[Congressional Record Volume 144, Number 153 (Thursday, December 17, 1998)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E2337]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




              TRIBUTE TO FORMER CONGRESSMAN ROMAN PUCINSKI

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. WILLIAM O. LIPINSKI

                              of illinois

                    in the house of representatives

                      Thursday, December 17, 1998

  Mr. LIPINSKI. Mr. Speaker, I rise today to pay tribute to Mr. Roman 
Pucinski, who represented the northwest side of the City of Chicago in 
the U.S. House of Representatives from 1959 to 1973.
  From the start of his tenure in Congress, then Representative 
Pucinski mounted a one-man effort to require airlines to install crash-
proof cockpit voice recorders in airplanes. Despite organized 
opposition from the major airlines, Pucinski kept the pressure on and 
in 1964 the Federal Aviation Administration issued an order requiring 
air carriers to install crash-proof cockpit voice recorders in their 
aircraft. Commonly referred to as the ``black box'', cockpit voice 
recorders are now a critical component of aviation safety. Black boxes 
provide vital information about the final minutes of airline disasters 
to accident investigators and have helped determine the cause of 
several plane crashes.
  As a decorated Air Force pilot, Pucinski knew that a recording of 
last minute cockpit conversations would provide vital clues to the 
cause of airline tragedies. As an Air Force pilot, Pucinski led his 
bomber group in the first B-29 bombing raid over Tokyo during World War 
II. He flew 48 other combat missions over Japan and was awarded the 
Distinguished Flying Cross and Air Medal with Clusters. From his own 
personal experience as a pilot, Pucinski understood that, in the last 
few minutes preceding an air tragedy, the cockpit crew are far too busy 
trying to save their passengers and aircraft to radio formal reports to 
a ground station. However, a crash-proof tape recorder operating 
automatically during flight preserves a record of everything said in 
the cockpit for accident investigators.
  Because of Roman Pucinski's dedicated and courageous leadership in 
the establishment of crash-proof tape recorders in commercial 
airliners, accident investigation and aviation safety have been 
significantly advanced in the public interest, and outstanding results 
for the national aviation system have been achieved. For this reason, 
on December 18, 1998, former Congressman Roman Pucinski will be honored 
by the Federal Aviation Administration with a Silver Medal of 
Distinguished Service.
  I urge my colleagues to join me in congratulating Roman Pucinski. His 
tireless advocacy of cockpit voice recorders is one of the most 
important contributions to airline safety in the history of aviation. 
Roman Pucinski has made a lasting contribution to aviation safety and 
he greatly deserves this special honor from the Federal Aviation 
Administration.

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