[Audio recording of business letters and statements dictated by William P. Lear]
Title
Description
Audio recording of business letters and statements dictated by William P. Lear, circa May 1960.
Abstract
This audio recording contains business letters and statements dictated by William P. Lear to his secretary June Shields, recorded at the Lear home in Geneva, Switzerland, circa May 1960. The letters predominantly focus on Lear’s business ventures in Europe and contain details about meetings, business deals, aircraft components and systems, and financial and legal matters. One letter to FAA Administrator Elwood “Pete” Quesada references a past dispute between Lear and Quesada and how that might impact an upcoming banquet to which they were both invited. Other addressees include Pat Hoy, J. P. Dunn, Henry Mortimer, I. A. Peterson, Arthur W. Shelter, Mr. Delaney, Ken Rogers, C. J. Reese, Harold Downs, Al Handschumacher, Phil Golde, Harry Koshar, George McTigue, Jim Brown, and Bob Attics.
In addition to the letters, the recording also contains two segments dictated by Lear on current topics of interest. The first segment is about a recent electrical problem experienced by Lear during a flight in his Cessna aircraft. He describes the mishap in detail, which he attributes to aging equipment and antiquated manufacturing techniques, and outlines ways to avoid the problem in the future. The second segment is about Lear’s thoughts on the air traffic control system and how aircraft navigation can be improved.
Note that several of the name spellings have not been verified and are thus rendered phonetically in this transcript.