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 Founder & Publisher Seija Wegg was born and educated in Finland, and completed a Major in business with emphasis in language studies (fluency in Swedish, German, and English, besides her native language). After a career in the international marketing and hospitality industry, which included extensive travel in Europe, she established an office in Scandinavia for a Swiss-based printing and publishing company.
Founder & Editor in Chief John Wegg started in aviation as an ATCA at LATCC. After four years with a major European airline's flight operations at EGLL, he worked in Europe, Africa, and the Middle East for a US carrier. He then worked for nine years in airline sales and marketing before moving to the magazine business.
 Assistant Editor Roger Thiedeman was born and educated in Colombo, Ceylon (now Sri Lanka). At the age of 11, a passion for motor cars—especially the Rolls-Royce marque—led to an avid interest in aviation when he was presented with a bundle of Rolls-Royce aero engine brochures.
With reading and writing dear to Roger’s heart as long as he can remember, he first had an article published in a newspaper—and was paid for it—shortly before his 11th birthday. Later, he was appointed co-editor of his college magazine.
Roger emigrated to Melbourne, Australia, in May 1972. In November 1974, he joined Ansett Airlines of Australia as a reservations clerk. During a career with Ansett spanning nearly 26 years, all of which were spent in Melbourne, Roger progressed through various supervisory and managerial positions in the Reservations Department, culminating in his appointment as reservations manager, for the state of Victoria, in 1988.
Although very much an Aussie in terms of outlook, attitudes, and interests, Roger maintains strong links with the land of his birth, not least in matters aeronautical. He is continually researching the history of aviation in Sri Lanka, contributes articles on various aspects of Sri Lankan aviation—both military and civil—to a variety of newspapers and magazines, and has assisted in the compilation of an official history of the Sri Lanka Air Force. Roger also regularly writes articles and book reviews for the Rolls-Royce car club journals in Australia, the USA, and the UK.
In September 2000, Roger opted for early retirement from Ansett Australia—almost 12 months before the airline’s demise. Soon after leaving Ansett, Roger was invited to join the Airways editorial team. Based in Australia, he enjoys the challenges of his rôle in support of editor in chief John Wegg, the job’s logistics being greatly facilitated by citizenship of the ‘global village’, and the Internet and email revolution.
Roger Thiedeman lives in Keysborough—a southeastern suburb of Melbourne not far from Moorabbin Airport—with his wife Ingrid.
 Pat Seymour, Office/Advertising Manager
As I grew up on the waters of Lake Pend Oreille and in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, I don’t have great stories of airplanes or airports; however, I do have some of captains, but they were the skippers of boats... So, because my fascination of the great aviation world didn’t begin until I joined Airways I’ll begin there.
My magic carpet ride with aviation began 11 years ago when I started working for Airways. Soon I was in contact with subscribers and contributors around the world, from my first day until present it has been a most pleasurable career. Thanks to the fantastic writers of Airways and the many books that surrounded me I was transported into the mystery and ever changing world of aviation and have enjoyed every minute of it!
Besides the love of reading I enjoy exploring the beautiful beaches of the Olympic Peninsula with my husband and very spoiled yellow Labrador.
Contributing Editors
 Malcolm ‘Mac’ af Uhr “I was born in Stockholm, Sweden, early in the Sixties to a SAS captain and his flight attendant wife. Later that decade we moved to Bangkok, Thailand, while my father flew for Thai Airways International before returning to Sweden five years later.
“After graduating from college (or gymnasium as it is called in Sweden), I was drafted for a stint in both the Royal Swedish Air Force and the Swedish Army. I moved to the United States early in the Eighties for the explicit purpose of learning how to fly with no intention of staying.
“My aviation career started as a flight instructor, which included the highlight of teaching aerobatics and taildragger operations in Great Lakes biplanes. The next step was a stint as a freight dog, flying canceled bank checks at night while building flight time in twin recips and turboprops. A lucky break then put me in the captain’s seat with a small commuter, which in turn later opened the doors to the large national carriers. I am currently flying for my sixth US-based jet carrier and so far have accumulated well over 15,000 hours, mostly on B737, DC-9, B727, and MD-80 aircraft.
“I reside in Anchorage, Alaska, with my Australian born ex-flight attendant wife and our two young boys.” mac@airwaysmag.com
 Don Bedwell is a veteran aviation writer and author of the acclaimed Silverbird: The American Airlines Story, a lavish pictorial history of the world’s largest airline, published by Airways International Inc. Bedwell served as aviation editor for The Miami Herald and business writer for The Charlotte Observer before joining American Airlines Corporate Communications as editor of AA’s newspaper, Flagship News, and contributor to American Way magazine. He now lives in Cincinnati, Ohio. Tony Buttacavoli “I was born under the shadow of the Canarsie Approach, hard by JFK, so if geography has anything to do with destiny, I was fairly predetermined at an early age. I always wanted to be a pilot. I started flying in high school, earning my PPL along the way. After college, and a tour in the Marine Corps infantry, it was apparent that it was now or never as far as following my passion and becoming a professional pilot.
So I jumped in with both feet, spent my life savings on advanced ratings, and dove into the crapshoot that is commercial aviation. By God’s grace I soft-landed into the right seat of a freight dog DC-3 at the tender age of 26, with a mere 510 hours in my logbook. This airplane, and my mentors in the left seat, truly taught me to fly. After ten years, and some 8,000 hours of round-the-clock, round-the-globe, all-weather flying, I was a seasoned round-engine captain, with a résumé that was more suited to being hired in 1947, than 1997.
My next logical move was to fly the Convair 340, a bigger, more systems-intensive airplane than the Douglas, powered by the R-2800, the best round-motor ever made. After two years and 1,000 hours of this bliss, it was time for me to attempt to leave the vagabond, yet aeronautically fulfilling, life of a freight dog, for the semi-normal, semi-stable, life of the turbojet-powered people carriers. By God’s grace again I landed in the cockpit, this time the retro jet flightdeck of the Boeing 727, and I am currently flying captain in the same, based out of DTW.
 Ed Davies was born in Wales, and retains a slight accent. Graduated as an electrical engineer, then completed two years full-time National Service as a ground radio officer in the Fleet Air Arm of the Royal Navy. Emigrated to Canada in 1966, moving to the United States three years later. Never worked in the airline, nor in the aircraft manufacturing sector, but enjoyed photographing aircraft, and discovered that many of them had a wonderful story to tell. Main interests have been the Douglas DC-3, and other transport aircraft of the Thirties. There have been transgressions to firebombing types, and, more recently, to the Boeing 707 and 737. Lives in ‘Jet City USA’ and is a volunteer in the archives of the Museum of Flight in Seattle.
 R E G Davies was born in England and, after serving for 6½ years in the British Army during World War II, spent a lifetime career with, first, the Ministry of Civil Aviation, then British European Airways; later, with the Bristol and de Havilland/Hawker Siddeley aircraft manufacturing companies; and finally, with the Douglas Aircraft Company in California. His specialty was economic and market research, but he became interested in the fascinating history of the airlines and the development of the commercial airliners. Since 1964, Ron has published some 20 books on the subject. In 1981, he took the Lindbergh Chair of Aerospace History at the Smithsonian's National Air and Space Museum and, after two years, was appointed Curator of Air Transport at the museum.
Ron is a Fellow of three Royal Societies: Geographic, The Arts, and Aeronautical; a Fellow National of the Explorers Club; and an Associate of the Académie Nationale de l’Air et de l’Espace. He has received numerous awards and holds both the Mérito Santos Dumont and the Mérito Aeronáutico from the Brazilian government.
A feature article on Ron’s career appears in the May 2006 issue of Airways.
 Philip Dawson began to develop his love of ships, aircraft, and other things which move people and cargo around the world as a child in Salvador de Bahia, Brazil, through contact with his father’s work in the cocoa butter export business.
After moving first to England and then to Canada, where he completed his schooling and went into the data processing field, Phil continued to follow the development of commercial shipping and transport, taking a special interest in design and operation.
He first started writing on shipping and ship design as a sideline early in the Eighties, and has since embarked on a full-time second career as a free-lance writer, specializing in shipping and transport subjects, as well as architectural and industrial design and their bearing on the transport field. Apart from his keen interest in accommodations and service areas of passenger shipping, aviation, and railways, Phil is avidly following intermodal and ‘mainporting’ developments of airports, seaports, stations, and other supporting infrastructure.
Through his pro bono work with the Mariners’ House while living in Montréal and his own extensive travels, Phil has also developed a keen appreciation for the human aspects of the work of crews and passenger service aides. He is also involved in advocacy work with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, aimed at improving accessibility for passengers with eyesight and other handicaps. The author of three books, with two more titles on the way, Phil is a regular contributing editor to a number of specialist and professional publications in the transport and design fields, including Airways. He is also a research assistant on Canadian architectural, industrial, and graphic design for the Design Exchange in Toronto, where he now lives.
 Ken Donohue Growing up in Victoria, British Columbia, and the son of a ferry captain, it may come as a surprise that Ken is an aviation enthusiast, but he became ‘hooked’ after his first flight at the age of 14 1/2 a CP Air DC-10 to Amsterdam. Now living in Vancouver, Ken is the communications manager for the BC Transplant Society, and encourages everyone to consider organ donation. In 1999, Ken gave a kidney to his wife, and with a new lease on life, both have been able to enjoy their passion for travel. His freelance work has been published in various newspapers and magazines. Ken’s wife introduced him to the magic of photography and has collaborated with him on a number of stories for Airways. Ken can often be seen looking skyward, marveling at a passing airplane.
 Richard Drury “Built model airplanes as a kid...started flying sailplanes around age 11 and soloed at 14. Then powerplanes. USC...Distinguished Military Graduate from ROTC...into USAF pilot training. Volunteered for Douglas A-1 Skyraiders in Southeast Asia—combat. Following training at Hurlburt Field in Florida, sent to First Special Operations Squadron, Nakhon Phanom, Thailand. Flew 220 combat missions from attack through Sandy Lead on rescue missions. Awarded the Silver Star, four Distinguished Flying Crosses, and 20 Air Medals, amongst others.
“Following USAF, flew Beech D-18 for a freight company, then went back to Laos as a civilian pilot, flying mainly the Pilatus Porter, although gained time in the DC-3 and Lockheed Electra. Following the downfall of Laos, returned to US and joined a major carrier. Have flown DC-8, Boeing 727, 747, and MD-11—on which I was captain and check airman. Retired in 2003 after 30 years as an airline pilot.
“Have owned several aircraft, including a TEMCO Swift, North American T-6 Texan, Beech Baron, Cessna 182, Blanik sailplane, Hawker Sea Fury (raced two years with it at Reno), and North American T-28. Following four years as owner/operator of Vintage Air Tours, which provided open-cockpit biplane flights over the San Juan Islands, I now have a Great Lakes and a Stinson 108-3 Station Wagon.
“Five books published: My Secret War, USAF Close Air Support, US Airpower at Sea, A-10: America's Mudfighter, and Flightlines. The latter is a collection of my favorite columns from more than a decade of writing a regular column for Airways. Hundreds of magazine feature articles published in most of the aviation journals.
 Dave English studied physics at the University of Warwick in England, and graduated, despite working the technical side of theater productions, music concerts and moonlighting as a nightclub disc jockey. He moved to the United States one week after he finished college. After a range of jobs—including stock person for a supermarket, assistant manager of a record shop, and automobile salesperson—Dave realized that he would never grow out of his dream of being a pilot. He learned to fly, worked as a traffic watch pilot and instructor, spent ten years at American Eagle (SD3-60, SF340, ATR72 & ERJ 145), and is now an Airbus A320 pilot for a major airline flying out of New York. He is the editor of the best-selling books Slipping The Surly Bonds: Great Quotations on Flight and The Air Up There: More Great Quotations on Flight.
 David C Forward was born and educated in England. His career included 12 years working in sales and marketing in the airline industry, both in the UK and US. Forward became a writer and motivational speaker in 1990, and travelled the world addressing audiences, from a dozen to a thousand, on such topics as selling skills, empowering employees for success, and volunteerism.
As a writer, Forward specializes in international business. Forward’s first book, Heroes After Hours: Extraordinary Acts of Employee Volunteerism, rose to number six on the best-seller list. His next book, Sales SuperStars, traced how the top salespeople in America reach—and maintain—such success and how we can follow their formulae.
Forward is an instrument-rated private pilot and enjoys flying, “anything involving commercial aviation,” boating, and humanitarian work. He lives with his wife and son in southern New Jersey.
David C Forward
 Nuala Galbari is a freelance writer with a background in aviation, media art, and advertising. Growing up in Belfast, Northern Ireland, she often visited Aldergrove Airport (originally Nutts Corner), which fostered a love of aviation at an early age. Nuala studied hospitality management at the Belfast College of Business Studies and later worked with the International Charters Division of Grand Metropolitan Hotels in its London offices.
Following rejection by British Airways and Dan-Air, she joined Iran Air as a flight attendant in 1974 and subsequently flew as flight purser for Cyprus Turkish Airlines (KTHY) and Bursa Airlines, based in Istanbul, Turkey.
Early in the Eighties, she moved to Miami, Florida, to work with Cordis Corporation in marketing, and then to Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1991 where she studied fine arts, creative writing, and graphic design at Normandale College and the Minnesota School of Business. There, she joined a Minneapolis advertising agency and during her nine-year tenure in media relations, was awarded editorial of the year on several occasions in the electronics engineering field.
An aviation and history enthusiast, she is a contributing writer for Pleasant Living Magazine and creates promotional literature for York County and Newport News-Williamsburg International Airport, Virginia. Nuala is currently working on a book about Chesapeake Bay wildlife. Other than aviation, her passions include animals, opera, and 18th century theatre.  Kjell Oskar Granlund Born far from any airport in a small Norwegian market town, Kjell first became interested in civil aviation at the age of nine when his father’s work took him to Lusaka , Zambia. Too young for big game hunting, Kjell would pester his parents into taking him to the nearby Lusaka International Airport as often as possible. Although having served in the Royal Norwegian Air Force, Kjell’s main interest lies in commercial aviation. He has followed the Scandinavian air scene since the mid-Seventies and has been published in a number of European and US publications. A historian at heart, he is actively involved in maintaining Norway’s aviation heritage. He has worked closely with the Norwegian Aviation Museum documenting Norway’s aviation present for posterity—the people, the ’planes, the life of the airport. “Aviation is not only airplanes. Aviation is the people that make the airplanes fly.” Kjell tries to tell that story through his photographs. He also runs his own aviation stock photo agency, Scandinavian Aviation Photography.
 Valerie Lester, who flew with Pan Am in the Sixties, is the author of Fasten Your Seat Belts: History and Heroism in the Pan Am Cabin and Phiz, The Man Who Drew Dickens. She has written many articles for Airways, mostly about small airlines and aviation personalities. Valerie currently works as a writing workshop leader and tutor at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland. Brian Lusk “I was born in 1952, just a couple of blocks from the Santa Fe Railway’s main transcontinental line in Clovis, New Mexico, to an airline father, so transport was in my blood at an early age. As a child, my fondest memories are spending days at work with my dad on the ramp in Amarillo, Texas, inside the Terminal Six satellite at LAX before it was opened, and on the observation deck at Dallas-Love Field. After graduating from Southern Methodist University in Dallas as a journalism major, my first airline job was with Delta in 1976. During my time at Delta, I worked at Dallas/Fort Worth (during three separate occasions), Detroit, Oakland, Atlanta (at the old terminal), Portland, Oregon, Paris-Orly, and Dayton, Ohio. My 18½ years with Delta were split between ramp/operations and ticket counter/gates.
“Since 1995, I have been with Southwest Airlines, with most of the time being spent in the communications group in the Executive Office. I began free-lance writing late in the Eighties, and besides Airways, I have credits in Trains, and the old Passenger Train Journal.
“My passion is the transition era (both aircraft and airports) from props to jets in the Fifties and Sixties, and I feel ancient because I have seen the 727 and TriStar era come and go. I cried the day they tore down the original terminal at Chicago-Midway. Among my most memorable airline trips are Continental DC-3s, DC-6Bs, Viscounts, and Convair-Liners; British Airways Viscounts, Tridents, and Concorde; Delta Convair 880s, DC-8s, and TriStars; and a Catalina Airlines Goose. My favorite aircraft include flying boats, Constellation, DC-7, DC-8, Viscount, Britannia, VC10, 727, TriStar, and just about everything else with wings from the Fifties and Sixties.
“Wait…I have to add the 737 because I LUV my job. My e-mail is brianlusk@smartburst.com .”
 Michael Manning is a broadcast journalist who has worked in radio and television, industrials, and film projects for more than a decade. His broadcasting career has included work as a news anchor, general assignment reporter, scriptwriter, producer, host, and a commercial copywriter. He has also appeared in radio and television commercials. His focus at Airways involves interviewing CEOs and wherever possible, covering stories involving airlines steeped in historical significance. Between pursuits in music and the performing arts as a singer/musician, his stories in Airways reveal the passion of the newsmakers, in addition to the people ‘behind the scenes’ in the commercial aviation industry.
A member of the Pan Am Historical Foundation, he holds a Bachelors degree in Psychology and is a member of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. He is an author of two books, No Artificial Flowers During the Mowing Season (poems), and a collection of short stories (work in progress). michaelmanninginfo@GMail.com
Sky Masterson uses a nom de plume in an effort to relay more sensitivity to his writing. Born into an airline family, Sky has always had a passion for the airlines.
“I took a job pumping avgas at a local airport in Colorado at the age of 16, and through that job paid entirely for private through multi-engine and Certified Flight Instructor certificates. My professional flying experience began while flying turboprops in the US Southwest, followed by five years in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado, then onto the Pacific and Asia with a major carrier. I am now based in the northeastern US flying domestically, and at this writing I am flying as a captain on the Boeing 737.
“I have an Airline Transport Pilot certificate, rated in the Boeing 737, De Havilland Canada DHC-7, ATR42, ATR72, Beechcraft 1900, and Beechcraft 300. I have also flown the Airbus A300B, Boeing 727, Beech 99, and Beech King Air.
“Most of my writing deals in the human element of flying for a living. My stories are mostly fiction, though each experience could have been shared by any number of pilots. I also believe that though fiction does not necessarily bring out the facts, it certainly reveals truths that are not always synonymous.”
 Tom Norwood grew up near Rochester, New York, and attended college in upstate New York. Having acquired an interest in commercial aircraft and air traffic control at an early age, he received his private pilot certificate at age 17, commercial pilot, instrument, and multi-engine ratings at age 18, and flight instructor rating at age 19.
Following college he worked briefly as a general aviation pilot, and in sales for a major US air carrier. Events of August 1981 opened the ATC doors, and by January 1982 Tom was attending the FAA Academy in Oklahoma City. Over the past 24 years he has worked at four FAA facilities in New England, and currently works in the Southwest desert.
Tom has been affiliated with several publications over the past several years, providing reports on airline route scheduling and fleet make-up. He edited the North American Airline Handbook (three editions) and is author of Deregulation Knockouts: Round One and Round Two.
 Ewan Partridge “I joined the CAA from school and did a drawing office apprenticeship at the Gatwick design engineering centre. From there I moved to a division of Philips that specialized in service support of radar, EW, and communications systems, becoming configuration manager for the product range. I also specialized in the use of data management tools in this type of industrial environment. Currently I am using this experience to assist and advise a start-up company in the industrial laser industry.
Aviation was my earliest enduring interest, I was hooked from the first time my father took me to see the aircraft at Gatwick. Thereafter I witnessed the enormous changes in the airports and airlines of southeast England over 40 years.
My interest in aviation writing grew from the disciplines of communicating in an engineering environment, a latterly gained history qualification, and of course my pre-existing interest in aviation and aviation photography. For me the social and economic backgrounds are important elements, both in current and historic pieces, because these are so often the factors that make or break a new aircraft or airline. But in wider terms the part that aviation has played in the making of the history of the last century is undoubtedly one of the greatest stories of our time.
 Rand Peck is (this week) a captain for a major US airline and spends time at home in his Stearman and Cub, exploring New England in search of interesting airfields, aircraft, and aviators. The airline industry is more than just a job to him. It’s a field of study that has presented opportunities, wonderful friends, and 30 years of adventures from around the world. From victor airways to jet airways, the view has been marvelous. Hugh Pryor born in the UK on 24 July 1944, youngest of six, to Rev Archibald Selwyn Pryor (Church of England) and Elizabeth Gulielma (née) Lister. Father KIA, Normandy, 10 September 1944.
1949-1952: PNEU (Parents’ National Educational Union) Kindergarten, Pangbourne, Berkshire. First discovered potential of the fairer sex when caught trying to ease toes under Jacqueline Bisset’s bum during morning assembly.
1952-1957: Summerfields School, Oxford. First discovered mathematical dyslexia. Gave up aspirations of becoming university professor, doctor, rocket scientist, king of Great Britain, army officer, merchant banker, stockbroker, or captain of industry and millionaire. Never even thought about being a ‘pilot’. Pilots had just won the war, after all. You had to be ‘special people’ to be a pilot.
1957-1962: Eton College. Apparently signed on at birth by my uncle. Started ‘average’ and consistently failed to maintain average academic standards, mainly through inability to master basic mathematical principles. Enjoyed rowing, until success brought punishing training regimes and serious inroads into social calendar. Reverted to type and was relegated to ‘Garbage Class’, known as ‘Modern Remove’. Joined good bunch of failures, including Ranulph Twistleton-Wykham-Fiennes (Arctic Explorer), Prince (later King) Berendra of Nepal (tragically murdered, with the rest of the family, by his drug-crazed son), and the present Duke of Gloucester, who has turned out to be the pick of the bunch, in spite of his rather inauspicious apprenticeship. Caned many times by senior people whom I now respect too much to mention.
1962: New Guinea: two years Voluntary Service Overseas, because National Service had been halted the year before. Discovered Yalumba Port, by the gallon. First ever flight, in a Cessna 185.
1965-1969: Keswick Hall College of Education. Total waste of three years, but received a bit of paper to say that I was qualified to educate people.
1969: Went to Tanzania to make Meershaum pipes. Ended up farming with cousins (Michael Wood, plastic surgeon who rebuilt pilots’ faces during the Second World War) on Kilimanjaro. Built a dairy. Learned to fly as that’s the only sensible means of transport on the Dark Continent and bought a Piper PA-12 Cruiser.
1975: Farms all nationalised by communist Tanzanian government. Left Kilimanjaro and made airstrips for East African Flying Doctor Service; CPL/IR, began flying for FDS: Cessna 182/185/206/402, BN-2A Islander, and Partenavia P68.
1976: Married Annie. Bet she wishes I hadn’t.
1978: Went to fly for old friend, Alan Herd, in Khartoum, mostly ex-Air America Pilatus Porters plus Islanders. Not paid for five months. Alan is still great friend and next-door-neighbor.
1978: Joined Air Wing in Oman. Best years of my life. Porter, DHC-5D Buffalo, Lear 35. Performed almost seamless wheels-up in Buffalo: low point in my life.
1982-1998: Zimex Aviation, Switzerland. South Yemen, Libya, Ethiopia, Sudan, Angola, North Yemen, Mozambique, Algeria.
1998: BenAvia, Geneva. Twin Otters on contract to BP, Algeria. Company went bankrupt in January 2002 kindly agreeing to owe me $31,700.
February 2001: Turning point in career. Bought first copy of Airways at Geneva Airport.
March 2001: High point in career. John Wegg read my stories and said ‘Yes’.
May 2001: Even higher point in career. First story published in Airways. Nearly got drunk.
May 2002: Rossair, South Africa, on same contract with BP in Algeria. In 2004 contract to WFP in Bujumbura, Burundi.
January 2005: Rossair went bankrupt, kindly agreeing to owe me $7,150.
July 2005: Executive Turbine, South Africa, UN/WFP contract, based in Rumbek, southern Sudan.
By and large I have had an enormous amount of unearned and undeserved fun in life. Now I’m just standing by for the millionaire bit to fall into place. Don’t hold your breath!
Andreas Rohde “Born in 1971, I grew up in a suburban town close to Frankfurt, Germany. Regular family holidays to the Mediterranean sparked an early interest in aircraft and airlines (my first ever flight was on board an LTU Caravelle from Frankfurt to Palma de Mallorca at the age of two).
“While still in high school, I started flying gliders at age 16 and worked for TAP at Frankfurt during summer holidays. While the latter was voluntary, without monetary compensation, it gave me insight into the airline business and, of course, access to real airliners.
“After graduating from school and finishing a year of military service, I joined Südflug—then a Lufthansa subsidiary and sister-company to Condor, operating charter services on behalf of the latter —as a flight attendant. While the initial intent was only to earn money for flight training, eventually I learned to appreciate this job and after half a year with Südflug (flying on the Boeing 757), I was transferred to Lufthansa, flying long-range services on the DC-10, A300, A310, and A340. Six months later, I changed to Condor, working on that airline’s charter fleet of DC-10s, 767-300s, and 757-200/-300s.
“During days off and holidays I completed my flight training, step by step—the theoretical part in Germany and most of the flying in St Augustine, Florida. Finally, after seven-and-a-half years of passenger service—then holding a German ATP and a US commercial license—I changed places to the other side of the cockpit door. In June 2000, I was hired by Contact Air.
“With Contact Air, I flew domestic and European services on behalf of Lufthansa Regional. After flying as first officer on the Fokker 50 for four years, I transferred to the ATR42-500 and ATR72-500, in 2004. I also work as an emergency trainer with Contact Air, primarily teaching emergency and evacuation procedures.
“I started writing for Airways in 1998 and since 2002 I am joined on most of my reporting trips by my partner Birgit.
“My special interest is classic propliners, and I was involved in a Convair-Liner project for several years (unfortunately, this was terminated in 2001 with the withdrawal of the main sponsor), although I had several flying lessons on the 240.”
Stan Solomon Like the emu and the dodo, Stan Solomon is also a flightless bird, although not quite as extinct as the latter. Unfazed by his inability to fly, he constantly watches the skies and attempts to capture for others the marvel and mystery of air travel. A retired high school teacher, he can often be found chained to his computer in a New York apartment, churning out Debrief and other words of wisdom.
stansolomon@earthlink.net
 Christopher H Sterling is an associate dean at George Washington University in Washington, DC. He holds a PhD in communications from the University of Wisconsin, taught at Temple University in Philadelphia in the Seventies, and served nearly two years in a senior post at the Federal Communications Commission. His academic field (commercial aviation is a hobby) is telecommunications and electronic media policy, a subject on which he has published more than a dozen books and many research articles. He authored (with a good deal of help) Commercial Air Transport Books (Paladwr Press, 1996) and collects books on all aspects of commercial aviation. Other interests include the history of fortification and passenger ocean liners. Chris Sterling
 Clayton Taylor “I have an Associate of Arts degree from Keystone Junior College and a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania. After college I was employed by the FAA as an Air Traffic Controller. I was terminated in the PATCO strike in August 1981. Next I worked at a CBS affiliate station as a news photographer and studio camera man. After one year, I was hired by Lockheed Corporation as an air traffic controller at a non-federal tower in upstate New York. During my tenure at Lockheed I held a number of full- and part-time flying jobs, including cargo, corporate, and aircraft ferrying, in addition to holding the chief pilot and check airman status at a number of small commuter airlines.
“I left ATC in 1987 and went to work full-time for Command Airways in upstate New York. Shortly after upgrading to captain, I was appointed as a flight instructor and check airman. Eventually my job included acting as a designated examiner, which facilitated a move to Texas after Command became part of the American Eagle system. I was hired by Northwest Airlines in February 1996 as a co-pilot on the DC-9. After three years I transferred to the Airbus A320 series and have been afforded the opportunity to fly throughout the USA, Canada, México, and the Caribbean, as well as Asia. Recently, I qualified on the A330 for international flying.
“I started freelance writing late in the Nineties, having my first article published by Flying magazine. I have written one novel entitled Dead Eyes Opened, dealing with a commuter aircraft accident, published in 2007.
“Currently, I hold a weather observer’s certificate, a CTO (control tower operator and area radar rating) for two airports, as well as an ATP, CFII, MEI, and type ratings on the SD330/360, ATR42/72, B737, and the A319/A320/A330.” Frank L Webb - frank@airwaysmag.com
 Frank is a working airline captain flying international routes across Europe, Africa, and Asia to over 70 destinations on wide-body Airbus jets for one of the world’s top airlines.
He was born into an aviation family. At two weeks of age, Frank took his first airplane ride. Mom held him in the back seat of an US Air Force T-34 while Dad was at the controls. Naturally, the dream of flying took root early. One of his strongest childhood memories is standing by the flight line fence watching F-100 fighter jets taking off in afterburner.
Frank started flying at age 14. He soloed on his 16th birthday and earned his Private Pilot Certificate on his 17th birthday. That same year, he earned his instrument and multi-engine ratings. The Commercial Pilot Certificate followed on his 18th birthday.
Graduating from Lakenheath American High School in England, Frank returned to the United States and enrolled at Louisiana Tech University, earning degrees in Professional Aviation and Electrical Engineering. While at University, Frank worked at several part-time flying jobs, such as flight instructing, and single-pilot cargo flying. Frank joined the Navy’s Aviation Reserve Officer Candidate (AVROC) program during his junior year.
Frank was selected to attend the Naval Postgraduate School in Monterey, California. There he earned two additional Electrical Engineering graduate degrees. As a Navy Engineering Duty Officer, he specialized in aerospace navigation, guidance and control. In addition to various test and evaluation duties, he was involved in the development of GPS, the global positioning navigation system. While in the Navy, he was licensed as a registered Professional Engineer in California.
As a civilian, Frank worked for Boeing, becoming a 747-400 instructor, and later becoming a 757/767 instructor. While at Boeing, he was a speaker at various industry events such as the Avionics International symposiums and was an FAA aviation safety counselor. Alaska Airlines subsequently hired him as a 737 instructor. Additional responsibilities at Alaska included the production of flight crew training materials and the technical content of the pilot’s 737 airplane systems publications.
In order to allow the kids to experience international living (as he did as a youngster), Frank became a contract pilot working for ContractAir. He was assigned to Shenzhen, China (near Hong Kong) as a captain flying the 737 for Shenzhen Airlines. This made him one of the first non-Chinese 737 captains to fly domestically in China. Two years later, he was selected as a direct entry captain at a major international airline based in the Gulf region of the Middle East. He is currently serving there as a training captain on the Airbus A300-600.
Frank is married to the former Gail Schwartzenburg of Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and they have three children. Rachel attends University near Portland, Oregon, majoring in education. Hannah and Mark are still in the nest. The family currently divides their time between residences in Port Orchard, Washington, and Doha, Qatar.
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