Pan Am may fly yet again
 Airline close to securing $10 million in financing to resume flights
    MIAMI - Feb 27, 1998: 6:20 p.m. ET - Pan Am Corp. has a tentative
 debtor financing offer of $10 million, that could allow the carrier
 to resume operations within a few days,  Chief Executive David Ban-
 miller said Friday.
     U.S. Bankruptcy Judge A. Jay Cristol set an emergency hearing
 for 3:30 p.m. EST Saturday, at which time the airline said it would
 be prepared to discuss the financing further. "It's a tentative of-
 fer to provide standard debtor-in-possession financing to provide
 the liquidity to get the airline running again," Banmiller said
 following a bankruptcy hearing.
    He said the offer came from Rothschild Recovery Fund in New York,
 which sent a team to Miami to discuss the proposal with Pan Am Sat-
 urday morning.
     Asked when the airline could resume flying, if an agreement is
 reached, Banmiller said, "I think we're talking about days at the
 most."
     Attorneys for some Pan Am creditors, including  NationsBank,
 which has a $26 million outstanding  loan with the airline, said
 they were "concerned" about the offer.
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       FAA finds no significant problems with ValuJet/AirTran
     Feb 27, 1998 5:03 p.m. EST -- A Federal Aviation Administration
 report released Friday revealed "no systemic safety problems" with
 AirTran Airlines, formerly ValuJet.
     The agency's National Aviation Safety Inspection Program (NASIP)
 team "took an extremely conservative approach" to its inspection of
 the airline, conducted from October 20 through November 7, 1997 and
 thoroughly analyzed in the months that followed.
     Initially, the agency reported 106 problem areas, but the new
 report said that 60 of those findings "were not substantiated" and
 were dropped. The remaining 46, the FAA report said, "have either
 been corrected by the airline or corrective action is in progress."
     The report cited the airline for hiring an unauthorized company
 to paint some of its aircraft and handle some interior modifications,
 and for failing to update a listing of the weight of some of its
 aircraft after changing the seating configurations. The report also
 noted that some flight crew members incorrectly filled out flight
 time records, and that the airline needs to improve its internal
 oversight program.
     ValuJet, which merged with AirTran and adopted its name last
 year, was under close FAA scrutiny following the May 11, 1996 crash
 of Flight 592, which plunged into the Everglades, killing all 110
 people aboard. Investigators believe that oxygen generators in the
 plane's cargo hold ignited a fire that brought the plane down.
     ValuJet was not authorized to carry the generators, considered
 hazardous material, and blamed a contractor for mislabeling and
 packing the canisters.  The FAA has since banned carrying oxygen
 generators as cargo, and has issued rules requiring smoke detectors
 in aircraft's cargo holds.
     The airline was grounded after the crash, and allowed to fly
 again later on a smaller scale.
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                   You still can ride in a B-17
     From time to time airmen discuss once again flying in WWII
 planes, preferably B-17s, perhaps to revive the thrills of years
 ago in England. (Or Africa and Italy. Jim)
    All it seems to take is money. The New York Times in a recent
 issue answered a query on the subject. Here is an inventory of such
 aerial opportunities:
     Experimental Aircraft Association, Oshkosh, Wis., 800-359-6217,
 B-17G, $590 for an hour.
     Collings Foundation, Stow, Mass., 978-562-9182, B-17G, $300 for
 45 minutes.
     National Warplane Museum, Elmira-Corning Regional Airport,
 607-739-8200.
     The Planes of Fame Museum, Chino, Calif. 909-597-3722.
 B-25J, $525 for five passengers, plus $30 membership each, 20
 minutes.
     Canadian Warplane Heritage Museum, Mount Hope, Ontario.
 905-679-4183. Does not yet have permission for such flights,
 but is pursuing a permit. B-25 and a Lancaster.
     RAF Coningsby in England has a Lancaster which gives rides, but
 only to RAF personnel.
     The FAA does not permit the sale of rides on WWII planes, but a
 few exemptions are granted.
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             9th AF reunion planned for next October 1-4
    The Ninth Air Force Association is changing its annual convention
 to fall meetings and will meet at the Hanalei Hotel in San Diego,
 Calif., Oct. 1-4, 1998.
     For information, contact the convention chairman,
 Evan Hull, 17025 Hierba, Rancho Bernardo, San Diego, CA 92128,
 phone 6l9-45l-2633.
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