Pan Am clipper, Vol. 5, No. 12, December 1979

              William T.Seawell
December 1, 1979
1979 brings to a close the most critical decade in Pan Am's history. We have been severely tested, but each time, the loyalty, hard work and professionalism of the worldwide Pan Am team has prevailed.
1979 was no exception. Despite soaring fuel costs and an uncertain world economy, we have remained profitable.
We have planned for our future with innovative fuel conservation and marketing programs.
We have successfully initiated new domestic service.
Most important, we are within sight of our goal of acquiring a solid domestic route structure with the approval of the Pan Am/ National merger.
Even though 1980 will further test all of us, I know that with your proven commitment, we can look to the future with optimism.
And granted President Carter's .approval of the merger, I know that you will join me in welcoming our friends at National to full partnership in our efforts to meet the challenges of a new decade and a stronger Pan Am.
I send to each of you and your families warm holiday greetings and best wishes for the New Year.
Foreign tourists favor U.S.
The world’s number one tourist destination?
It’s the United States now, and the “new” Pan Am is going to help keep it that way for a long time to come.
That’s the message Executive Vice President William Waltrip delivered on behalf of President Dan Colussy to the Union of German Travel Agencies which came to Washington in late November to hold its first convention in the Western Hemisphere.
Americans, who used to do most of the international traveling, are still on the move but for the first time their numbers are being equaled or surpassed by nationals of other countries coming to the United States.
That’s because the United States
not only has it all from a tourist standpoint, but because we now have some competitive advantages that we didn’t always have.
Among them:
—comparatively reasonable costs. Average prices, for hotel rooms, meals, ground transportation, are now lower in the United States than in Western Europe and the Orient.
—economic and political stability.
—no danger of saturation, or “tourist pollution,” in the foreseeable future. The country is immense with a virtually unlimited capacity to absorb more and more visitors.
—it’s a year-round destination, and so big it lends itself to multiple repeat trips.
Moreover, there is an increasing
continued on page 8
It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas on some of Pan Am’s 747s, such as this one where Flight Attendant Margaret White positions some mistletoe preparing for a holiday season flight. It might be the highest sprig hung anywhere in the world.
Pakistan evacuation:
Pan Am flies
They were tired and scared and dirty.
They clutched their kids, their pets and their overstuffed luggage.
They looked fearfully at the Pakistani soldiers.
A few days before, mobs had stormed the U.S. Embassy leaving two Americans dead. Now, they wanted to leave. And Pan Am was coming to get them.
They looked out over the runway at Rawalpindi Airport. A 747, under the command of Captain Robert McMurray, made a routine landing.
Once again, Pan Am was there. And the Americans cheered.
Quickly, they came aboard—309 evacuees processed in less than 20 seconds each. And a grim cargo— the bodies of the two Americans killed in the attack. The engines started and Flight E301 headed home.
Captain McMurray rallied his crew Thanksgiving morning when word of the planned evacuation reached them in New Delhi. Despite a long duty day and an emergency assignment, no one hesitated. “There was a great esprit de corps,” recalls McMurray.“Everyone volunteered without hesitation.” (Three backup crews had also volunteered for the assignment.)
The Pan Am crew that volunteered to fly to Pakistan and rescue stranded Americans were:
Robert McMurray, captain
Elbert Strange, first officer
James Wright, second officer
Vernon Jones, first engineer
William Daminger, second engineer
Werner Skoftebye, senior purser
Miriam Lau, purser, and Flight Attendants Selura Campbell, Ingbritt Andersson, Bernicia Suarez, Akosua Homiah, Kitty Kindberg, Francisca Martinez, Margaret Height, Horace Moore, Veronica Autobee, Michael Staudt.
The entire crew is New York based except for Staudt, who is based in London.
The crew left for New Delhi and Rawalpindi equipped with landing charts flown in from Hong Kong. Plans were made to monitor the flight through a special Air Force frequency linking the aircraft to Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland. Its code name—Mystic Star.
The frequency was not entirely operative, however, and McMurray remained in contact with Pan Am Flight Control in London, through high frequency radio links.
Both an operations representative and a mechanic were flown to Rawalpindi to handle the flight. They spent an uneasy night in the city since the violence had not completely abated and one American firm there had been burned out.
After leaving Rawalpindi, the aircraft stopped in Karachi to board an additional 40 Americans, and to continued on page 7
349 Americans to safety
GLAD TO BE HOME...An American evacuee gathers his family on arrival at Washington’s Dulles Airport. Pan Am sent a volunteer crew to evacuate 349 Americans from Pakistan after mobs stormed the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad.
Board elects Hella Kamiske first woman vice president
Hella Kamiske, who began her career with Pan Am as a customer service representative, has become the first woman in the company’s history to be elected a corporate officer and full vice president.
Ms. Kamiske was elected vice president In-Flight Services at a meeting of the Pan Am Board of Directors on Nov. 6. She is responsible for the administration of 5000 flight attendants and 300 management employees at nine worldwide bases.
A native of East Prussia, Germany, she joined Pan Am in 1954 as a customer service representative in Dusseldorf. She transferred to the United States in 1962, and has worked in Passenger Services,
Station Personnel Administration, Budget/Cost and Manpower Control, and Catering.
During the past two years, she served In-Flight Services as area director, Latin America and director, Scheduling and Management Controls, Later, she was named director
V-f,	Passenger
-'f	Services Ad-
ministration Hella Kamiske anc[ Budgets, and, most recently, system director, In-Flight Services.
(A profile of Ms. Kamiske appears on page 3.)
IHC plans Houston hotel
Pan Am’s Intercontinental Hotels Corporation plans to build a $45 million 500-room hotel in Houston, the fifth of its luxury properties in the United States.
Chairman Paul Sheeline said a contract to purchase the hotel site has been signed, and construction
will start early next year with completion scheduled for 1982.
“Houston has been a high priority for IHC, which is pursuing a major expansion program in the United States international gateway cities,” Sheeline said. “The Houston continued on page 7
October traffic up 9.5%
Pan Am scheduled revenue passenger miles increased 14.3 percent in October and total revenue passenger miles, including charter, climbed 9.5 percent over October 1978.
Available scheduled service seat miles increased 4.3 percent resulting in 62.6 percent seat factor,
up 5.5 points over last October.
For the first 10 months, scheduled revenue passenger miles increased 8.7 percent.
Scheduled freight revenue ton miles was up 3.2 percent in October, and has increased 2.2 percent during the first 10 months. □
1