FLIGHT PLAN

Year Published: 1960s

Format: 16mm

Description: This 1960s American Airlines promotional film, produced by Audio Production Inc., shows the work that goes into developing a flight plan prior to takeoff. It most likely dates to about 1961-1963. The film opens with a plane taking off from New York’s Idlewild Airport (later renamed John F. Kennedy International Airport), and a man climbing out of a car with his suitcase and heading into the airport. An American Airlines Boeing 707 Astrojet flies through the sky. The film shows a departure board for a non-stop flight to Los Angeles (01:23). American Airlines Flight 3, a 707 Astrojet, takes off from the runway; footage shows the takeoff from inside the cockpit (01:51). In an American Airlines office at the airport, meteorologists feed data into computers. A man reviews a flight plan generated by a computer (02:55). Another man tallies up cargo and passenger weight (04:10), including bags of U.S. mail and a big cage of birds (parrots and possibly other birds). A pneumatic tube delivers information to one of the flight plan employees (05:33). He reviews a chart that shows the weight distribution for the flight (06:20). The captain and co-pilot receive the flight plans and review the flight course (07:54). The crew complete information by hand on the "Take-Off Computation" slip for the 707. AA Flight 3 taxis on the runway and takes off (10:44), concluding the short film. Notes from our friends at the Computer History Museum channel: the computer console shown at 2:30 is likely the console of an IBM 705 Electronic Data Processing Machine (EDPM), a high-speed mainframe of the 1950’s. It was discontinued by IBM in 1960, as faster machines became available. Many IBM 705’s continued in use during the 1960’s. The keypunch machine at 2:20 to 2:29, and 2:40 was an IBM model 026, introduced in 1949, it was a workhorse machine popular until 1964, when it was superseded by the IBM 029 keypunch machine. A 1950’s era punched paper tape machine is also seen (2:33). The film describes planning for "Flight 3" from Idlewild to LAX. The Idlewild New York Airport was renamed John F. Kennedy International Airport on December 24, 1963, so the film is probably not later than that. The aircraft was a Boeing 707 "ASTROJET." The name "Astrojet" was copyrighted by American Airlines as a "Service mark" in May 1963, although the name had been in use at least since October 1959, when American Airlines obtained its first Astrojet. {A notable AA Boeing 707 flight disaster occurred on March 1, 1962, when AA "Flight 1" rolled over and crashed into Jamaica Bay two minutes after takeoff, killing all 87 passengers and eight crew members. Cause was reported as a manufacturing defect in the autopilot system.} American Airlines used the Boeing 707 models until 1981, when it retired its remaining 60 or so model 707 aircraft in favor of more fuel-efficient modern aircraft.

Transcription

[Music] going someplace planning to fly those American Airlines [Music] this picture will show you Americans planning [Music] every American flight gets the same planning by the kind of men and women you're about to see there are no actors in this picture everyone is an American Airlines employee working at his regular job 707 Astra jet non-stop to Los Angeles 80 knots this is plate 300 this is the payoff a 1 this is the takeoff rotate find the rig gear up 20 flaps but flight 3 didn't start here it started hours ago when the planning got underway planned in meteorology by men and machines men assemble hundreds of facts feed them to a high-speed computer on every flight dozens of flight plans are considered the best four are printed on every flight [Applause] planned in dispatch airway jet route 6064 the top of climb temperature standard - six - airspeed 388 ground speed 329 and time 16 minutes planned in the load house what are we carrying today reservations yeah loads here maybe we have the load 80 foot 77 okay fine thank you very much total passenger weight eighteen thousand eight seventy and passenger baggage four thousand yeah American here maybe we have an estimate on 300 estimated okay fine Express on Twitter three to LA estimate 100 pounds thank you afraid [Applause] 6,000 pounds mostly chirping and we could do is two containers no Expeditors we're full up with pastures are going to need all the containers for bags just by Anders payload three two nine two seven zero okay Jim Los Angeles dispatch [Music] [Music] rattling yeah Frank the carts are blocking on flight three and we've got to add fuel Khattab move for us okay we'll do it on C basic index 405 Chris class passengers 34 coach passengers 77 playing forward cargo 4000 playing rear cargo 6,400 fuel 93,000 and plant CJ 25.2 weight distributed center of gravity as planned [Applause] [Music] [Applause] three be Boeing 707 point of departure Idlewild wheel pressure twenty nine point ninety four west/northwest can alternate Ontario and astrojet flight 3 scheduled departure 11:45 released by dispatch at 10 11 release Boyd at 12:41 beyond that time the flight would be held until all factors were restated your departure your in-flight comfort your on-time arrival all our plan baby still on the six o'clock bottle brother it's white 3 routine yeah that's the report morning captain Quang Binh husband all I know is what I read in the papers 31,000 masters trust all you got to do is flying let's take a look at the weather hi Bob what's the latest on jet Route 60 64 looks good captain best timer looks like junior 62 Joliet 33,000 think we'd save a few pounds of fuel let's check the fuel burns ready every flight is planned a second time first operations been crew even the details of takeoff our planned the precise spot on the runway to liftoff the precise seconds to reach a hundred knots for the fan engines we beat the time to 100 knots and every takeoff 33,000 might add a minute or two but we'll say 4,000 pounds good let's talk to Clint we'll say 4,000 pounds at 33,000 feet and with a tailwind I think we'll make up time on the last three legs it looks like a good deal that's what I think post office mail on three four at 120 flight 3 final bag closeout yeah how many got 143 bag final Freight on three okay fine thanks mr. Rogers Steven before fee is reserved for you flight threes planning is complete right now the facts must match the plan this is the final check first 38 coach 38 77 you went up four on first yeah honeymooners double wedding very funny okay stand by 115 people total pastor wait one nine five five zero allowable zero fuel actual fuel 93 Oh eighty eight nine three zero eight eight taxi weight 248 807 gate control American flight three out on schedule American three from gate control are on schedule American three-bed Los Angeles flight plan rule 33,000 agility at 31,000 Joliet Los Angeles you are cleared to tower frequency not allow American flight three ready for takeoff dragon flight three four tango 80 knots hundreds good they won rotate find the rig gear up 20 flaps planning to fly today so is American Airlines

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