Oct. 01, 2007 - 22:41 MDT

INNOCENT ABROAD

For a guy who had never seen much before, seeing and living on the Gulf Of Mexico was a grand first experience. A trip to Carlsbad Caverns when in his teens and living a few years in Illinois near Rock Island were my worldly experiences.

In the early sixties I went to work for a company here in Denver that supplied escape systems for military aircraft.

I spent time on the assembly line while building a capsule for supersonic crew escape. After the completion of that project I was laid off, but being called to come in and work in the test lab. Thus began my later life education.

Also allowing me to work remote from the company, which boosted my sense of responsibility and as well my ego.

My first flight in any aircraft was when I was sent to the LA Area to monitor tests being run there on equipment larger than my company had. This occasioned several flights to and from as testing at home was going on also and modifications were being made on the final product which changed some of the hardware.

It soon accustomed me to be at the airport ahead of time (even back then one didn't miss a flight by being tardy). Also it accustomed me to being on my own and living in places other than my own home.

Having worked on all aspects of the testing of the escape system including trips as a passenger on company aircraft to the test track on Hurricane Mesa in Utah and such things as that, I was totally familiar with all aspects of the specifications and requirements of the system and all the pieces and parts of same.

The project was near to shipping and after engineers refused to go to Viet Nam I was chosen to be the guinea pig abroad. Negotiations as to pay, perdiem and such things agreed upon by me and the company, I got my passport and shots and Government papers and was set to go. I spent some time at LeMoore NAS with the Navy squadron who flew the aircraft and were on base training. I taught procedures and familiarized the men with the system. It was not popular as it cramped the pilots who were almost too tall to be pilots. But I persevered in teaching and selling the system along with it.

The whole deal was rather complicated, the Navy had the aircraft and strengthening modifications were going on to the aircraft wings due to the stress of cat shots off carriers. The government Mod Team was engaged in that as well as installing things pertinent to the escape system and the system itself.

So first I was sent to Japan as the carrier was based there that had the aircraft that had the system I worked on. The ground base was at Atsugi (about 30 miles from Tokyo). It was an experience for me as that was the base where the Zero suicide pilots trained for World War Two. I was quartered with the officers on base in old barracks that had been updated a bit and wandered the base on my spare time touristing my way around, there were many modern things there but many things remaining from the days of yore. The architecture was interesting to me as it was quite strange to a "Round Eye" guy. The Naval Air Station at Atsugi was near the rail line to Yokohama and I timidly ventured a trip there, using English to buy a ticket was not an easy as pie thing, but making myself understood I paid my yen and got my ticket. Being pointed to the proper train I boarded up front, close where I could see the tracks ahead over the shoulder of the engineer. My admiration for Japanese engineering grew as I saw the crooked line of travel ahead, but never feeling jostling of the car in any way. The first station we passed, the signs were in Japanese and I got serious doubts as to my wisdom of trying such a trip in a foreign land.

Gently I got a passenger's attention who was traveling beside me and showed him my ticket. He looked at it and said, "Hai" which seemed to mean Okay or Yes and I settled back to watch the rails. Pretty soon we approached a station and the man got up to go, but he got the attention of another passenger and spoke a few words, the passenger nodded to me and smiled. I was thus handed off two more times before Yokohama and alit alongside the last man who had herd duty.

I did try to learn as much as I could of the language, but it is a difficult thing for one to do.

While there I spent a bunch of spare time in the town on the back side of the base - opposite from the train station and gaped at all the strange things for an Anglo to see. Scaffolding for construction was Bamboo and seemed to me to be so rickety. It was winter by then and people were wearing surgical maskes as normal procedure, it was so crowded that respiratory ailments were rampant so people did what they could to avoid such things.

I was constantly bemused at the differences I saw, riding the rails I noted that people were quite friendly but also noted was the occasional oldster giving me the death ray glare, as memories of their hard times still bore upon them it appeared to me.

I wandered the nearby countryside and noted that when cars were stopped alongside the road waiting for a train to finally pass that men would go to one side of the road and relieve themselves and women to the other side all such a normal way of life it amazed me. Barns some of them seemed to have living quarters built in them, I saw many trees trimmed oriental style and so many graceful things in buildings and yards that my appreciation brimmed over.

I learned much while there in Japan, and learned again that most people I saw were much like we are, working a job, living with family, loving family, raising family and all such things we do -- they do too. Along with that, I would often be stopped by teenagers, politely, and engaged in conversation. They were practicing speaking and understanding English. I was delighted and along with that was able to ask many questions of them about their life and ways of living and about their countryside.

In the country I saw 45 degree farming, noticed that some of the mountainsides had forests of varying growth, apparently when timber was harvested immediately new seedlings were planted, so the height of the trees seemed to explain the cycle.

I enjoyed going to the temples, the Giant Bhudda for one. I spent the night in a ryokan (Japanese hotel) with a friend and his Japanese mate, a lady came in and gave us the tea ceremony and afterward I went down to the Ofuro and learned more. It was on the lower level of the building. The room was vast and the walls were native rock that had pockets drilled in them sporting native plants. There was a wide tiled floor with spigots spaced around, stools beside each one with a bucket and brushes. By observation I gathered that one soaped and brushed oneself with soap, using the bucket to rinse soap suds off. Then and only then a person would enter the pool and pick a spot where the temperature suited and soaked in total cleanliness and comfort. It was quite an experience. One thing that amused me was that the manager of the hotel took me and my friend to show us his pride and joy. A room, with a small dais which had mounted on it a water closet and commode, western style. Having been used to using the Japanese Benjo, which in some aspects was a bit of porcelain somewhat oblong in shape (longer than wide) mounted on the floor to do my duty, I gladly made use of that piece of Western equipment while there.

The time approached that the ships were to be deployed to Subic Bay in the Philippenes and I was flown by military aircraft south to NAS Cubi Point at Subic Bay, thus ending a wonderful stay in Japan.

It is somewhat of a laugh, while I was on this tour the Pueblo incident occurred and my stay was extended the same as the carrier's stay was extended.

After the systems were installed and I had done as much training as I could my contract ended and I went home. Meanwhile the Navy gave the aircraft to the Air Force who gave them to the Viet Namese and my next tour continued my education in the world in Viet Nam.

Many new experiences in life to man in his forties edified this INNOCENT ABROAD . . . . . . . . . . . .

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