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Aviation History
1952
1952 - 0273.PDF
f||6"T AIRCRAFT ENGINEER First Aeronautical Weekly in the World Founded 1909 No. 2245 Vol. LXI. FRIDAY, 1 FEBRUARY 1952 EDITOR MAURICE A. SMITH, D.F.C. ASS/STANT EDITOR H. F. KING. M.B.E. TECHNICAL EDITOR C. B. BAILEY-WATSON. B.A. ART EDITOR JOHN YOXALL Editorial, Advertising and Publishing Offices: DORSET HOUSE. STAMFORD STREET, LONDON, S.E.1. Telegrams, Flightpres, Sedist, London. Telephone. Waterloo 3333 (60 lints). Branch Offices: COVENTRY 8-10, Corporation Street. Telegrams, Autocar, Coventry, Telephone, Coventry 5210. BIRMINGHAM. 2 King Edward House, New Street. Telegrams, Autopress, Birmingham. Telephone Midland 7191 (7 lines). MANCHESTER, 3 260, Deansgate. Telegrams, lliffe, Manchester. Telephone, Blackfriars 4412 (3 lines) Deansgate 3595 (2 lines) GLASGOW, C2. 26b, Renfield Street. Telegrams, lliffe, Glasgow. Telephone, Central 1265 (2 lines). SUBSCRIPTION RATES Home and Overseas: Twelve months £3 3s. Od. U.S.A. and Canada, $10.00 BY AIR: To Canada and U.S.A.. six months, $16. IN THIS ISSUE : Refuelling the Comet - 114 N.A.T.O. and the Air - 120 Placed on Record - - - 121 Para-rescue Course - • 125 In Production at Hatfield 126 A Drop in Wages - - 128 Italian Private Enterprise 129 Fair Shares for Test Pilots A LTHOUGH the job of the experimental test pilot is occasionally over-dramatized /m in films and in print, the skill, technical knowledge, experience, physical endur- ^*- ance and danger which it entails are generally appreciated, and no one will have read of the recent award in connection with salaries for Ministry of Supply Test pilots without thinking or remarking "Good luck to them; it was about time !" For all crew categories the increase more than doubles their pay, and for most multiplies it by three. This is in part an indication of the extent to which they were underpaid previously, but it also reflects a realization which has spread slowly through aviation and finally penetrated to benefit these civil flying servants—namely, that employers have a respon sibility beyond mere payment to men whose career, for one reason or another, is bound to be a short one. M.o.S. pilots have no superannuation scheme, and no life or accident insurance is taken out for them. Thus, in making comparisons with airline pilots' salaries or with the pay of test pilots in the aircraft industry, allowance must be made for the £500 p.a.—a representative figure—paid by the employer as a superannuation subscription in the case of the former and nearly as much paid in insurance premiums in the latter instance. In making these observations, we do not imply that test pilots con sider themselves worthy of "danger money"; but they do—and rightly—think of their dependents. Airline pilots' pay now ranges between minima of £815 for a second officer to £2,150 for a senior captain (1st class). The new M.o.S. rates are £2,400 to £3,200 for pilots, without, as we have said, superannuations or insurance, and for a possibly more hazardous job with no prospects of continuation after a very early retirement (always assuming, as a cynic has remarked, the occasion should arise). So far as the industry is concerned, rates of pay are on average comparable with those of the airlines, but most companies have recently made more generous insurance provision, in several cases doubling the cover of a year or two ago. Age and responsibilities may be said to account for the fact that comparatively few test pilots achieve the equivalent of senior captain's pay. Experimental test-flying is strictly a young man's work, although there are one or two fit enough, having grown up and survived in the job, to continue until quite a ripe old age—in the middle forties. The only criticism which might be levelled at the new salary scale for M.o.S. test pilots is the manner of giving the additional money. The size of the net increase with income tax deducted may come as a shock and may be found to represent only a little more than will be required to effect adequate private insurance. It might have been preferable to arrange a rather smaller salary increase and provide generous insurance in addition. This would also have avoided givingJthe general public, at this time, any misleading impression about the size of test pilots' salaries. The Services' Case News of the revised scale brings us to one more very important consideration, namely the relative position of R.A.F. and Navy pilots testing literally side-by-side with their M.o.S. and industry brothers. There are some fifty of them at Boscombe Down and Faraborough. They have their pay and allowances which, for the ranks usually concerned, would be between £900 and £1,500 p.a., and they have a pension fund and continuation of employment (if permanently commissioned) after their term of testing. But this sort of flying is in peace-time a great deal more hazardous than any other, and many find that their private insurance policies are invalidated if they indulge in testing. No price, moreover, can be put on the wear and tear on test pilots' and their families' nerves. We believe that there is a strong case to be made for special insurance provision to be made during their tour of duty for those in the Services who are called on (or as is usually the case, who volunteer) to be test pilots. This applied before the Civil Service Arbitra tion Tribunal's latest award, and might well have been tied in with an overall insurance scheme for all who test for the Fighting Services and the Ministry.
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