50 Jahre Vereinigung Cockpit e.V. | Chapter 1 1969 - 1979

Cleared for takeoff. Hans-Dieter Gades and the "uncomfortable admonishers"

(1969–1979)
Landshut 1977

Hijacking is a major problem in the 1960s and 1970s. One of the most spectacular cases, the kidnapping of the "Landshut", begins in October 1977 in Palma de Mallorca and ends in Mogadishu. The GSG 9, the special police unit responsible for counter-terrorism in Germany, liberates the crew and more than 80 passengers. The captain, Jürgen Schumann, is shot by the terrorists.
List of deficiencies

In 1979, the year of its tenth anniversary, VC publishes its list of deficiencies at German airports for the first time. It attracts a great deal of public attention - and leads to many improvements in the following years.
IFALPA Conference

In 1969, the young association presents itself for the first time at the IFALPA annual conference. Two years later, VC organizes the international symposium.
Hans-Dieter Gades

Hans-Dieter Gades already advocates the interests of his colleagues during the pilot training course. He becomes chairman of the joint representation of the flying personnel of Deutsche Lufthansa, a member of the collective bargaining commission and finally co-founder and president of the Cockpit Association. His sudden death on January 1, 1978 at the age of 39 represents a major loss for VC.

In November 1968, six pilots and flight engineers set up the "Cockpit Action Group" in Montreal, Canada. As many of their international colleagues, they finally want to organize themselves and help shape their working conditions. On March 11, 1969, the plans become a firm union: "Vereinigung Cockpit" (VC) is founded in Oberursel, near Frankfurt am Main, with 285 members. They see themselves as "uncomfortable admonishers" whose job it is to single out safety deficiencies in commercial aviation and to work on solutions.

Until 1972, VC works with the Public Service, Transport and Traffic Union (ÖTV), of which many pilots are a member of. At the end of 1973, VC signs an agreement with the German Employees' Union (DAG).

From the beginning, VC's goal is to make commercial aviation safer for pilots and passengers. In 1976 it introduces an incident reporting system for critical incidents.