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Airway Pioneer Member |
 Mel Haworth was born in Oklahoma and went to California in 1942 as part of the vast "Okie" migration. He attended public schools in Loomis, Auburn, and Lincoln, California.Mel learned the electronics trade in a 4-year apprenticeship at McClellan AFB, California. After teaching apprentices for the next four years, he transferred to the FAA at Mather AFB Long Range Radar as part of the "Project Friendship" program in 1960. He was at Mt. Laguna FD radar in 1963 when the massive reorganization and up grading occurred. He went to the Scarper Peak (Half Moon Bay) ARSR in the reorganization assuming the site supervisor role. During his stay there he passed the California Engineer-in-training examination opening the door to advancement for an uneducated farm boy. In 1968 Mel was administratively reassigned to the Oakland Bay TRACON two days before the cutover to become the second multi-airport approach control facility in the nation. Twenty months and one ulcer later, he took one of the System's Engineer jobs at the Oakland ARTCC at Fremont. In 1970, while on a 120-day detail as regional automation coordinator, Mel was assigned to the Assistant Sector Manager's position at the Los Angeles ARTCC at Palmdale. In 1975 through 1977 he did his "RO time" in the Maintenance Engineering Branch in both the Enroute and Terminal Radar/ Automation sections. In 1975, he took the Sector Manager's job at Fresno, California. When the winds of reorganization blew Fresno out of existence as a Sector in 1984, Mel went to the Bay area to combine Oakland, San Francisco, and half of Red Bluff Sectors into the Golden Gate Sector. He ended his FAA career in 1989. Having lived in California for 47 years, he was able to save enough money to join the reverse migration of "Okies". He now lives in Ada, Oklahoma where he raises Scottish Highland cattle and dreams "old men's" dreams. | |
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