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Volume 6; Issue 3 |
April/May 2003 |
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_____________________________________________________________________ Retirement - Bruce Singer
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When
asked how long he had worked for Uncle Sam, Mr. Singer responded, "To
give you an idea of how long I have been around in this business, when I
started with the Civil Aeronautics Agency, commercial jet service was
limited to not at all. I remember standing on the roof of the (FAA)
Eastern Region building one day to look over the Van Wyck Expressway to
see an aircraft parked on the ramp in the cargo terminal.
I thought, wow, look at that, a 747."
This was in 1955.
His
first flight was on an Eastern Airline Electra from Idlewild (now
LaGuardia) to Miami. He started as a field engineer in the Eastern Region
doing site surveys on ASRs, RCAGs, ILSs and VORs (there were no ARSRs at
the time).
Communication between pilot and the Centers was via the Flight
Service Stations.
He did a survey at Norfolk Airport to replace the military radar
there with an ASR (not an ASR-11, just a plain old ASR).
His pay was about $4,000 a year and per diem was just $9 per day.
After
many years in the Eastern Region, he left the government for the private
sector, where he worked in a consulting firm doing airport planning and
design. He thoroughly enjoyed the experience and traveled all over the
globe. He traveled to France, Germany, Spain, Belgium, England, Columbia,
Venezuela, Japan, Vietnam and Saudi Arabia, "to
name a few,"
he said.
In
1980 he returned to the FAA (by then the CAA had become the FAA) to work
at NAFEC, under then Center Director Joe DelBalzo. He worked briefly in Building 14, and soon thereafter moved to the
other side of the base after the dedication of the "new"
Technical Building and the name change to the FAA Technical Center.
Mr.
Singer leaves the Technical Center with many special memories.
He mentioned the dedication of the renovated "electronic"
bathrooms in the Technical Building.
"You
had to be there to appreciate it,"
he said.
He mentioned the time he danced in a hula skirt on the auditorium
stage at an award ceremony; and another instance when he emerged from a
space shuttle after a trip from outer space (also at an award ceremony);
and, seeing the joy in the faces of many Center employees who paid to
throw whipped cream pies in his face at a CFC event. "My
most memorable experience is the time
I was never prouder to work at the Tech Center than when we stood
together in the auditorium and sang God Bless America in honor of this
great country and to mourn those who died on that fateful day, September
11, 2001. Also, having worked at a place where I enjoyed (most of the time)
coming to work to associate with hard working and dedicated employees that
know that what they do every day makes a difference in terms of ensuring a
safe and efficient air transportation system. That may sound a bit corny, but I believe it's true."
Mr.
Singer plans to stay in the area and enjoy more time with his wife,
children, grandchildren and pets.
Those who attended his retirement party noted the large number of
family members who turned out in his honor.
This was of little surprise to those who knew him well, and his
philosophy of life. "It
is absolutely essential that we balance our private and business lives.
If you can't take a joke, life must be pretty miserable for
you,"
he stated.
Mr.
Singer plans to hone his golfing skills, during retirement, in order to
get into the PGA someday.
He plans to stay in touch with people here through e-mails, holiday
parties and the FAA Golf League.
"The Technical Center is more than a place where I've worked, it is
a place where I have made many friends and those friendship will endure
but just require other ways to stay in touch and to meet once in a while.
Thanks for the memories."
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