F.A.A. Freezes
Funds for Jet
Runway at F’banks
JUNEAU, OP — A $1,584,325 al
location for runway work at
Fairbanks’ International Airport,
announced only Thursday, was
suddenly frozen by the Federal
Aviation Agency Friday night.
The FAA, through its regional
representative at Anchorage, Allen
Hulen, advised Governor William
Egan the allocation would be held
up pending a study of the possible
use of Ladd Air Force Base, near
Fairbanks, as a civilian terminal.
The action also will hold up
payments on $1,035,000 allocated
for site preparation at Fairbanks
International Airport.
The FAA said the freeze on the
funds was precipitated by recent
permission granted Pan American
World AirWays to use Ladd’s faci
lities for jet service. Pan Am be
gan Fairbanks-Seattle jet service
Tuesday, with landings at Ladd.
International Airport’s runway
is too short for jets. The funds
in the new federal allocation
would cover the cost of extending
the runway during fiscal 1961.
Governor Egan, in announcing
the FAA action, said he consid
ered the plan for possible use of
Ladd on a continuing basis not
only infeasible but contrary to
the spirit of the Alaska Omnibus
Act, a federal law which provided
funds for improvement programs
at both the Anchorage and Fair
banks International Airports.
Egan said a joint feasibility stu
dy would be started immediately
by the state and the FAA “so as to
clear the air and permit this im
portant project to go ahead.”
Hulen said in a letter to Egan:
“We believe the question of
availability and suitability of
Ladd to serve civil aviation
should be fully explored and re
solved before further state or fed
eral funds are spent on runway
improvements at the Fairbanks
airport.” ,
A state legislator, Rep. Robert
Giersdorf <D-Fairbanks), said
anything that would slow devel
opment of the state-owned air
port and restrict jet operations to
Ladd “would be a major step
backward.”
Giersdorf added:
“Proposed plans for a large jet
maintenance base in Fairbanks
by Alaska Airlines would not be
feasible” if Ladd continued to be
the base of jet operations.
Egan said Pan American had
been granted permission to use
the Air Force terminal on a tem
porary basis pending completion
of the runway work at Fairbanks
International Airport. He said
there was no indication the Air
Force would permit such use over
a long period.
AEC Officials Meet with
Alaska Legislators; Will
Tour Northwest Villages
JUNEAU, UP) — Legislators had
a luncheon meeting Friday with
three Atomic Energy Commission
representatives to discuss a pro
posed nuclear blast designed to
carve out a harbor near Cape
Thompson.
R. L. Southwick of the AEC
group, said the state lawmakers
were advised the commission had
approved contained environmen
tal studies in the area of the pro
posed explosion.
Field investigations began in
1959. No date has been set for
the blast, nor has final authoriza
tion of the experiment been given.
The proposal, known as “Pro
ject Chariot,” is part of the AEC’s
“Operation Plowshare” to show
peaceful uses of nuclear power.
Nine legislators from Northwes
tern Alaska and three state sen
ators from other areas attended
the luncheon meeting which fol
lowed the AEC group’s conference
with Governor Egan.
Southwick said the group would
be in Fairbanks next Friday, and
go on to Nome the following day.
Meetings with residents of Arctic
communities have been scheduled
later.
THE ALASKA SAFETY RE
SPONSIBILITY ACT has been
in effect for six months, and dur
ing this time more than 1,200
Accident Cases have been pro
cessed by the Safety Responsibility
Bureau of the Department of
Public Safety.
MORGAN and SON
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Black 115 after 5 pjn. —Phones— Shop: Main 115
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9 Sheet Metal Work — Welding
9 Heating Systems
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OPEN 8 A.M. to 5 P.M.
Radar Picket Ships j
Will Be Pulled
Out of DEW Line
WASHINGTON, UPI — The chief
of the North American Defense
Command was against pulling de
stroyer escort picket ships out of
the Distant Early Warning Sys
tem, but was overriden toy the
Joint Chiefs of Staff.
The Navy announced Thursday
that 15 radar picket destroyers —
the sea wings of the land-based
line that guards against enemy
bomber attack — will toe taken
out of commission within two
months. Of the remaining 21 de
stroyers, all but four will be as
signed to other duties.
Gen. Laurence Kuter, head of
the North American Defense Com
mand, was asked through an
aide Friday whether he approved
the withdrawal. “No” was his
answer.
The aide was reached by tele
phone at Thule, Greenland, where
Kuter is beginning an inspection
trip of the DEW Line.
What will replace the hole left
by the surface radar ships? Re
plying through his aide, Kuter
said “Nothing.”
Pentagon newsmen were told
the Joint Chiefs approved the cut
back when the Navy supported it.
Secretary of Defense Thomas S.
Gates Jr. okayed the action.
The reason given for the cut
back of eight ships in the Atlan
tic and seven in the Pacific was
to save money and manpower.
The savings then could be used to
modernize other ships in the
fleet. The Navy said it cost about
five million dollars a year to op
erate the ships, and pay of per
sonnel runs to about 10 million
dollars more.
Pool Tournament
The elimination contest to de
termine the pool champion of
the Bering Sea area is continuing
at the Polar Bar each evening.
Perry Kagoona has eliminated
Bob Morris and O. D. Davis has
put Sam Mogg out of the run
ning. Other matches to be played
are between Tim Kenick and Tom
Pushruk, Clarence Trigg and Roy
Luke, George Korgie and Buster
Seelkoke.
HIGH SCHOOL HONOR~ROLL
Fourth Six-Weeks Period
Superior — All A's
Jeanette Amundsen, Dick Ar
nold, Ray Arnold, Rod Boucher,
Ivan Sundstrom, Clark West, and
Whitney West.
Honor Roll
Dean Alexander, Richard Atuk,
Charles Burnett, Carolyn John
son, Pamela Mulvihill, Ellen
Saito, Clifford Steele.
Arkansas Senator
Blasts President’s
Contempt of Critics
WASHINGTON, UP — Sen. J.
William Fullbright <D-Ark) said
Saturday that if President Eisen
hower’s defense decisions are
faulty the free world could be
lost in an afternoon.
In a full-scale Senate attack,
Fullbright accused Eisenhower of
driving men of ideas out of Wash
ington and treating with cin
tempt critics of his defense poli
cies.
Senate Republican Leader Ev
erett Dirksen of Illinois dismissed
Fullbright’s blast as “the lay opin
ion of a man from Arkansas.”
Fulbright, chairman of the For
eign Relations Committee, said he
found it disturbing for the Presi
dent-to tell a news conference he
knows more about military affairs
than “almost anyone.”
“This is dangerous because the
President’s attitude forecloses dis
cussion while precluding reason,”
he said. It also keeps “military
men, fearful of their careers, from
speaking up; encourages the dom
inance of yes-men, and tends to
drive superior men from the
service,” he added.
Fulbright is one of the 18 south
ern senators now filibustering
against civil rights legislation.
When he gained the floor he
chose to speak on defense policies
rather than civil rights, as the
other southerners have done so
far.
Would Raise Interest Rate
On Veterans Loans
JUNEAU, UP — The House ap
proved a bill Saturday to raise the
interest rate on loans made under
the Alaska veterans loan program.
The current rate on loans made
under the revolving fund is 4 per
cent. The House bill would hike
the interest to 5 per cent.
The bill also would place a
$15,000 limit on the amount of
loans any one veteran can obtain
from the fund at any one time.
The bill now goes to the Senate
for expected approval.
Top Metropolitan
Opera Baritone
Dies On Stage
NEW YORK, Wl — Leonard
Warren, a world favorite and one
of the greatest baritones developed
in this country, collapsed and
died on stage Friday night at the
Metropolitan Opera.
As his wife, Agatha, and a capa
city audience watched, Warren,
48, playing Don Carlo, finished
singing in the next to last scene
of the second act of Verdis “La
Forza del Destino.”
His last singing words were:
“He is saved, he is saved, oh
joy!” from the aria “Fatal Urn
of My Destiny.”
As he prepared for his exit,
the 6-foot Warren fell to the
stage. The music trailed off in
the orchestra pit and the curtain
came down.
As the audience buzzed and
speculated, a Catholic priest went
backstage and administered last
rites.
Rudolf Bing, general manager
of the Met, first came before the
curtain and invited the audience
to remain seated. The seriousness
of the situation was not imme
diately known. Twenty minutes
later Bing, visibly shaken, again
appeared and told a hushed as
semblage:
“This is one of the saddest mo
ments in the Metropolitan’s his
tory. I will ask you to please
stand in tribute to one of our
greatest performers.
“Mr. Warren died during the
performance. I am sure you will
agree with me that we cannot go
on with the opera.”
Dazed, 3,900 persons arose.
Many began to cry and sob. Then
they filed out slowly. What had
begun as a gala evening marking
the return to the company of
Italian Prima Donna Renata Ti
baldi, had ended in real-life
tragedy.
Only two scenes after his actual
death, Warren would have died an
operatic death in a climactic duel
with Don Alvardo, sung by Rich
ard Tucker.
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