STANDARD BUSINESS MACHINE OF THE AIR
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Year Published: 1964
Format: 16mm
Description: This 1964 promotional film looks at the development and features of the "Jet Commander", a twin engine private jet built by Aero Commander, produced by the Rockwell Standard Corporation. (The aircraft is better known today as the IAI Westwind, a name it was given after Rockwell sold the rights to Israel Aircraft Industries in 1958.) The Jet Commander was presented in the film as the "standard business machine of the air", allowing CEOs to save time by avoiding commercial flights and being able to land at small airports much closer to their destination. The film features extensive footage from the development, construction, testing, and certification of the aircraft. It also shows some of the modern interior design features that were available to customers. The Jet Commander was originally designed in the USA by Aero Commander as a development of its twin-propeller namesake aircraft, first flying on January 27, 1963, as the Aero Commander 1121 Jet Commander. After successful testing, the aircraft was put into series production with deliveries to customers beginning in early 1965. Shortly thereafter, Aero Commander was acquired by North American Rockwell. Since Rockwell already had an executive jet of its own design, the Sabreliner, the company decided to sell off the rights to the Jet Commander, which were purchased by IAI in 1968. IAI modified the design and produced planes for almost two decades before manufacture ceased in 1987. 0:11 a management team standing by an airport fence, 0:28 a Jet Commander landing, 0:51 Aero Commander Division of Rockwell Standard Corporation, 1:00 an Jet Commander aircraft taking off, 1:23 a man sitting in a computer room and talking to the camera in front of models of aircraft, 2:03 man is talking to the camera in front of an executive desk, 3:04 a computer in a room, 3:22 different pictures of an early twin engine Aero Commander aircraft, 4:11 flight footage of the Jet Commander, 4:36 a model of the Jet Commander, 4:55 engineers sitting around a desk discussing a new aircraft, 5:22 list of requirements needed by CEOs for a new private jet, 5:57 engineers working on the design of the aircraft including blueprints of the Jet Commander, 6:34 model of the Jet Commander, 6:56 Warranty Agreement for the Jet Commander, 7:14 the first Jet Commander being built, 7:26 first complete exemplar of a Jet Commander, 7:50 Jet Commander’s first flight, 8:16 blueprint showing new additions made to the aircraft after testing, 8:41 Jet Commander flying during its certification testing program, 9:21 airframe strength test of the Jet Commander, 9:53 Jet Commander undergoing ground and air tests for FAA certification, 10:06 officials looking at the data from the tests, 10:24 aerial footage from the testing of the Jet Commander, 10:48 Jet Commander assembly line and part production, 11:10 a finished Jet Commander being prepared for its first flight, 11:28 first flight of the first production test unit Jet Commander, 12:15 aerial footage of two Jet Commanders flying, 12:42 designers showing different interiors for the Jet Commander and how they are constructed, 13:20 a passenger demonstrating the features of the cabin interior including a bar in the back, adjustable armrests, drink holders, and adjustable air nozzles, 14:26 the Jet Commander conducting demonstration flights at Reading Air Show in PA, 14:40 Jet Commander flying together with a Grand Commander, 15:37 Classroom instruction at the Aero Commander Technical Training Center, 16:44 employees gathering to watch the first flight of the first assembly line Jet Commander, 17:27 different Aero Commander Aircraft taxiing, 17:46 first production Jet Commander undergoing ground tests and taking off, 18:45 National Business Aircraft Association Meeting in Miami with flight footage of Aero Commander aircraft, 19:42 Jet Commander in flight as seen from the ground, 19:52 map of airports in the US that the Jet commander can reach including climb and distance profiles, 20:36 a low pass by a Jet Commander, 20:48 Rockwell Standard Logo,
Complete Record:
Transcription
foreign [Music] their assignment is to use their time and ability in such a way as to create a profit and a competitive Advantage for their company they are about to take an important step toward both goals managements most modern business machine it is used to make better use of the time of these men [Music] the Aero Commander division of Rockwell standard Corporation presents the jet Commander story this exciting twin engine executive jet aircraft and the modern electronic computer serve a similar purpose the jet Commander is the only U.S created and built pure jet crab designed specifically for business use the jet Commander has been specifically designed to share with the computer in the important task of squeezing greater productivity out of smaller measures of time today many Progressive business and Industrial firms utilize business aircraft to make more productive use of the abilities of their men at the top their talents can't be replaced by a computer but these business aircraft can help them make more valuable use of their abilities but the idea of using aircraft to save management time is still new still untried by many who have modernized all other facilities who have provided time-saving tools for other types of employees but what's spent for the man who must make the decisions who's responsible for bringing in the profits for creating new jobs and new products pen a Dictaphone a telephone an executive desk and a couple of chairs here is an average investment of between twenty five hundred and thirty five hundred dollars for a management official about one-tenth the investment for the man in the shop and yet no firm could survive without the best efforts of both the men and the plant and the men at the top today modern firms are looking at production Tools in a new way every tool used by man has been designed to make better use of the one material that we cannot synthesize time time is fixed we can't buy it and we can't store it only by increasing a man's ability to produce work in a given amount of time are we able to increase the value of the fleeting time that we're given the business aircraft and the computer do serve the same purpose they are modern tools to increase the productivity of time just as special computers are designed to do a specific job the commander business aircraft has been designed to do a special job foreign Aero Commander became the first aircraft manufacturer to build twin engine airplanes exclusively for the business Market in 1951 Aero Commander made aviation history again with one propeller removed the Aero Commander was flown non-stop from Bethany Oklahoma to Washington DC no other business aircraft manufacturer has ever duplicated this Aero Commander record by 1964 more than 1500 Aero commanders and Grand commanders had been built for business firms and governments around the world these piston aircraft can cruise up to 28 000 feet well above most weather they can use airfields too small for an airliner now the Pioneer in business air transportation has designed developed and certified the most modern most Dependable business machine of the air the exciting twin-engine jet Commander it can climb to 40 000 feet Crews up to 527 miles per hour and land at less than 100 knots it can carry six passengers and crew halfway across the United States Non-Stop and still have a 45-minute fuel Reserve this is the story of the work and planning that produced the most exciting new twin engine aircraft in over 20 years this is the story of the jet Commander the aircraft that was planned to be exciting excitement is the jet Commander's Legacy from the Aero commander and the grand Commander in 1960 Aero Commander already had many years experience building airplanes for businessmen when the jet Commander project was first considered but even with this experience several independent firms were asked to conduct separate surveys and project the use of a jet for business these reports confirmed Aero Commander's experience for an aircraft to properly serve business it needed the ability to get in and out of short fields this meant extra stability and controllability at low speeds average passenger load was 3.4 Min per flight for an average trip of two and a half hours flying time to utilize an airstrip of less than four thousand feet Arrow Commander fixed the requirements for the jet Commander with marketing analysis designed to find the requirements and build the best product to fill the greatest needs Arrow Commander had certified its first plane less than eight years before they launched engineering project 1121 the jet Commander the most experienced business Aircraft engineers were set to work on the basic design of the airframe a straight Wing was selected for stability and low speed control the engines were located on the fuselage well after the passenger compartment to reduce the noise in the cabin the engine air intake was located after the trailing edge of the wing and more than five feet off the Runway to prevent ingestion of foreign matter and water from the runway the jet Commander began to respond as requirements became specifications in June of 1961 Aero Commander made the first Public Announcement of its program to build a twin jet at the same time they offered a sales contract which guaranteed performance to plus or minus five percent unheard of for a business aircraft still on the drawing boards Arrow Commander also offered a 12-month warranty on the exciting new jet another unheard of business Aviation author these guarantees were to be backed up by the flight manual certified by the Federal Aviation agency the jet prototype began to take shape at Aero Commander's research and development center thank you the jet Commander hit the sunlight for the first time in early 1963. foreign [Music] the aircraft was put into the final tune-up stage and by the time of the first flight excitement had reached a new pitch [Music] [Applause] the test operation of Sunday January 27th would be reported as one of the most important steps in aviation history following these first flights it was discovered that the jet Commander could carry even more airframe than first projected here was a lot more airplane than anyone suspected this is the prototype in its extended version the volume of the cabin was increased from 221 to 441 cubic feet the jet Commander was also increased from a 14 000 to a sixteen thousand pound gross weight but even at sixteen thousand pounds the jet Commander was to be certified to land a full gross weight a testimonial to the Integrity of the airframe and so it was that the jet Commander was ready to enter its Certification testing program in December of 1963. the verification of the entire structure and performance of the jet Commander were to come from the highest U.S testing standards set down for turbine-powered aircraft these standards known as civil air regulation 4B and Special Rule 422b are administered by the Federal Aviation Agency for all turbine aircraft of more than 12 500 pounds less than a dozen aircraft firms in the world have certified to these standards the average time for testing under 4B is about two years and with good reason let us show you some of the tests the aircraft must successfully complete before the model can be produced the entire airframe is tested to at least one and a half times its maximum up and down loading the wing tail and fuselage are pulled pushed and twisted from every direction the cabin is bolted into a hydrostatic test stand and pressurization check as the fuselage is measured for flexing unless the tested system holds well beyond the normal load limit the engineering is rejected static testing is backed up by inoperation performance figures all information is collected under the direction of an FAA engineering flight test inspector through the use of electronic test equipment located within the aircraft the data is compiled and compared with engineering projections until there is no question of the Integrity of the aircraft what this aircraft can do becomes a matter of public record an official record which is a required part of the standard equipment list of each jet Commander early in the jet Commander certification program Aero Commander learned that its jet business aircraft was an amazing reproduction of engineering projections just one verification of this came when a jet Commander test pilot and an FAA flight inspector flew over 200 test points without a single required repeat RNA marginal data it was about this time that production units were reaching the final assembly stage at Aero Commander's Bethany facility more than 60 deposits were now on hand a record number for an aircraft in this class the certification program and production buildup were progressing at about the same rate when the next major Milestone was reached the third jet Commander test article was ready for flight status [Music] First Flight of this production test unit took place April 7 1964. [Music] [Applause] [Music] on May 30th 1964 Arrow Commander was informed that the jet Commander had been awarded its provisional type certificate this meant that the final stages of testing could begin the provisional type certificate also allowed the aircraft to be flown with passengers aboard now Aero Commander was ready to make the first full-fledged public showing of The Jet Commander the place the annual Air Show at Reading Pennsylvania immediately work was started to put the jet into show condition Arrow commanders industrial designers had created a variety of Interiors for the jet Commander Interiors to reflect the overall quality of its construction and performance foreign [Music] the interior selected to be used during the air show was a four-place arrangement with refreshment bar in the rear bulkhead foreign between the rear seats and fully adjustable seats each chair had its own air duct and reading light indirect lighting is a cabin and full cabin pressurization standard features with every interior were included the broad flat floor was carpeted wall to wall and the finest Fabrics leathers and woods available anywhere were put into place with this interior the jet Commander was ready for the show on June 4th at Reading Pennsylvania the jet Commander began a series of demonstration flights for the people of the aviation industry The Men Who had ordered the jet commander and for the Press low speed controllability and stability were demonstrated during a flyby with a piston-powered grand Commander while holding 100 knots even at low speed the jet Commander remained completely stable and Under full control of the pilot Aviation experts watched as the jet Commander demonstrated its ability to climb out on a simulated missed approach landing at full gross weight was shown to be as easy and the Jet Commander as in the Piston Arrow or grand Commander from 10 a.m to 6 p.m the jet Commander left the runway every hour with a full load of press and prospects for a 40-minute demonstration flight the jet Commander Shone publicly in a direct comparison with other Jet and piston aircraft was the sensation of the show shortly after this outstanding public reception Rockwell standard made another announcement floor space would be doubled at once production would be quadrupled at the Bethany plant certification day in the first delivery were getting closer as plans were completed to assure each jet Commander owner and his crew of receiving the same kind of worldwide service available to Aero Commander owners including Technical Training jet Commander Cruise flight and maintenance would gain a complete classroom understanding of the aircraft and its systems for years Aero Commander has offered a training school for owners operators and maintenance crews in a pioneering effort to make sure that everyone connected with the commander would understand every last facet of its ability in utility a complete ground school is provided free of charge to the owner operator distributor or dealer of any Aero Commander product textbook work is then backed up by practical instruction on the aircraft itself Aero Commander spent well over a year writing the course for the jet Commander the Practical result is that most operators will be able to step from twin engine piston aircraft to the jet Commander including a check ride with the FAA flight inspector called our jet ratings all the men and women of Arrow Commander stopped work on the afternoon of October 5th to watch the production test flight of 77 foxtrot the first jet Commander scheduled for delivery to a customer this airplane had been ordered by the Timken roller bearing company shortly after the jet Commander was announced in 1961. this flight was to be the first made with an assembly line airplane [Music] it was perfect flying weather one high-speed taxi run to test the brakes and then first flight [Applause] thank you [Music] Miami Florida November 4th 1964. the national business aircraft association's annual meeting would start the next day and the company that certified its first airplane less than 13 years before would show its latest models and announced that the jet Commander was certified [Music] [Applause] [Music] thank you [Music] This Modern business machine was built to serve the firms that expect maximum productivity from their management team the jet Commander can use more airports than any airliner and in most cases beat their time the jet Commander can climb direct to its Cruise altitude with no climbing delays and fly point to point when the management men need to go and they do not have to wait for a scheduled airliner the jet Commander meets or exceeds Airline standards for equipment performance and dependability that's the meaning of car4b sr422b it's pressurized and can go to 40 000 feet but most important the jet Commander is the modern business machine for modern management the jet Commander story is now being written by businessmen and for businessmen thank you foreign [Music]
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