Frank Braun

I was installed on site, in building one, which if you had a visitor pass and could park where we did, wasn't all that bad. If you did not have that pass, travelling from your car park spot could be a short bus commute.

The security desk, complete with sidearmed McDonnell Douglas policepersons, was a daily gauntlet, it was a show and tell event and your bag would be inspected for potential smuggled secrets, I have a story about that, but later...

The design manager on our job was a well respected chap called Willie Boehringer, his immediate supervisor was Cecil Cooke. I have a story about them, but again, later...

I was lead stress analyst on the T45 Main Landing gear, in fact, I was the only analyst from APPH, however, we had some help and one of the structural guys I had the great pleasure to work with was Frank Braun.

Frank was the first ever American jobshopper I had met, besides my old friends Mark Charnock and Dave Bullen who had left APPH to join DATS as contractors in the UK, here was one that I worked directly with, and he was an education. I was soon aware that several more coworkers in our office were contractors and I yearned for their level of responsibility.

Jobshoppers are not irresponsible, it is just that to survive, they will do as they are told. In fact, sometimes to an annoying degree. However, if you tell a contractor to paint it pink, he will, in fact, paint it pink.

Even if it does not make sense to paint it pink.

Frank was an excellent worker, and he completed work that he was tasked to do, however, he did it with the relaxed style that only a true hourly paid jobshopper could.

He taught me a lot.