Shutter, do you know if there were any NWA mechanics or other personnel onboard for the FBI tests to do the actual lowering of the stairs?

Who ever was in the back during testing lowered the stairs. who actually did this is not known. the door can be seen open during flight..

Pressurizing the plane had 3 modes...auto, standby and manual..

Pressurizing the plane had 3 modes...auto, standby and manual..

is there anything in the transcript that talk about  the state of those modes?

interesting article about refrigerated truck use in Vietnam War

"We Were Reefer Kings"

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FORT KNOX, Ky. -- Veterans Day, a day we as a nation stop to honor those who have served. No matter if it's one week in basic training or if the ultimate sacrifice has been paid, American veterans are owed a debt of gratitude that can never be repaid.

In 1965, the 1st Logistical Command, the precursor of what is now known as the 1st Theater Sustainment Command, began sending troops to Vietnam. The mission of the 1st Log was to act as the logistics headquarters for all units in the theater. In Vietnam, the command parented the U.S. Army Support Command, Da Nang, U.S. Army Support Command, Qui Nhon, U.S. Army Support Command, Cam Ranh Bay, and U.S. Army Support Command, Saigon, as well as other smaller commands.

In 1968-69, several Soldiers from the 1st Log spent a year rotation in Vietnam. They trained to be 'reefers' or refrigeration mechanics. This is their story:

Roger Ashworth, a lifelong resident of Bakersfield, CA joined at the age of 18 when he noticed his entire neighborhood became empty. Thinking he would receive draft orders soon, he went to find out his draft status.

"I went down to the draft board and they said, you'll be drafted in three months," Ashworth said.

After learning the news, Ashworth decided to not wait and worry. Instead, he went to his local Army recruiting station and signed up to be refrigeration mechanic.

Ashworth asked himself, "When was the last time you heard of a reefer getting killed in Vietnam?"

Upon arriving to Vietnam, Ashworth was assigned to the 1st Log, 379th Transportation Company. He reported to the reefer shop to learn how to build air conditioners.

"We were known as the 'Reefer Kings'," Ashworth said. "We called our patch the Orient Express. It was a red dragon sitting on top of a tire wheel. The reason for the name, one, our location and two because we were always moving conveys of food or ammo."

Ashworth said the trucks driven in Vietnam were the minesweepers. They were a reefer trailer outfit, and food was the top priority.




Some more detail on refrigeration of food deliveries during vietnam war

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I've noted in the past various things in Sheridan's book, that give me a headache, trying to decide "coincidence" or "interesting"...

Now what are the odds, that there would be a reference to refrigeration repair? I'm expecting they had big industrial refrigeration, probably ammonia based.


"Olson felt a new surge of life. There was the sweet taste of revenge. He'd fix Brock. He'd fix all of them. He'd have it arranged so that he could teach Roy Aupick's electricians when the new training director visited the site. Aupick was one of the few foremen Olson respected. There were four others: Hirsh at the steel plant, Sweeney at the auto mechanics shop and a new guy who had taken charge of the refrigeration repair department, and then there was Manning, the assistant manager at the transportation and supply office"

These details come from Sheridan's job(s) before he became a USAID employee

i.e. from one of these two jobs where he was involved in training (welding, refrigeration & air conditioning mentioned)

1966-1967 As Training Supervisor at Pacific Architects & Engineers, Cu Chi, Vietnam, directed the design, development and implementation of carpentry, sheet metal, plumbing, surveying, refrigeration & air conditioning, electrical, welding, auto mechanics, painting, cable splicing, and building structure courses both as OJT and in a formal classroom setting. Also introduced clerical and administrative ESL training to the job site.

1965-1966 As Vocational Training Supervisor for the Raymond /Morrison & Knudsen/Brown & Root/Jones Construction Conglomerate at Tu Duc, Vietnam, organized and directed vocational training courses in heavy equipment operation, electrical maintenance & repair, welding, warehouse procedure, painting, forklift operation, sanitation & pest control, site security, and first aid & safety.

This  passage from the book is interesting too. Shows the hands-on nature of Sheridan's work, in doing the training curriculum

"As an experiment, Olson had been teaching Aupick's electricians at their workplace. There at present refurbishing a warehouse. Teaching them at their work site had its advantages. Everything they needed to know about their job was there. Aupick always had things set up for him. Not only had he constructed benches for the electricians, but hte tools and material he wanted taught were laid out. Each item was carefully labelled. He was very particular about hte items' nomenclature"

Goes on to talk about how Aupick and Olson worked together to develop the lesson plans.

Musing

Hand tool, not lathe, for Ti cuttings

Tubing, pipe cutter and reamer (inside)  for mechanical compression fitting?