May 6 1973
From The Space Library
Langley Research Center Director Edgar M. Cortright received the degree of Doctor of Science honoris causes at the 152nd Annual Commencement of George Washington Univ. in Washington, D.C., and gave the commencement address to the University's School of Engineering and Applied Science. He said it was perhaps "a blessing in disguise" that the U.S. was running out of fossil fuels. In seeking new energy sources, "you will develop clean energy. And you will develop it within our own resources, thus alleviating the balance of trade problem." Three sources appeared particularly promising: nuclear fission, nuclear fusion, and solar energy. "In addition, you may even tap the heat of the Earth's core." (Newport News, Va., Daily Press, 5/10/73; Langley Researcher, 5/11/73, 1)
The Federal Aviation Administration had set 1975 as a target date for phase-out of its seven DC-3 aircraft, United Press International reported. Fan was still using the aircraft-known as the workhorse that carved out much of U.S. aviation history-to check aerial navigation aids on the West Coast. Manufactured by the Douglas Aircraft Corp., the DC-3 had carried 95% of U.S. airline traffic by 1938. A 1966 survey had shown that one third of the world's transport planes were still DC-3s. The aircraft, nicknamed "The Gooney," had been designated the C-47 in World War II and the Korean war. By 1945 10 000 DC-3s were in military service. Built to carry 29 passengers in civilian con-figuration, the DC-3 flown by Gen. James H. Doolittle from China after his 1942 Tokyo raid had carried 72 persons. The DC-3 had been redesignated the AC-47 and armed with heavy machine guns for service in the Vietnam war. Scores of the aircraft were still flying in the U.S., in private hands and with Government agencies. (Clifford, UPI, W Post, 5/6/73, F15)
May 6-8; The Commission on Education of the National Academy of Engineering held a Washington, D.C., symposium to examine the problems of recruiting minority students in engineering to alleviate an impending engineer shortage. Only one percent of engineering students were members of an ethnic minority. (NAE Release 5/2/73, NAE PIO)
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