Wednesday, December 27, 2006
Goodbye, Gerald Ford
I don't claim to know a lot about Gerald Ford's presidency in terms of policy or politics. I know enough to understand why he was a somewhat controversial president. Like most Americans my age or older, I also remember his clumsiness immortalized by Chevy Chase on "Saturday Night Live." But the rest of what I know comes not from the news, or the history books, but from my dad.
Before I was born, my dad was in the U.S. Air Force. He actually retired after 21 years of service soon after my older sister was born. He started out at the bottom and used the military to gain a college education. He also rose in the ranks until he reached pretty much the pinnacle of service: he flew Air Force One.
Well, he navigated it anyway. While my dad could certainly pilot a plane (and logged thousands of hours in the pilot's seat), he was a navigator by trade. This was back before the days of automated everything in the cockpit, and navigators were necessary to determine flight path and whatnot. So my dad spent a few years ferrying around dignitaries... Spiro Agnew, Nixon, Henry Kissinger, George H. W. Bush, Apollo astronauts, and tons of important congressmen and other VIPs. And he was Presidential Navigator for President Ford.
He had known Ford for a while, since Ford was in Congress. I think Dad dated Ford's secretary for a while (he was quite the man-about-town, my dad). He and Ford used to go golfing together, and I think he mentioned going to parties with him (or at least going to parties that Ford also attended). Now, I don't know if they were ever really close friends, but I do know that they ran in the same circles. And my dad always said how nice Ford was to him and the rest of the crew.
Not so all of the dignitaries. Kissinger used to insist that the crew flying Air Force One were there to fly, not to eat, so he wouldn't allow the stewards to serve them any food. Remember, some of these flights were incredibly long, since they flew all over the world with these dignitaries. Dad likes to tell one story about a Kissinger flight that was six or eight hours long with no meal service. He had a small pack of peanut butter crackers in his bag or pocket, and he made them last the whole flight, eating them in secret so the rest of the crew wouldn't know that he had them.
My dad is full of stories about this time of his life... the secrecy (each itinerary was strictly confidential), the VIPs he flew, the cool places he got to see all over the world. He is very loyal to the people who treated the flight crew well. The Apollo astronauts (I can't remember which Apollo mission they flew... maybe 11?) that Dad took on a round-the-world tour were very courteous and friendly with the flight crew. They even signed and framed a picture of the Apollo rocket and gave it to my dad when the tour was finished. He talks about how George H. W. Bush was very nice and smart (he recently said Bush the first was the president most qualified for the job, in terms of professional experience, that we've ever had).
But he probably speaks most highly of Gerald Ford. According to Dad, Ford was a genuine, down-to-earth guy with a big heart. That's how I'm going to remember him.
I don't claim to know a lot about Gerald Ford's presidency in terms of policy or politics. I know enough to understand why he was a somewhat controversial president. Like most Americans my age or older, I also remember his clumsiness immortalized by Chevy Chase on "Saturday Night Live." But the rest of what I know comes not from the news, or the history books, but from my dad.
Before I was born, my dad was in the U.S. Air Force. He actually retired after 21 years of service soon after my older sister was born. He started out at the bottom and used the military to gain a college education. He also rose in the ranks until he reached pretty much the pinnacle of service: he flew Air Force One.
Well, he navigated it anyway. While my dad could certainly pilot a plane (and logged thousands of hours in the pilot's seat), he was a navigator by trade. This was back before the days of automated everything in the cockpit, and navigators were necessary to determine flight path and whatnot. So my dad spent a few years ferrying around dignitaries... Spiro Agnew, Nixon, Henry Kissinger, George H. W. Bush, Apollo astronauts, and tons of important congressmen and other VIPs. And he was Presidential Navigator for President Ford.
He had known Ford for a while, since Ford was in Congress. I think Dad dated Ford's secretary for a while (he was quite the man-about-town, my dad). He and Ford used to go golfing together, and I think he mentioned going to parties with him (or at least going to parties that Ford also attended). Now, I don't know if they were ever really close friends, but I do know that they ran in the same circles. And my dad always said how nice Ford was to him and the rest of the crew.
Not so all of the dignitaries. Kissinger used to insist that the crew flying Air Force One were there to fly, not to eat, so he wouldn't allow the stewards to serve them any food. Remember, some of these flights were incredibly long, since they flew all over the world with these dignitaries. Dad likes to tell one story about a Kissinger flight that was six or eight hours long with no meal service. He had a small pack of peanut butter crackers in his bag or pocket, and he made them last the whole flight, eating them in secret so the rest of the crew wouldn't know that he had them.
My dad is full of stories about this time of his life... the secrecy (each itinerary was strictly confidential), the VIPs he flew, the cool places he got to see all over the world. He is very loyal to the people who treated the flight crew well. The Apollo astronauts (I can't remember which Apollo mission they flew... maybe 11?) that Dad took on a round-the-world tour were very courteous and friendly with the flight crew. They even signed and framed a picture of the Apollo rocket and gave it to my dad when the tour was finished. He talks about how George H. W. Bush was very nice and smart (he recently said Bush the first was the president most qualified for the job, in terms of professional experience, that we've ever had).
But he probably speaks most highly of Gerald Ford. According to Dad, Ford was a genuine, down-to-earth guy with a big heart. That's how I'm going to remember him.
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