 From New York City where the American stage begins, here is another program with a cast of outstanding players. Public service time has been made available by this station to bring you this story, as proudly we hail the Flight Safety Officer School sponsored by the United States Air Force. Here the United States Air Force sponsors five eight week courses for its flight safety officers at the University of Southern California, so that the pilots and planes under its command will continue to be the safest in the world. We want to tell you the story of two of these flight safety officers. Let's call them Captain John Miller and Major Evan Johnson. Our first act curtain will rise in just a moment, but first, opportunities by the hundreds. They're opening now in the United States Air Force. You can take advantage of these opportunities and build yourself a highly rewarding career. In the Air Force, you'll find a specialized career to suit every aptitude and interest, with special emphasis on leadership and rapid advancement, trained in the world's finest technical training schools, and when you graduate, you'll be a proud member of this high flying defense team. Your assignments will take you to new and interesting places at home and abroad. Now is the time to get complete information on your career in the United States Air Force. Visit your local Air Force recruiting station today and talk it over with the friendly people there. And now your Air Force presents the proudly we hail production, School for Safety. The Air Force sponsored Flight Safety Officer School, restricted to flight safety officers, is nevertheless part of the curriculum at the University of Southern California. Registration usually takes place on a Wednesday. The officers report to the Flight Safety Office, just like any college student goes to the registrar on his first day at school. This is the Flight Safety Office, isn't it? Yes, it is, Captain. I'm Captain John Miller. I'm supposed to register for the school. Oh, yes. Would you wait just a moment while I get the proper form? Certainly. How did I California, Captain? Oh, I like it fine. It's not my first trip, though. When you're with the Air Force, you have a chance to get around. I suppose you do. I wouldn't mind getting to see some of the world myself. The name on this little wooden plaque on the desk is Joan Wendling. Is that you? Guilty as charge, Captain. Well, and we're even. You know my name and now I know yours. Have you gotten settled yet? Found a place for yourself and your wife and family? Well, I've gotten settled, but as for a wife and family, I happen to be a single American male over 21. And fighting off women all the time, I bet. No, no, not at all. Just fighting off the wrong women all the time. Oh. Oh, hey, that sounds conceited. I... I didn't mean it that way. I know what you meant, Captain. In this world where women outnumber men, it isn't a sign of conceit. When a man says that, just stating a fact. Uh, by the way, how's Mr. Wendling? Oh, my father's fine. I didn't mean your father. Captain, I happen to be a single American female, just 21 and looking for a life of happiness. Well, that's the best news I've heard today. Oh, where are you stationed, Captain? Uh, I'm with the Continental Air Command at Mitchell Air Force Base. Any more questions? Well, I'm just helping you to fill out these forms, Captain. Oh, oh, I see. You work here full-time? Mm-hmm. And I'm taking some art courses here at night, too. Not every night, I hope? No, not every night. Miss, I'd like to register for the Flight Safety Officer's school. Oh, yes, Major. Name is Johnston. Major Evan Johnston. Yes. Oh, hi to Captain. But... John! Johnny Miller, for what do you know? Evan, well, I'll be Horned Swag. Well, I haven't seen you since Korea. How've you been doing, man? Oh, great. Just great. And you? Well, riding the crest of the wave. Where are you stationed? I'm with Connack at Mitchell. What about you? I'm with Sack at Carswell. Oh, good old Fort Worth, Texas. You know, it seems like yesterday that we were flying wingtip to wingtip. Oh, not to me. To me, Korea seems like years and years ago. Anything exciting happen to you personally? Well, I found the girl and married her. Oh, no kidding. How long you been married? A year tomorrow. Bought her with me, too. Gonna be like a second honeymoon. Well, you're a lucky man. I think I am. How about you meet her? You really think so, too? I need to interrupt the two of you. But would you mind filling out this form, Major? No, not at all. Say, Johnny, what about you? Any girl grab you yet? No, no, not yet. But there comes the time when you think maybe you've found the right one. And in the most unexpected places, too. Go to it, man. Go to it. I think I will. Say, how about having lunch with me and the wife tomorrow? School doesn't start until Monday. We're at the Beverly Count. Oh, that sounds fine. What time? Oh, about one, I guess. And we'll be up and awake by that time, too, I guess. I hear this is our last weekend to live it up for eight weeks. Yeah, I hear this course is no snap. Hey, man, you sound as if you're worried about it. Yeah, yeah, I am a little... Don't forget, back in college, I was an arts major. What I know about math and physics, you could stuff in a tube of toothpaste. Oh, you've got a good head in your shoulders, Johnny. Maybe you'll have to study a little harder than some of the rest of us, but you'll make it. Well, I'm sure gonna try. Good. Holy cow, look at the time. Let's meet the wife at one, and it's five after now. Oh, look, I filled out that form. Give it to the girl, will you? Sure. And see you tomorrow. And if that girl of yours is in LA, bring her along. I'll see what I can do. Uh, Miss Wendling. Yes? Are you free for lunch tomorrow? Well, am I safe? Sure, Evan invited us. It's his anniversary. How about it? How could a girl be safer than with a safety officer of the United States Air Force? Oh, sure, I'd love to. Well, that's well, but I warn you, I'm only a flight safety officer. On the ground, I'm as dangerous as I can be, especially with a pretty girl like you. Well, I'll risk it. I think I know a gentleman when I see one. I'm glad you said yes. With a tough grind ahead for the next eight weeks, I think I'm gonna need someone like you to see me over the rough spots. I hope I can help, Johnny. Well, you just keep on saying Johnny like that, and I know you will. See you tomorrow at 12.30 in front of the building here? See you then. Oh, and Johnny? Yes? Stop worrying. Seems to me you're going to do all right. I'll tell you, Evan, I'm scared. You know, I haven't touched math since freshman year at college, and here I am in a class that's gonna cover practically the whole subject plus physics in three days. Oh, now, look, you're beginning to sound like an old fossil. Well, if it had been as recently as a week ago, I wouldn't have been nearly as nervous about it. Oh, what's happened since then? Joan. She seems like a nice girl. Glad you bought her to lunch yesterday. You see, I've got to do well for her, too, not just myself. Oh, you sound as if you were already married. Oh, I'm in a worse spot. It's courting time. You know, from what I saw yesterday, you don't have to worry about Joan too much. I think she likes you as much as you like her. I hope so. You know, with an engineering professor like the one we've got, I'm not so sure. He writes a formula on the board or an equation, and it's just, oh, it's Greek to me. And before I have time to ask a question about it, he's erased it, and he has a new one on the board. I must admit, he does go a little fast. Finally, when I got his attention today, he said to me, Captain, we have a lot to cover in three days. There isn't time for discussion. Discussion? He won't even answer a question. The guy seems to have three arms and hands, one with chalk and two with erasers. I must admit, even I scrammed a bit when he gave us that routine about not being lazy because he's flunked officers before. He can do it again. He was looking straight at me when he said it. That's funny. I thought he was looking at me. Well, I've got one hope. What's that? A young lady named Joan. Maybe she was good at math and physics when she was in school. Good at them? Man seems to me you better just hope she took them. You've got to do the math and physics review. Congratulations, Johnny. Thanks to you, you mean. But do you know what's ahead? Only vaguely. Well, here it is in number of hours of classes. Ninety-three hours of aeronautical engineering. Fifty-six hours of accident investigation. Sixty-three hours of accident prevention and educational techniques. Twenty-four hours of aviation physiology. Thirty hours of aviation psychology. Fourteen hours of field trips to flight safety research and to aircraft manufacturers. And three glorious hours centrifuge indoctrination. In less than eight weeks? That's right. And me with only a Bachelor of Arts degree. Oh, you really want to do well, don't you, Johnny? No, you better do, Joan. You know, I'm kind of fond of the Air Force and when they send me to do a job, I've got to do it better than I thought I could. You're quite a guy, Captain Miller. And you're quite a girl. Kind, I'd always hoped I'd meet. I'm lucky. Thanks, Johnny. But I think I'm the lucky one. Where's your dad? In the cellar, I think, working in a shop. You think he'd mind if I kissed you? I don't think he'd mind a bit. Would you? Well, the only way you'll know is to try it. Oh, Miss Wendling, I'd like to marry you. Oh, can you be sure, Johnny, after only six days? You're going to be here for another seven weeks. After the course is over, ask me again, please. That's a long time to wait. When I get married, Johnny, it's for life. Me, too. When you're planning on something that you want to last a lifetime, seven weeks of looking it over and thinking about it isn't so long. Oh, I'd love you, Miss Wendling. Oh, Captain Miller, to be truthful, I don't exactly hate you. In this materials testing laboratory, we do the most exhaustive studies on all kinds of materials, from glass to steel, from nylon to aluminum. Now, we have found out why 24ST aluminum is used for the outer skins of planes instead of chrome alloy steel. Do you know why? Uh, could it be because it bends more easily without breaking, Professor? That's one reason. It's not as brittle. Any other ideas? Well, uh, it's lighter, isn't it? Yes, Captain Miller. That's another good reason. Score one for us. Take it easy, Evan. It's early in the game. Now, gentlemen, take a look at this machine. It tests the strength of metal. By placing this piece of steel in the machine and pulling it from both ends, with these gauges, we can tell just how many pounds of force it will take before the metal breaks. Isn't science something? It sure is. Now, if you'll just gather around, I'll show you how it works. I will place the metal here. So... now, I flick this switch. And on this gauge, you can see the force being exerted on the metal. Let that gauge go up. If you stop to think of the force as exerted on a plane, you know why the metal has to be so strong. Uh, what's gonna happen, Professor? If you'll be patient, Captain, in a moment, you'll see. Wow! Hey, that made me jump a mile. And will you look at that steel? See, gentlemen, in planning today's planes, many factors must be taken into consideration. A major factor is safety. The wrong type of metal in the wrong part of a plane, and, uh... Well, you're pilots. When you fly your planes, you want to know they're safe. But in addition to being pilots, you're also flight safety officers. You have a responsibility for safety in the air. That's why the Air Force sends you here to learn. The more you know, the greater your credentials will be. Do you understand? Understand. Professor, you'll never know how well. You are listening to the proudly-we-hail production School for Safety. We'll return to our story in just a moment. Are you interested in a career with a promising future? There are hundreds of jobs ranging from administration and accounting to electronics and construction open to you in the United States Air Force. A handy new 84-page booklet entitled Pocket Guide to Air Force Opportunities gives you the complete story. Everything pertinent to an Air Force enlistment is covered, from basic training to promotion and travel information. And there's a special section where more than 100 technical training courses are described and illustrated. For these and many other interesting facts on what the Air Force can mean to you, pick up your absolutely free copy of Pocket Guide to Air Force Opportunities from your nearest Air Force Recruiting Station. You are listening to Proudly We Hail, and now we present the second act of School for Safety. There is little value in a man who thinks that he is the only important link in a chain. A man who be truly valuable must realize that although he may be only one of many links, any weakness on his part will destroy the chain in its entirety. And such a man is Captain John Miller. As a Flight Safety Officer, he knows that he is one of the links that makes our Air Force the safest and best in the world. But at the moment, he is challenged. Because of a background of arts in college, rather than one in engineering and its allied fields, he has to struggle to keep up with the rest of his class at the University of Southern California's Flight Safety Officer School. He knows it must be done. You know, Johnny, you haven't changed at all since Korea, and the odds against you were highest. That's when you fight the best. Yeah, maybe. But you know, over there, the odds against you were measured in planes and guns, things you could see, hear its facts, figures, knowledge there. They're not quite as easy to handle. In spite of everything, you seem to be holding your all. Oh, look, Evan, I've got to. I'm no hero, but the Air Force thought it was important for me to be here and learn, and that's what I've got to do. But we'd better get back to work. I can't do it by just talking about it. What'll it be? Well, how about some of those problems in aviation physiology? Well, I'll be darned. Listen to this. It has been proven that smoking can impair night vision. It is wise for pilots who are flying for long periods in darkness not to smoke for at least 45 minutes before a landing. It might also be advisable for them to turn their cockpit lights on to full at least 15 minutes or more before they expect to reach an area where there are bright lights, thus allowing their eyes to get used to the brightness spectrum. Well, what do you know? You know, it's simple, isn't it? Yet think of all the pilots who don't know that a little thing like a smoke can be the cause of a bad landing. There's a little thing, but it could save lives in aircraft. Well, I guess that's why we're here. If we know these facts, then we can spread them around. Oh, that's why I've got to pass, Evan. I've just got to. This is valuable stuff. This is what we've got to know. Flight safety officers must know these things so they can keep the pilots informed. You will pass, Johnny. All right, I believe you, Evan. I believe you because I know I've got to. Perfect coffee. I knew it the first time I saw you. Young lady, you're the kind of a girl a man should marry. Oh, because of the coffee? Or because I've been helping you study? You think that help has been nothing? Well, Evan helps you, too. Oh, sure. Sure, and I appreciate it. But even though you both help me and both keep boosting my morale and all, there's a difference. Somehow, I feel that you're in my corner all the time rooting for me. You are, aren't you? Oh, Johnny, you know I am. Well, it's important for a guy to know that a beautiful, intelligent, honest, warm, wonderful girl is... Hey, hey, that sounds like a commercial. Who is this perfect creature? You. Oh, no. No, Johnny, that's not me. That's some dream girl you're talking about. Oh, I do love you. I know it for sure now. After knowing a man for a month, the girl could be pretty positive. But I'm not perfect. You're thinking so scares me. Darling, I'm just a human being. Am I a human being to you? Oh, a very human human being. Oh, you have fears, you're always trying to do better. I have fears too, and I'm trying. As long as we both try, Johnny, we're all right. But if the time comes when we look at ourselves and decide that we're perfect, then we have something to worry about. Agreed? Agreed. Hey, hey, look at the time. We better get back to work. Oh, yeah. We've got at least another hour on psychology of flight to do. Can you take it, honey, or shall we quit for tonight? I can take it. Oh, the wife of a flight safety officer ought to know something about his work. You have had a half hour to design and put together a poster. You've had your large piece of white paper, your colored paper, your paste, your scissors, your drawing equipment. You also have had several slogans printed on paper strips. All that you needed to supply was your imagination. Oh, man, now I wish I had been an arts major instead of woman engineering. Oh, don't kid yourself, Evan. Arts doesn't mean cutting out tapered dolls like this. As I walk around the room now, I'm going to pick out the best poster and we'll discuss its merits and its weak points. Eventually, we'll get to all of them. Good posters are important. They're one of the surest ways to reach people. If they're eye-catching, simple, and clear, if they tell their story in a dramatic way so that people can see themselves and their problems in them, they can teach far more than a thousand words. I wish he'd practiced what he preaches. He hasn't stopped talking since we started this course. Yeah, but you've got to admit he makes sense. Oh, yeah, that he does. I'm not denying that. I've learned a lot from him. After walking around the room and examining your work, it seems to me that Captain Miller's poster comes closest to doing its complete job. Captain Miller, will you bring your work up to the front of the room here so that the whole class can see it? Certainly, Professor. Professor, I do want to say it's unfair of you to have chosen my work over some of the others. And what is that? Well, you see, I have an advantage over them. An advantage? Oh, yes, Professor. It happens that I was fortunate enough to have gone to kindergarten. I must admit that he was a good egg about it. He laughed just as hard as the rest. Well, I'm not so sure I would have. Oh, I apologize to him after class. You know what he said? No. Well, he said he was glad that it happened. Oh, really? Mm-hmm. That a good laugh relieves tension and boredom, and he was sure that the class had absorbed more for the rest of the day than it ordinarily would have. Wow. Smart man, that Professor. Oh, all the professors here are the best. They're a credit to USC. And a credit to the Air Force. Gee, it's hard to believe it's almost over. Tomorrow is centrifuge day, and then the course is finished. I'm proud of you, Johnny. You know that, don't you? You've done pretty well. Well, I haven't been head of the class or anything like that, but I've gotten by. Oh, now listen, you big lug. You've done more than get by. Your marks have been well within the top 25%. I don't know about tomorrow, though. They say the ride in the centrifuge is tough. Johnny, just what is the centrifuge? That is, if you're allowed to tell me. Oh, sure. Sure, it's no secret. It's sort of like a cockpit of a plane on a long arm. You're strapped into a seat, a motor starts, and suddenly you're whirled around and around. No, wait, wait, you just lost me. Well, look, did you ever see a chestnut tied to the end of a string with a kid whirling it around parallel to the ground? Mm-hmm. Or for the chestnut, substitute the cockpit, for the string, a long arm, and for the hand that's turning it, substitute a motor. Oh. You see, it's really nothing more than a test to see how we react to G-forces. You know, the gravitational forces that a pilot is subjected to during flight. Yeah, mm-hmm. At first we take it in our regular flying clothes, and we put on a special G-suit to see the difference. You know, it sounds sort of like a carnival ride. I remember once when I was a kid on a picnic, I went on something like that. Well, could be. There's one difference, though. Oh, it's more technical, I know that. No, what I meant was, this isn't going to be any picnic. Boy, am I glad that's over. Well, what was it like, Evan? Well, there are these two white lights, you see, one on your right and one on your left. And dead ahead of you are two other lights, one red and the other green. Well, I don't think I'm going to need any help seeing red and green. But you keep staring at the red and green lights. Your hands are on the arms of the seat, resting on two buttons, which are electrically connected outside of the centrifuge. Now, as long as you can see the white light on your right and left, you keep pressing the buttons. When you stop seeing either or both, you stop pressing the corresponding button. Oh, see, Senor? You know, it's amazing the way that G suit helps you withstand these G forces. There's no comparison, really. Yeah, it seems to lessen the effect on the body due to the excess gravitational pull. You know, I hear Goldstone was able to handle eight and a half Gs with the suit on. Boy, that's really going some. Here's your chance to show what you can do. The instructor's pointing at you. Oh, my dear instructor, since you have elected me, I have no choice but to serve. Marching music should be playing, something stirring. Oh, please omit music. Just send flowers. The only time I'm sending you flowers, joining my boy is at your wedding. By the way, what's it gonna be? Oh, I'm about to be tossed around like a cake batter, and he asks about my wedding. Roger. Roger, let her rip. In that green, you can see those whites. All right, you're picking up speed, boy. Don't black out. Wonder how many Gs you're taking now. Press those buttons. Light that black out, Johnny Boy. Light it. You can still see them, so press those buttons. Tighten your throat muscles. Tighten your diaphragm. Hey, where's that light on the left? Remember how this feels safe to you, officer? Remember, so you'll be able to explain it to the others. Getting groggy. Hey, where's that? That light. That light. How are you feeling? Well, fine, I guess. At least I think I'm all here. You know, you took five Gs without the suit and ate with it. That stacks up pretty well with everyone else. You know something? I learned a lot in that thing. I learned a lot, and I remembered a lot of things I'd forgotten. That's the whole idea this past eight weeks, to teach us new things and to refresh us in some of the old ones. Well, I'm glad I went through it. Hey, where are you going? I've got to call a certain girl. I've got lots of plans to make. Well, congratulations, Captain. Thanks, Major. Oh, and Captain. Yes, Major? Just what kind of flowers do you like with your wedding down? Do you want to lead, to get out in front and stay there, then join a leader, the United States Air Force. As an airman, you lead with the world's finest technical training. You're a key man, and you're entitled in any of 400 important jobs necessary to keep our planes in the air. Wherever you go, you're a respected member of America's greatest flying organization, a key man in the nation's sky defense. See your local Air Force Recruiting Station today and find out about a career in Air Force Blue. This has been another program on Proudly We Hail, presented transcribed in cooperation with this station. Proudly We Hail is produced by the Recruiting Publicity Center in New York for the United States Air Force, and this is Mark Hamilton speaking, inviting you to tune in this same station next week for another interesting story on Proudly We Hail.