by Michael Jordan“I was uncompromising in advocating safety in civil aviation, and I brooked no interference from theMr. Aubrey Alexanderpoliticians…Civil aviation is a serious matter and I took it very seriously. “It’s amazing that a man who retired almost two decades ago can still speak with such passion about a career so long behind him. But that’s 74-year-old Aubrey Alexander for you; a man who served with humility but with distinction for 34 years in the aviation field in Guyana, while others with fewer achievements hogged the limelight.Few of his colleagues can attest, like Mr. Alexander,Wholesale Jerseys, to having served in practically every position in the Civil Aviation Department—from Assistant Air Traffic Control Officer to the esteemed position of Deputy Director of Civil Aviation.And few, also, can boast of having contributed so much to the field, from ensuring the safety of pilots to drafting plans to enhance the aviation industry locally and internationally.He’s been around during many historic moments in the department…like the day he was almost trapped in the Atkinson Airfield control tower when it burned to the ground, or when the first message came to Timehri about the bloody Rupununi Uprising.“I had the pleasure of serving in every position of the CAD from Assistant Air Traffic Officer (ATO) to Director, including Air Traffic Control Officer II (ATCO), Senior Air Traffic Control Officer (SATCO), Controller of Aerodrome Operation (CAO)-Airport Manager (AM & SATCO) Aviation Inspector Aerodrome and Licensing,Wholesale Authentic Jerseys, Deputy Director Civil Aviation (DDCA) and Director Civil Aviation (DCA) on numerous occasions,” Mr. Alexander said.“I was uncompromising in advocating the safety of civil aviation, and I brooked no interference from the politicians. Civil aviation is a serious matter and I took it very seriously.”Mr. Aubrey Alexander was born on July 31, 1937 in Murray Street, Georgetown, to Walter Herman Alexander and Gladys Alexander. He came from a family of high achievers, (his brother Walter Bertram (Jnr), was a Deputy Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education, and a former Head Master of St Rose’s High School.His sister, Joan Alexander-Kendall, is a former Matron of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC). His brother, Roy, resides in London.The young Aubrey Alexander attended the British Guiana Education Trust, where he also wrote his senior Cambridge exams in 1954.One of his first jobs was at the then Radio Demerara as Assistant Librarian circa 1955.? He then worked in Lands and Mines as a class two clerk, before embarking, in 1958, on a career in civil aviation at the then Atkinson Field (Now Cheddi Jagan International Airport). His first job in that department was as Assistant Air Traffic Control Officer.“I think I was the first African-Guyanese in the civil aviation…but there was no discrimination. Everybody was very nice and helpful to me, especially Claude Yhap, Hugh Chan, David Winter, Ivan Vieira, and my boss, Alec Phillips, who was the Senior Air Traffic Control officer.He had a narrow escape on August 5, 1959, shortly after being promoted to the position of Assistant Air Traffic Controller. The young Alexander was on duty in the Control Tower at Atkinson Airport, along with his supervisor, Mr. George Hopkinson, when a fire, reportedly started because of poorly stored fuel,Cheap Jerseys, broke out in the building.Fortunately, the Aerodrome Fire Service ranks provided them with a ladder that enabled them to exit the building before the flames engulfed the entire structure.Retired Director of Civil Aviation (ag) Mr. Alexander with former US President Jimmy Carter“I went home to my barracks and gave thanks to God for saving my life. I then proceeded to GAC radio room (3XY) where I used their radio to provide air traffic control to aircraft coming into Atkinson (mainly GAC DC-3s) from the interior. Two radio communication officers were slightly injured while escaping from the lower floor.”He had his first of many stints of overseas training in 1960, embarking on a six-month course in the US.Following his participation in the Basic Air Traffic Control Officer Course in 1960/61 at the Federal Aviation Agency (FAA) Air Traffic Training Centre at Will Rogers Field, Oklahoma, the young aviation staffer was made an honorary Lieutenant Colonel.On his return to Guyana in 1961, he was promoted to the position of Air traffic Control officer and continued moving up the ranks. It was in 1969, while holding the position of duty officer in the Flight Information Centre at Timehri that he received a troubling message from Lethem.“Captain Roland Da Silva alerted the Centre that something serious was happening at Lethem and that the GDF should be alerted.The ‘trouble’ was the beginnin