Convairiety, Volume 13, Number 6, March 16, 1960 Page: 2 of 8
This periodical is part of the collection entitled: Convair/General Dynamics Newsletters and was provided to The Portal to Texas History by the Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company, Fort Worth.
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Page 2
CONVAIRIETY
Wednesday, March 16, 1960
Do Your Old Series E Savings Bonds Carry New Interest Rate?
Beginning April 4, those in
Convair who are not purchas-
ing U. S. Savings Bonds hy
payroll deduction will be re-
minded of the many advan-
tages of participation. In pre-
paration, Convairiety this week
carries the first of two “ques-
tion and answer” installments
which explain some of the ma-
jor features of savings bonds.
★ ★ ★
Q: What interest rates has the
U. S. Treasury paid on Series
E savings bonds since they went
on sale in 1941 ? When was the
last change made?
A: The first Series E bond re-
turned 2.9 per cent when held to
its full 10-year maturity. In May
of 1952, the rate was increased
to 3 per cent by shortening the
life of the bond to 9 years and
8 months. Again in February,
1957, the rate was raised to 3 M
per cent by decreasing the life
of the bond to 8 years and 11
months. The last change was
made recently: effective June 1,
1959, Series E bonds return 3%
per cent, compounded semi-
annually, when held to their ma-
turity of 7 years and 9 months.
This means more than 2% per
cent the first year and a half,
then 4 per cent, guaranteed, to
maturity.
Q: Does the new E bond still
return $4 for every $3 invested ?
A: Yes; a $100 bond still sells
for $75, a $50 bond for $37.50,
etc.
Q: When my E bonds mature
(or reach the end of their ex-
tension period), what do I do to
keep them active ?
A: Nothing, just keep them.
They renew themselves automati-
cally, under a 10-year extension
privilege, earning additional in-
terest without any effort on the
part of the owner.
Hold Your Bonds
Q: Should I cash in my old
Series E savings bonds and pur-
chase new ones, now that the in-
terest rate has been increased ?
A: No! All outstanding bonds,
as well as new ones, have re-
ceived an automatic increase of
at least V2 per cent for their re-
maining period to maturity.
Therefore, it will be to the advan-
tage of practically all bond own-
ers to hold onto their old Series E,
as well as Series H, savings
bonds, thus automatically receiv-
ing the benefit of the new in-
terest rates. The older the sav-
ings bond, the greater its earn-
ing power. Since interest is based
on a graduated scale, old savings
bonds have a greater value now
than ever before. There is also
another consideration: by hold-
ing onto old savings bonds you
can defer payment of federal in-
come taxes on interest earned.
This is particularly important for
persons who will be over 65 when
they cash in their bonds; they re-
ceive an extra tax exemption at
this age.
Q; Do the new higher interest
rates apply over the whole life
of a Series E bond purchased
before June 1, 1959?
A: No, there is no retroactive
increase for periods prior to June
1959. The new higher rates for
old Series E bonds start with the
next full interest period begin-
ning June, 1959, or after.
Q: Has the length of time to
maturity or extended maturity of
old bonds been changed ?
A: No. The higher rate for
the remaining time means an in-
crease in the new, as against the
former, redemption values.
Q: How can the E bond holder
be sure to receive the new im-
proved return if his bond car-
ries the former terms ?
A: Accurate payment is as-
sured by the table of redemption
values furnished all paying ag-
ents, on which current redemp-
tion values are automatically
keyed to the issue date on each
bond sold. The Treasury also
double checks the payment made
on each bond.
Payment Assured
Q: How can the E bond holder
get complete information on the
new terms ?
A: All paying agents have re-
ceived copies of the Treasury
circulars giving all the terms and
conditions, including redemption
values, on both new and out-
standing Series E and H bonds.
The Treasury will also supply
copies of the circulars upon re-
quest.
Q: Will the legislation which
improved Series E and H sav-
ing bonds affect the payroll
savings plan.
A: Only by improvement. In
some organizations, 100 per cent
of the employees are on the plan
and are buying bonds regularly.
Participation can’t increase, but
yields to employees will. In all
probability, companies will do
more than ever before to encour-
age their employees to purchase
savings bonds, now that they are
better than ever.
INSTRUMENTED — Colorado
guard Joe Romig is “wired up"
by Galen Holcomb, human fac-
tors chief at Stanley Aviation,
before head-knocking session.
Below, Colorado linemen Larry
Gundall and Romig collide.
Shock of Football Scrimmage
Greater Than Speedy Bail-out
Football linesmen during scrim-
mage are subjected to more “G
forces” than would airmen bail-
ing out in a B-58 escape capsule
at high speeds, a novel engineer-
ing test indicated last month.
(Impact of rapid acceleration
or deceleration is measured in
Gs, meaning the times the human
body increases in weight due to
sudden changes in speed.)
The test was conducted on the
campus of the University of Col-
orado at Boulder. Two starting
guards suited up under the sur-
veillance of Galen Holcomb,
human factors chief of Stanley
Aviation Corp., subcontractors
for the capsule. Miniature de-
vices for measuring forces were
placed on shoulder pads and con-
nected by wires to a recorder.
The two linesmen squared away
before a battery of TV and news
cameras, blocking and tackling
with game-like gusto. On each
play, they withstood forces up
to 70 Gs, without injury.
Such high G forces could be
endured only because of the brief
duration, however, Holcomb ex-
plained. The high impacts lasted
only .01 of a second or less.
The B-58 escape capsule was
designed to a maximum lateral
force of 15 Gs during ejection.
Limits for forces in other direc-
tors were set at 35 Gs. As with
football players, the impact on
ejecting airmen would be of very
short duration. Catapult ejec-
tions from a rocket sled consist-
ently have recorded jolts lasting
less than .023 second.
Q: Why did the President ask
Congress for authority to in-
crease yields on savings bonds ?
A: The existing law had im-
posed a 3.26 per cent ceiling on
savings bonds interest rates.
Compared to current yields on
some other forms of savings and
investments, this was a handicap
not only to bond sales, but also
to their retention. The sale and
retention of savings bonds are
vitally important to the man-
agement of the national debt and
for the general health of our
economy. The Government also
felt that it had a moral obliga-
tion to the millions of savings
bond owners, who still retained
matured Series E bonds and were
holding onto their unmatured
bonds in spite of rising interest
rates in other forms of savings.
For this reason, the increase in
interest rates was applied to all
outstanding Series E and H sav-
ings bonds, both matured and un-
matured. This was the first time
in the history of the savings
bonds program that outstanding
bonds received an automatic in-
terest rate increase. The Treas-
ury Department believes that the
increased interest rates will have
a healthy effect upon the savings
bonds program, producing more
sales while encouraging more
bond owners to hold onto their
old bonds.
Bonds as Gifts
Q: I am planning to purchase
several savings bonds as gifts.
Would there be a federal gift
tax levied ?
A: Series E bonds are ideal
vehicles for gifts to take ad-
vantage of the yearly $3,000 Fed-
eral Gift Tax exemption, as pro-
vided by the Internal Revenue
Code. You can make individual
gifts of as many as four $1,000
Series E bonds (costing $3,000)
to as many persons as you wish
without having to pay a gift tax
or having such gifts count
against your lifetime gift tax
exemption. If you prefer to give
current income securities, the
Series H bond is available; it
can be used as a gift in the same
manner as the Series E bond.
Many wise investors take ad-
vantage of the above provision
in the Federal Tax Law, and
save themselves the yearly in-
come tax on earnings from that
amount of investment capital.
Eventually they save their es-
tates from paying Federal Estate
Taxes on the total amount of
these tax-free gifts.
Q: I have misplaced several
of my savings bonds and have
accidentally mutilated a half
dozen more. Can you tell me
how to get new bonds ?
A: If your bonds are lost, stol-
en, or destroyed, give prompt
notice to the Bureau of the Pub-
lic Debt, Division of Loans and
Currency, 536 South Clark Street,
Chicago 5, Illinois. You should
explain the circumstances under
which the bonds were lost, stolen,
or destroyed. If the latter, you
should send whatever fragments
you have. It would also be to
your advantage to provide the
Bureau with the serial numbers
and registration of the bonds.
The Division of Loans and Cur-
rency will send you a special
form which you should fill out
in accordance with instructions.
Duplicate bonds that are issued
to you will bear the dates of
original bonds that were lost or
mutilated.
All owners of savings bonds
should keep a personal up-to-date
record of their bonds handy, but
NOT with the bonds themselves.
Q: If I put $18.75 a month into
E Bonds, how much will I have
in five years, considering the new
rate ?
A: In five years, you will have
$1,214. In seven years and nine
months, you will have $1,991.
Q: May children buy savings
bonds ?
A: They may and do. Many
students employed part time,
notably newspaper carriers, buy
savings bonds. Millions of stud-
ents also purchase when they
complete their stamp albums and
exchange them for bonds.
Q: With the new increase in
savings bonds interest rates,
which became effective June 1,
1959, when will my bonds begin
earning at the new rate ?
A: Interest is applied to sav-
ings bonds only at the end of
each six-month period after the
date of purchase. Since the new
interest rates went into effect
in June, 1959, the first six-month
interest accrual period was last
December.
(To be continued in March 30
Convairiety.)
NUCLEAR TESTING—Newly-remodeled 3,000 kilowatt ground
test nuclear reactor, used in development tests at Convair Fort
Worth, is shown in underground pit where it is housed. Making
inspection is Jim Medley, Dept. 6-8.
Nuclear Power Upped
For Atom Plane Tests
Two newly remodeled nuclear, before becoming a
reactors with increased power of-1 unit.
500 kilowatt
fer improved utilization for radia-
tion and shielding tests in con-
nection with the USAF-AEC air-
craft nuclear propulsion program
at Convair Fort Worth.
Nuclear operations crews use
both a ground test reactor and an
aircraft shield test reactor, com-
monly referred to by their initials,
GTR and ASTR.
The ground test reactor’s power
has been increased from 500 to
3.000 kilowatts. The aircraft
shield test reactor also has been
given a power potential of 3,000
kilowatts, compared to its former
1.000 kilowatts.
The GTR had previously been
upped from ten to 100 kilowatts
Life Span Studied on Materials
Exposed to Atomic Radiation
A “nuclear irradiator,” built
and loaded at Convair FW, now
enables engineers to make more
accurate determinations of life
spans of materials and electronic
systems that must function in a
radiation environment.
A nuclear powered aircraft,
such as the bomber prototype
Convair FW is designing in con-
junction with Nuclear Propulsion
Division of General Electric
Company, is an example of such
an environment.
B. L. Cash Jr., senior nuclear
engineer, reported that seven
capsules of activated cobalt from
the Atomic Energy Commission’s
reactor at Oak Ridge, Tenn., are
the radiation source for the new
irradiator. It took three years at
Oak Ridge for the cobalt to be
activated to its proper output
rate.
The capsules were loaded into
the irradiator in a “hot cell” at
the Fort Worth plant’s nuclear
facility.
“The big job,” according to F.
L. Paschal, health physics admin-
istrator, “was removing the cap-
sules from their shipping con-
tainers and loading the irradiator.
But the operation went off with-
out a hitch.”
The irradiator, first for Con-
vair FW, is used to produce dosi-
meters, devices for accurate meas-
urement of radiation exposure.
Some dosimeters work on
chemical principles. For instance,
one type of dosimeter is a glass
tube containing a solution which,
when exposed to radiation, pro-
duces hydrochloric acid.
The dosimeters are placed in
the irradiator—a known field of
radiation. Because nuclear engi-
neers know the amount of radia-
tion produced each hour by the
irradiator, they can relate the
amount of hydrochloric acid gen-
erated in the dosimeter to total
exposure.
With these test results in hand,
engineers can use the dosimeters
to measure exposure of materials
and components in Convair FW’s
nuclear reactor, an unknown field
of radiation. Hence they get the
life expectancy figures for the
materials.
Since power is limited by the
amount of heat the reactor can
disperse, the cooling systems had
to be improved to take care of the
additional wattage. (Both reac-
tors are water-cooled.)
The reactors are now being
used to test the effects radiation
will have on the plane, its sys-
tems, and the crew, according to
E. J. Brunner, nuclear group en-
gineer and J. B. McGuffin, senior
nuclear engineer.
Radiation is scattered through
three areas: ground, air and the
airplane. To provide protection in
all three cases, shields must be
placed around the source of atom-
ic energy and around the place
where human beings will operate,
such as the cockpit.
Current tests with ASTR and
GTR are helping engineers in
their search for the most effective
shape, material and position for
the shield.
It will be necessary to match
these shielding requirements with
the space available and the weight
the aircraft can carry while still
capable of performing the mis-
sion.
Because the time the remodeled
units can operate and the power
they generate more nearly ap-
proximate conditions that will be
found on a nuclear bomber, engi-
neers can now work toward de-
sign of atomic-powered aircraft
with increased confidence.
Both the reactors were built
originally at Convair FW and re-
modeled by FW employees.
The aircraft shield test reactor
was the first nuclear reactor to
operate while airborne. It oper-
ated on dozens of test flights in-
side a specially modified B-36
which since has been retired.
Convair was one of the first
aircraft manufacturers to enter
the field—and hopes to be the
first in the air with a nuclear
powered aircraft which can re-
main in the air as long as crews
can fly it.
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General Dynamics Corporation. Convair Division. Convairiety, Volume 13, Number 6, March 16, 1960, periodical, March 16, 1960; Fort Worth, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth1118017/m1/2/?q=%22~1~1%22~1: accessed July 16, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Lockheed Martin Aeronautics Company, Fort Worth.