April 2009 Cover Story:
Final Flight:
The Last Revenue Flight of the DC-6

Story by Rick Broome

The nocturnal scene outside our cockpit windows reminded me of the final scene from the famous Ernie Gann screenplay and Academy Award winning motion picture The High and the Mighty. Needles were centered on our final approach into San Francisco International Airport.
The soft red glow of the cockpit lighting reported all the right numbers when Captain Bob Newkom called for gear down. “Three in the green; pressure and fluid,” replied copilot Rick “Fuzzy” Lewis a moment later. The crew ran the final checklist items confirming our airliner was moments away from completing her final revenue flight for United.

February 28, 1970 represented the end of an era. On that day United Air Lines flew the last scheduled four engine prop airliner flight operated by a legacy carrier. I was jumpseat — flying as an additional crew member for the venerable Douglas DC-6B.

She had flown the friendly skies of United Air Lines since she was brand new. The final years had not been kind to N37581, however. Her paint was faded and bare aluminum surfaces well worn and weathered.

Although we were fat on the passenger manifest, the vast majority of the happy folks behind the cockpit door were riding on company passes. Some of the long ago retired captains had flown this same old airmail route in the Boeing Model 80 back in the 1930s. One old skipper along for the ride was 90 years old.

The remainder of our passengers ponied up the price of admission just to be a part of the retirement of the last four engine commercial airline flight in the continental United States (Reeve Aleutian Airlines still operated the DC-6 in Alaska).

As we broke through the overcast the runway lights invited our arrival. It was a moment for reflection. Without even thinking, I started softly whistling the theme song to The High and the Mighty. “Good call,” exclaimed the skipper! He and the crew joined in tune.

The cockpit door was open when Captain Newkom keyed the PA system. Everyone aboard could hear our impromptu rendition of actor John Wayne in the role of “Whistling Dan” Roman. Then he announced that we were on final approach – and the end of an era. Applause erupted from the passenger cabin of our airliner. I wondered if any of the “sinners” that perhaps visited the brothel outside Elko were among the group. When I joined United as an A & P in 1968 we were adding new equipment on a weekly basis. United was quickly replacing the last of their prop equipment with brand new deliveries of the Boeing 737-222.

The runways at both Elko and Ely, Nevada were too short and narrow for the shiny new Boeings, however. Thus UAL was forced to serve this mail route with their DC-6 equipment domiciled in San Francisco.

United’s PR department in Chicago had hoped to retire all their piston equipment and be out of the prop business in 1969. During this Golden Age of the airline industry — before deregulation — everything was controlled by the Feds. To the Ivory Tower it was an embarrassment that United was the last of the legacy carrier’s still operating round engine propeller equipment.

This particular route dated back to the beginning of United Air Lines’ history, originally flown by pilots wearing leather and scarves piloting open cockpit mail planes. Elko, Nevada had seen every piece of equipment that had flown our line, and some of the ground equipment in use in 1970 had been around since the 1940s. It was like taking a time machine back in history to explore this part of my airline’s history.

Soon after getting the good news that I was qualified to “Fly the Friendly Skies” I got an inter-company note from LAX Chief Pilot Russ Cottle. Reporting to his office on schedule, we visited about my future with the company.

He recommended getting the coveted pilot seniority number immediately — rather than complete my degree program at Northrop Institute of Technology. I was only 22 years old and had already invested three years toward the sheepskin. Per company policy for new-hire flight officer candidates, Russ offered me the opportunity to gain some line flying experience too.

I was issued FAA-approved OMC (Observer Member of Crew) Authority plus unlimited ACM (Additional Crew Member) Authority, a separate endorsement. What I was provided was basically my own key to the cockpit.

For my first trip aboard the DC-6B, Russ literally took me by the hand and brought me through the process of listing myself for a trip. I scheduled with dispatch a couple days early and planned to fly to SFO the day before the trip in the cockpit of a Boeing 727 “California Commuter”.

I took movies of the flight with plans to spend the night with my Aunt Barbara and Uncle Dave Edmiston who lived in San Mateo. In those innocent years of aviation history, folks who met flights could often see all the cockpit activities as the brakes were set at the gate. We blocked in early.

I gathered my flight bag and RON kit to greet my relatives. Although it was a quick turnaround I was able to take them down the jetway and show them the cockpit. They were amazed. The skipper took over and pointed out how simply everything was arranged, and who did what.

The next morning my aunt prepared a wonderful breakfast and Uncle Dave drove me to the airport for my first flight aboard the DC-6. I was almost as excited as a fourteen-year-old kid getting a chance to drive the family Buick.

In a way it was also like having a childhood dream come true too. My two favorite childhood movies were Strategic Air Command and The High and the Mighty. Old kids like me have wonderful memories of that era in American history.

Powered by four Pratt and Whitney R-2800 CB16-17 radial piston engines, three aircraft were kept in service to fly the route from San Francisco to Salt Lake City and back. The crew of the DC-6 had advance knowledge of my addition to their crew and we met in company dispatch. Captain Hal Bryan was the skipper and Rick “Fuzzy” Lewis had the right seat.

We accomplished a thorough preflight and boarded just before dawn. Takeoff was short and as the wheels folded we were immediately vectored to final approach for OAK (Oakland). This was a short flight! I had been briefed that we would typically have a full aircraft out of OAK. The passengers were all businessmen in suits with briefcases. Interesting.

The next leg of the trip was flown to Reno. Crossing the Sierra Nevada Mountain Range, I imagined the days when this route was flown with DC-3 equipment. On the eastern slopes, we would often have to set up steep descents into Reno. This could produce an unpleasant ride in back. And possibly both pilots on the controls!

I have movies taken on one circling approach descent where you cannot even read the gauges! That day there was very strong up-slope wind from the east that required a number of 360-degree turns to overcome reported 100-knot headwinds. We dropped the main gear (which acted like a speed brake), brought in half flaps, with METO power while drilling holes in the sky. The old Douglas was a very strong airframe.

From Reno, we flew direct to Elko, Nevada. This was an uncontrolled field with a runway that was too short and narrow to accept jets. Hence, the DC-6 was the perfect airplane. As I recall it was preferred to just reverse the inner engines because the outboards — numbers one and four — were over gravel beside the runway. We back taxied up the runway to the antiquated 1930s’ era terminal.

I noticed that the majority of our businessmen got off at Elko. On my first trip the skipper explained why we only had a couple fares making the rest of the journey to Ely and then Salt Lake City. Word around the campfire was that the “suits” who boarded in Oakland were wealthy businessmen cheating on their wives. Someone speculated that these “sinners” probably had firm reservations as invited guests of a local brothel.

Departing Elko we flew across the magnificent Ruby Mountains toward our next destination — Ely, Nevada. The view from the cockpit was spectacular. We flew above the world famous Kennecott copper mine before arriving in Ely. This open pit mine was huge! It looked like it had been there for all eternity appearing like a huge cereal bowl — or perhaps an ancient sculpture from a different civilization.

During this leg of the trip we also flew over the edge and directly across from what we now know as the infamous Area 51. I have lots of film I shot in this area. And, yes, we did see some fast-moving aircraft, strange lights, and possible UFOs every time we flew this leg of the trip. It was routine; you didn’t make a report! What a wonderful secret this was.

There was speculation among the crews as to what was being seen. One popular theory was that there was some angry old Native American Indians who were using large mirrors to try and blind us. The small brilliant lights were that bright, almost as blinding as the sun. The “mirror theory” might have been the story that was to be explained should any of our few passengers inquire about the bright lights. However, how could the fact that they moved around be explained?

The trip turned in SLC (Salt Lake City). We would swap out the DC-6B we flew over to SLC for the one that made the trip the day before. Maintenance gripes were frequent and sometimes serious. During the months I was flying on ACM authority I remember several in-flight engine shut downs. Maintenance of the airliners was the best in the business but the equipment was tired and fussy.

On one flight the crew had experienced an engine shut down on number three out of Ely the day before. Our dedicated A & P mechanics had changed out a jug and signed off the airliner as airworthy. All the same the captain was skeptical and would not take the trip without a test hop.

The return trip to San Francisco was a two-hour turn so we skipped lunch to satisfy the skipper’s concerns. The captain asked me to sit back in the cabin and watch for any oil leaks. Before reducing to climb power oil started pouring out of the cowling at an alarming rate. I ran forward with my report and power on number three was reduced to idle.

I ran back to my station, shot a couple photos, and quickly returned to the cockpit expecting to see the crew feather the engine. My movie camera was running when suddenly number four blew a jug, a catastrophic failure. The captain and crew ran the emergency drill, feathering the prop, while also advising the tower that we had an emergency and needed to get on the ground. Fast.

Salt Lake Tower cleared us for an immediate landing on any runway and we requested “the equipment”. The quickest return required a left turn. We never gained more than a few hundred feet. And with two engines out on the right side — this was not an easy drill.

I have movies of the entire emergency. We beat the equipment to the runway! This was a fantastic and totally professional work of airmanship by all concerned. However, after parking in the maintenance area I think the skipper was hotter than the blown engine.
Photos I took on the ramp show the prop feathered on number four and a huge pool of oil dripping out of the cowl on number three. We were very fortunate the engine areas did not catch on fire.

This particular captain was an outstanding twenty-year veteran United pilot. He had strong moral values and was a devoted family man. We deadheaded back to San Francisco riding first class in a DC-8. During that flight our captain speculated with some satisfaction that some of those “sinner businessmen” would be stranded overnight in Elko!

In late 1969, United negotiated a wet lease agreement with Frontier Airlines for the route. The CAB approved the arrangement and Convair 580 turbo-props were to replace our old DC-6B’s. It was somewhat ironic that their converted 580’s had begun life as factory-fresh Convair 340s delivered new to United. Frontier would fly the route beginning March 1, 1970.

On a crisp Saturday morning we flew N37577 for the last time — operating as Flight 857. The airliner was filled to near capacity as we taxied from the gate at SFO in the dark. As soon as the wheels were in the well we were vectored to final at Oakland. A few fortunate folks boarded, the door was closed, and gate agent Chuck Stuller cleared us for engine start.

Six blades turned on three, and then the mags went hot. The old R-2800 came to life shaking and shuddering. Then number four was aroused, along with engines two and one, in that order. That was the drill. A moment later Chuck saluted us off the gate. During the flight over to Salt Lake City (and back) the cockpit door was open except during takeoff and landing. Everyone had a wonderful time including an original Boeing Air Transport captain who had flown the same route in the Boeing Model 80 and 247 equipment.

Mechanics at Salt Lake City had ship N37581 prepared for the return trip — Flight 837. The company had extensive press coverage of our adventure with several television stations expecting our retirement flight to be on time. We were.

The return trip to the City by the Bay was all about sharing stories. As we climbed into a beautiful sunset leaving Reno for home, a UAL pilot-owned Cessna 320 joined up on our right wing in loose formation for a few minutes. Talking to them on a special frequency, we passed by their port side as photos were shot.

Years later I visited with some of the original Frontier Airlines crews who flew the same route for years. They too had all seen the strange lights and reflections that came from Area 51.

I developed a theory about those “sinners” headed for the brothel in Elko. This has been the subject of years of discussions including almost two decades of wonder between one of my dear friends and neighbors, the late Apollo 15 astronaut Jim Irwin. I truly believe those “suits” going from Oakland to Elko were then transported to scientific communities located at the northern end of Area 51.

A group of San Francisco-based UAL pilots were so intrigued by what they might have seen (back in the day) that they formed a UFO club. They still wonder….