (who
 had it for one year, 1985-86). Prior to that, the aircraft was owned
 by Ernie McClain (1980-85), and by Don Oldenburg of Vermillion who
 brought it into Canada on May 20, 1977, from Chinook, Montana,
 complete with log books dating from May 21, 1966, the day the air-
 craft left the factory at Wichita to make a four-hour flight to
 Dallas. "Demo" flights with No. 0007 continue until November 6,
 1966.
     Greg Scott gave C-GXQM the TLC it needed, and brought its time
 up to 3,400 hours. During the  past 10 years, Scott flew the air-
 craft over Southern Alberta fields, effectively crop-spraying
 150,000 acres.
                             STRUCTURE
     C-GXQM is powered by a six cylinder, 230 h.p. air-cooled Conti-
 nental O-470-R engine fitted with a McCaully all-metal constant
 speed propeller. "A quick glance down the wing, from the tip , will
 reveal a slight wander in rivet rows," says Scott.  "This indicates
 the hand-riveting, done on an experimental basis before factory
 'tool-up' took place."
              THE AGWAGON ARRIVAL AT THE AERO SPACE MUSEUM
     On  Thursday morning, July 24, 1997, C-GXQM was flown by pilot
 Scott Phillips from High River to Calgary International Airport, ad-
 jacent to the Aero Space Museum.
     For Scott Phillips, the last flight of C-GXQM was significant.
 It was in this airplane that he'd taken his first solo tail-dragger
 flight. He'd flown the aircraft's last spray flight the night before,
 and had "hardly slept a wink" anticipating the historic trip the
 next morning.
     Escorting "XQM" on its flight from High River was a Cessna 180,
 piloted by co-owner Greg Scott. This flying escort was required
 because "XQM" lacked the radios required to land at Calgary.  With
 Greg was his father, local farmer Sonny Scott, a self-described
 "combine pilot."
     Once on the ground, a crane was used to lift the aircraft, slung
 by the front and rear spars of each wing, over two fences into the
 Aero Space Museum's Lancaster Court.
     In this agriculturally-based province, the presence of C-GXQM at
 the Calgary Aero Space Museum is sure to become a prominent attrac-
 tion. At last, people will be able to get a close-up look at an
 aircraft which has had a major role in providing weed-free Alberta
 grain to the world.
    A formal unveiling ceremony for "XQM" will occur later this year.
--- DB 1.39/004487
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