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I have just finished reading The Old Bold Pilot — a Pilot's Journey by captain Shakti Lumba and captain Priyanka Arora. “Ladies and gentleman, boy and girls…sit back, relax and enjoy the flight!” You’ve heard the announcement from the captain, but have you ever wondered what it's really like working in the front in the cockpit? These days, passengers are now prohibited from entering the cockpit during flight. Some aircraft are also equipped with CCTV cameras, so the pilots can monitor cabin activity, and some aircraft have extra gates to prevent anyone from entering the cockpit. Industry veteran captain Shakti Lumba — a pilot with over 40 years experience, who retired as IndiGo's vice president and had before that headed Alliance Air as well as being a union leader, has recently penned his memoirs to present to the lay reader a peek into Indian aviation through his personal journey. In this book, captain Lumba once again takes you beyond that locked door to see what the aviation industry is really like, and was like in India, and what real airline pilots do while you’re invited to “sit back, relax, and enjoy the flight.” Captain Lumba shares intimate details with typical humor and candor, and some interesting details, too that have not been heard of before. As captain Lumba describes it, this book is ‘many years of writing and six decades in the making’. It comes highly recommended!  Captain Shakti Lumba's original pilot's license for Indian Airlines: Copyright Shakti Lumba Captain Lumba, thank you very much for the time you have taken to do an interview with me about your work and life. I have read your book with interest, and it is remarkable that you have written this book from memory and the notes on your iPhone, as all your original flying logbooks and personal notes were destroyed by termites (sorry to read about that!). So, thanks for your time. It is the first time I have come across a book about aviation in India, and that written by an Indian. There may be others that I have not come across; so, excited that I have got my hands on this!  Glad to get my hands on this book! Nav Singh [NS]: You are quite known for your passion, knowledge, and deep opinions about everything related to aviation and the safety, but what is the root cause of that? Where does this constant thirst for answers come from? Shakti Lumba [SL]: Nav, firstly, thank you very much for having me on your blog. It is an absolute pleasure, and glad you enjoyed my book! My passion for aviation started when I was two years old after my father sadly passed away and my mother – making sure that I did not become sad – told me that he had gone to live in the sky with the stars! From there on then, I vowed to fly and bring him back. For me, the thirst for aviation related knowledge started with reading fiction about aviation. Works such as Biggles, Richard Bach, and Ernest K Gann kept me involved until I actually started flying and realised that knowledge was as important part, just as important as the flying skillset. On top of that, the thirst for knowledge led me to do a lot of reading about the airline and general aviation industry, including flying techniques. RAF AP 129 was my go-to book in regards to building up my aviation knowledge along with books on airline management. Books such as Safe Airline by John Michael Ramsden and Staying Current: A Proficiency Guide for Serious Pilots by Dan Manningham kept me on track. Later during my career, when I got involved with the pilot’s union and represented a pilot in a court of inquiry, which looked into the crash of a Boeing 737 aircraft in Ahmedabad in 1988, it really hit me regarding the the ICAO annexures! As time went, I learnt to fly with the mind and then use my hands and feet to remain safe and professional: the reverse usually leads to disaster!  Boeing 737-200, registered VT-EAH belonging to Indian Airlines, seen here taxiing on 13 November 1978. Sadly, ten years later this aircraft crashed on approach to Ahmedabad due to pilot error in bad weather killing 133 passengers and crew. Captain Lumba was involved in the follow-up investigation. Photo Copyright Indian Airlines/Air India NS: You refer to IndiGo as a fledgling carrier…why fledging? SL: During the five years I was with IndiGo Airlines, from a startup in 2005 until I left in February 2010, it was a fledging airline with ambitions to be India’ largest with just over 40 aircraft. Although, in total it had over 300 aircraft on order! Today, I am proud to say that it is India’s most profitable airline, and the largest operator of Airbus A320 family of aircraft.  Captain Lumba was the global vice president at InterGlobe Aviation Limited (known as IndiGo Airlines). The company is India's most successful airline, operating 354 aircraft (45 ATR 72-600 and 309 A320/A321 family of aircraft), with 945 Airbus A320/A321 family of aircraft on order!). Seen here is a A320neo (registered F-WWDG, delivered to registration to VT-ITI). NS: You mention in your book about a Boeing 737 flight in 1983 with two captains disagreed and that resulted in an accident (landing gear not retracted) and you say that this could not happen these days, but it does seem to be quite common. SL: They agreed but simply the pilot in command (PIC) forgot to lower the undercarriage, while the pilot not flying realized and kept quiet until the last minute. At about two hundred feet (minimums), he pointed out there was no gear, and the pilot flying flipped the gear lever to extend the gear. The gear came down but as it had not locked down properly, it folded with the airplane settling on its engines. Such an accident is not expected to happen these days because the landing gear unsafe warning gets an input from App/Land flaps and radio altimeter. However, to the aviation world’s shock, it did sadly happen a few years ago– an incident with PIA on flight 8303 in 2020 did exactly that and killed ninety-seven passengers, and studies have shown that it may happen again. That can only happen if there is a total breakdown in CRM, and if the checklist is not diligently followed by the crew or if there is some kind of mechanical partial gear failure. Also, note that a landing without a gear can be done safely provided the aircraft has low fuel and the plane is glided down gently – so it is not so dangerous, but the aircraft will [in most cases] be written off! There was a case of an Indian Airlines Airbus A300 that ran out of fuel after diverting from Hyderabad with flaps and slats stuck after a missed approach. The captain made a what we call a “gear up dead stick landing” in a paddy field. In that incident there were thankfully no injuries. So that shows the fantastic airmanship of flying a A300 wide body like a glider by stick and rudder only. It has also been achieved with a Boeing 767 LOT Polish Airlines flight 16 in November 2011 in Warsaw. NS: Now, regarding the Japan Airlines Flight 516 [JAL516] crash in January 2024 – many aviation experts have commented that such an incident could have resulted in fatalities if it had been in another country, such as India for example. This may be due to passengers taking time to get out or taking their belongings etc. – what are your thoughts on that? What would have been the case if it happened in India? SL: Unmitigated disaster: the pre-departure safety briefing provided on Air India for example is totally inadequate for flight safety in my opinion. Meanwhile, the Japan Airlines safety video actually shows passengers how to evacuate and enforces the point not to take hand baggage on case of an emergency.  Captain Shakti Lumba in the left seat!: Copyright Shakti Lumba NS: In your opinion, is Indian aviation safe, if not safer in 2024? SL: The Indian aviation industry is statically safe simply because of how that safety is measured. In actual fact, the largest number of aircraft type operated in India is the Airbus A320 family. This aircraft is very pilot friendly, forgiving and can literally fly itself if it has to! In my opinion, there is a clear and present risk of pilots losing their ability of basic flying skills because the operators mandate is to use the autopilot after take-off till moments before landing. In some airline companies, they have a simple rule about engaging the autopilot on the A320: not before 100 feet and only after 300 feet (~5 seconds) after rotation from the runway. This begs the question, “how do you keep up your skillsets of manual and visual flying if the machine is doing everything?” The answer? You don’t. This to my mind is a huge safety risk if the automatic functions and systems fail. Another safety risk relates to the Flight and Duty Time Limitation [FDTL] prescriptive limits as per ICAO which operators schedule pilot to. This includes the maximum flight duty, unlimited daily duty and minimum legal rest time. The recent amendments to FDTL have given some respite but the carriers are up in arms! Therefore, in my opinion, Indian aviation is destined for growth but there is the risk of reduced regulatory oversight and the system working at it limits. Somethings got to give. The issue is increase in wakefulness and lack of sleep. Fatigue has also been identified in several other major aircraft accidents as either a cause or a contributing factor (National Transportation Safety Board [NTSB], 2000, 2001, 2010; Libyan Civil Aviation Authority, 2013). In addition, aviation policies reflect the importance of fatigue in aviation safety. Since 1972, more than two hundred safety recommendations issued by the NTSB focused on fatigue (Marcus and Rosekind, 2017). Moreover, pilot fatigue has been on the NTSB’s most wanted list of safety-related priorities since 1990 (Caldwell, 2012). These policies do not seem to have resulted in a significant improvement; however, as 23% of major aviation accidents between 2001 and 2012 were attributed to fatigue, compared with 21% in a 1980 study (Lyman and Orlay, 1981; Marcus and Rosekind, 2017). A very illustrating example of fatigue and its effect on the safe piloting of an aircraft is provided by the 2010 crash of Air India Express Flight 812, which crashed upon landing in Mangalore, costing the life of 158 of the 166 people on-board. Residual sleepiness and impaired judgement were believed to have contributed to this accident, as the cockpit voice recorder indicated that the captain had been asleep for the first hour and 40 minutes of the 2 hours and 5 minutes flight (Court of Inquiry India, 2010). According to the NTSB, this was the first instance of snoring recorded on a cockpit voice recorder! Therefore, in my opinion, fatigue is a clear and present danger to safety of aircraft operations. NS: There has been quite a lot of discussion about five B777-200LR aircraft, leased by Air India from Delta Air Lines, with oxygen issues as per this link, what are your thoughts on this on-going saga and the strained relations between Air India’s senior pilots & management? SL: For flights over mountainous terrain with limited passenger oxygen in case of depressurization/ 50% power loss, escape routes must be provided in the flight plan so that the pilot-in-command (PIC) can choose a route that is safe so that passengers can have enough oxygen supply without harm. The issue is that Air India does not provide the crew with escape routes in the flight plan and expects the PIC to decide on an escape plan on the fly. Another issue is that Air India’s leadership prohibits pilots from joining a trade union or associations. It is only airline in the country where every airline pilot is dissatisfied because of bad management, corporate bullying and other such actions which do not make it a safe airline to fly with and are not cohesive to safe operations. NS: Competition from Middle Eastern and Asian carriers is stiff, but with your vast experience, what do you think needs to be done to make Air India one of the best airlines in the world again? Are they (the management) doing what they should be doing? SL: I would say that Tata’s style of management is purely production related in order to generate revenue and focus on profits first and is not focused on the customers or their staff – both their internal and external customers. NS: Now, coming to the important topic of fatigue and sleep: we have been reading a lot about pilots sadly dying because of the extensive hours they have worked because of a lack of sleep. Why is this happening a lot now than before in your opinion and what could be done to fix such things that are “ailing Indian aviation” according to analysts? SL: As I mentioned in detail above, airlines treat pilots like bots these days! Poor crew scheduling and poor HR policies and procedures are the biggest headaches for pilots. Just like in any other industry, pilots don’t leave a company, they leave bad bosses! The issue of work/life balance does not exist, and it is not even considered as a human requirement. The management consider pilot reporting fatigue as malingering. NS: Would it be fair to say that your career was more about your passion and dream of flying rather than the money? What are your thoughts about the youth of today who want to enter aviation because of the big bucks rather than the passion of flying (take some Middle Eastern and Chinese carriers for example)? I am saying this because you see plenty of young airline pilots flaunting their newly found wealth on Instagram or Twitter (wearing a Breitling watch, driving luxury cars or showing off about drinking expensive whiskey etc…). SL: Yes, that would be a fair comment to make. For me it was all about passion, as we weren’t paid well, until at least 1996 (!) My salary only got boosted after my negotiation with the pilot’s union. However, it was based on work more, earn more. I was quite busy with office-based work and with that I could only get on average approximately 60 hours at most per month. However, I was content and happy, and I prioritized my happiness, heath and needs over wants. The guys you talk about we called (Equated Monthly Installment) EMI pilots, who loved (or still love!) buying snazzy cars and fancy goods on EMI equated monthly instalments: as their wants increased, so did their debt!  Alliance Air was a subsidiary of Indian Airlines [and later Air India]. Seen here one of the first aircraft in the fleet, a Boeing 737-238 Adv registered VT-EGI. Pictured in 2007. Photo Copyright Peter Marianic NS: You have at first hand seen many colorful airlines come and go (Kingfisher, Jet Airways, Alliance Air [merged with AI], ModiLuft, Vayudoot etc. because of financial woes), what, in your opinion, is the missing secret sauce for India to have a successful world-class airline that can be stable and provide an exceptional customer and safety experience? (i.e., how to make the likes of SIA, EK, QR jealous etc…) SL: Initially, I helped to merge Vayudoot into Indian Airlines: Alliance was a subsidiary of Indian Airlines that I started – it was my baby, like IndiGo. Now, Modiluft was an air taxi service using a Boeing 737-200 and a Boeing 737-200, which eventually became Spice Jet (they are always short of cash, and that is in their DNA!). Sahara, Kingfisher Airlines and Jet Airways went down into bankruptcy due to promoters skimming their airlines after they went public. The secret sauce to having a successful airline is to be well capitalized from start and make low cost as your mantra and your philosophy, and this should not be your strategy when times are tough. IndiGo keeps costs in control and seldom sells below costs and therefore it is quite profitable. Now, with Tata, Air India will bring no profits for at least 10-12 years (yes, you read that right…years!) and for that they do need to get their act together.  Shakti Lumba was one of the early pioneers of Vayudoot Airlines. Seen here is a Dornier 228: Photo Copyright Vayudoot Airlines  Modiluft Airlines, Boeing 737-4Y0, registered G-UKLB pictured in 1996 at Southend Airport [ex VT-MGE, MSN: 23865]. Photo Copyright David Oates  Modiluft Airlines, Boeing 737-230 Adv registred D-ABFF [ex VT-MGE, MSN: 22117]. Pictured in 1996 in Hamburg. Photo Copyright AirlineRoline NS: The merger of Air India and Indian Airlines, coupled with the unviable decision to purchase 111 new aircraft, contributed to the downfall of Air India, said the Minister of Civil Aviation, Jyotiraditya Scindia a few years back. Despite all else, it was clear that Indian Airlines was doing well as a profitable airline, but since the late 1980s, Air India started making losses…so any ideas why were they merged together? And any lessons we can learn today? SL: This merger was a merger of chalk and cheese and would never have worked. Only now it was somewhat stabilizing and then Tata took over. Now they are merging four airlines into two. Regarding the aircraft orders, I was one of the few who supported it. The airline needed new aircraft, or it would have drowned. The kicker in the pack was a very badly negotiated deal by novices. The government withdrew sovereign guarantees, so Air India ended up taking loans at commercial rates up to 16% interest (!). Can you imagine? It is crazy! Knuckleheads, in my opinion.  '50 Years of Flying' for Indian Airlines titles. Indian Airlines and subsequently Air India were the only airlines who had A320s with dobule wheel bogies due to India's low pavement classifiction runways in the 1990s / 2000s. Indian Airlines, Airbus A320-231 registred VT-ESA, MSN: 499]. Pictured in July 2004 in Bangkok. Photo Copyright Anthony Jackson  Laksh Farm, India: Photo Copyright Shakti Lumba NS: Please tell us about Laksh farms and foundation, and anything you want the readers to know. SL: Laksh Farms is named after my dearly departed mother. Her name was Lakshmi and my father used to call her ‘Laksh’ which became her pet name. The book describes how I found it and developing it into a successful farm. was a great labor of love – I often say that it is my third startup! My wife and I have created a beautiful natural heavenly place, which we are now proud to call home. It is nestled in a valley in the Aravalli range and has great energy and good vastu (home). It was developed from a total waste land that I bought in 1997 and I turned it into paradise, planted over 2,000 trees, ornamentals, mangoes, chikoo fruit (Sapodilla), citrus and ambles. One visitor described Laksh as “one doesn’t need to die to see heaven. Just visit Laksh farms”. The farm, besides being an agricultural farm with a dairy, chicken, geese, rabbits, is also a farm stay and open for bookings for a farm day. We practice natural farming, and at Laksh we also have the fabulous The Laksh Foundation in Haryana, India. This is a women self-help group and includes the Laksh Foundation Education Society. The education society provides free post school tutorials to around 1,200 kids in five neighboring villages. As a small NGO, organic farm and women’s sewing co-operative, it also began to offer free education to the children of local farm workers, offering them a way to improve their futures – and this is where we partnered with Warwick University, one of the UK's leading universities, with an acknowledged reputation for excellence in research, teaching, and innovation. Warwick worked with the Foundation since the beginning and have helped to shape our teaching programmes over time, until at least the start of the Pandemic. Warwick would send 12 volunteers during the summer holidays for three months for a teach the teacher program. In this program we were able to develop 40 of the brightest kids into educators who teach the kids and also learn to graduate in the Open University program. The foundation is a charitable foundation and is totally dependent on family and friend support. We have a computer lab for students and have tied up a weekly visit by a group of doctors who spend half a day at our village, Mangar, for medical consultation and provision of medicines for poor villagers. Laksh is our small way of giving back to society and nature from whom we took so much till retirement: Laksh is our home and was one of the best decisions I took to avoid the rat race and the hustle and bustle of city life. We are only an hour away from Delhi, Noida, Gurgaon and Faridabad yet set in tranquil settings – so near and yet so far! Bouquets and brickbats as we say.  Laksh Farm: Photo Copyright Shakti lumba NS: Has India seen more near misses and collisions than other major aviation hubs/global average? SL: Not at all. As air traffic increases in the limited airspace, incidents of reduced separation are not only common but are not alarming and fall within the very low risk statistical average. There are risk mitigation options, both human and non-human. The whole issue comes under Communication Navigation Surveillance and the Air Traffic Management (CNS/ATM). The most common human factor is fatigue in the cockpit or in the control tower with overworked and exhausted controllers and pilots. We need to bring in more stringent fatigue management and fatigue risk management laws with penalties for aircraft operators & air traffic control (ATC) managers. This is the responsibility of the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA), which they unfortunately do not take as seriously as other safety regulators because of the commercial pressure from aircraft operators and the Airport Authority of India [AAI] who manage the CNS/ATM. A shortage of pilots and controllers adds to longer duty time, reduced rest and increased fatigue. NS: Who is to blame for such instances? Airlines, airports, or ground staff authorities? SL: In aviation, we don't play the blame game only look for the probable cause and learn from any incidents. NS: How can that gap be filled and who must fill it? SL: The only logical answer is to increase the airspace and improve surveillance by satellites. Air India and the DGCA are under no pressure to bring is proper laws to properly manage the fatigue issues for pilots and controllers. NS: Mr. Lumba, thank you very much for spending time to share your thoughts. It has been an absolute pleasure having you on my blog!
SL: You are welcome. The pleasure is mine. Thanks a lot, Nav!
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 Oberteuringen, March 14, 2024 - IHSE, the leading manufacturer of high-end KVM solutions for the extension and switching of computer signals, announces that it has equipped a high-altitude Chinese airport with a fully redundant KVM solution for fail-safe air traffic control. Over the past few years, IHSE KVM solutions have become an important and crucial element in air traffic control systems in major airports around the world. IHSE systems enable controllers in the visual control room to interact with all tower system equipment located in ground-level equipment room. Air traffic controllers can interact with all essential systems from their personal workstations, switch between them and react instantly to all eventualities. For these security-critical applications, IHSE KVM systems offer increased protection against cyber attacks and a comprehensive redundancy concept for fail-safe 24/7 operation. IHSE KVM systems are deployed by several government aviation authorities and in many major global airports, including Frankfurt, Paris and King Abd al-Aziz Airport in Saudi Arabia. Air traffic management at an altitude of 3,500mAn IHSE system was recently installed in China at one of the highest airports in the world at an altitude of over 3,500 meters - the airport is unnamed. The extraordinary location presented the system planners with special challenges and posed complex requirements on equipment and systems that are not generally encountered in lower-level airports. The combination of low air pressure, difficult terrain and geomorphological features, high winds, low cloud and extreme diurnal temperature differences calls for a particularly robust and resilient system. These are in addition to the normal requirements for the highest levels of security and reliability that are essential in air traffic management systems.
The fully redundant KVM system deployed here comprises two Draco tera flex KVM matrix switches with automatic switchover to a hot standby unit in the unlikely event of a failure of the primary switch. For further protection, the installation includes redundant power supplies and redundant fiber optic connections. The IHSE solution creates optimum working conditions for air traffic controllers, who can switch all information sources to the screens directly from their multi-monitor workstations and immediately access all tower systems to ensure safe flight operations. From March 19-21, 2024, IHSE will present its flexible and highly secure KVM solutions for towers, apron control, simulation rooms, baggage handling and passenger information systems at Airspace World 2024 in Geneva. It is an absolute honor to do a question-and-answer session with Hollywood actor Peter Barton. Peter was a famous television and movie star in the 1980s and 1990s. One-time teen idol and even named one of the world's 10 sexiest guys in soaps by Playgirl magazine, Barton acted in many movies and TV shows, most notably as Dr. Scott Grainger in the daytime soap “The Young and the Restless” from 1987-93, as Bill Miller in the short-lived NBC TV series Shirley in 1979 with Shirley Jones, Rosanna Arquette, and Tracey Gold, the lead in another NBC series, The Powers of Matthew Star, for which he won the role over many actors, among them Tom Cruise, and as the good cop gone bad Eddie Connors in the late 1990s US daytime soap Sunset Beach, with Lesley Anne-Down, Kelly Hu, Eddie Cibrian among others. Barton also became involved in the burgeoning teen horror/thriller film genre, beginning with Hell Night (1981) and followed by Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter (1984). We decided to do the interview via voice notes, text messages, and a video call while I was shopping in Waitrose in Ascot, UK [!]. It would have been easier if we did this in person but with Peter being in the US and me being in the UK, we kind of made it happen!  Peter Barton: Photo Copyright Peter Barton Nav Singh [NS]: Hi Peter, thanks so much for letting me interview you. If it’s okay, I’d like to start by chatting about your childhood…what was it like growing up in the 1970s? Peter Barton [PB]: Nav, firstly, thanks for having me here and great to contribute to your awesome blog! I loved the 70s! I loved high school. I loved sports. I went to Valley Stream North High School, which has over the years produced quite a few sporting alumni, including NFL players. I got my first experience with sports when I was playing little league in fourth grade, and I became an all-star from then onwards. When I went to high school I wrestled, pole vaulted and tracked, and I played soccer and football. That's where I got my self-esteem from. Loved it! NS: You are a massive fan of keeping good habits and a very healthy lifestyle. Where does this motivation and will power to keep going come from? PB: I was a kind of chubby lad and started to get flab on me in the fourth and fifth grade – this made me a bit subconscious about that. I didn't like that at all, and even my dad would make fun of me and call me a bit of a “butter ball”! Therefore, as soon as I hit seventh and eighth grade, I started doing weights, and I was weight training using the Charles Atlas inspired method on how to build muscle and was aware that 80% of it is what you eat; so, I started eating well too, and then on I got pretty good at athletics. Since then, staying in shape has been a big contributing factor to me, and it just continued and became a lifestyle. I have always loved running, marathons [5Ks], working out at the gym, weights and so on. NS: Interesting. But why wrestling? PB: Good question! I had a thing for it. I just thought it was just such a gladiator thing to do and a tough sport, and maybe that's why I like gladiator so much! I kind of wrestled all the way through high school and I was good at it. Then I fell in love and wanted to be with my girlfriend at that time, so I kind of moved away from wrestling because it was just so tough mentally and physically...but I don't regret it! The good choice was being around her family...big Italian family. There were like 7 or 8 kids in the family and grandmother lived upstairs and I got that whole family vibe, which I think was a good basis for my life – even though I had my own family and that was a whole different experience.  Peter was big into sports from an early age while at school, and was specially into wrestling. Seen here circled in blue during the wrestling season in 72-73: Photo Copyright Peter Barton NS: Although accepted into St. John's University School of Medicine, you changed your mind about attending, and it just before signing up for classes, you decided to pursue a career in modelling and acting. What was the reason behind this? PB: The reason I did not start St John's was because I basically did not have the money. I went to the Dean, and he suggested I defer to a year later and said I would be accepted the following year. My dad had a very successful business in the concrete industry with 25 trucks and basically, I did a little bit of high school but had some personal issues at home. Therefore, I was paying for my own college fees and not using my dad's money, and St John's was so much more expensive than a community college. That’s why I decided that I needed to make more money and I started getting into modelling and acting during the summer without any training whatsoever [!]. Otherwise, I would have just carried on and gone to St John's because the Dean said I can reapply and be accepted the following year. But after doing that for six months, I just thought I can just stay here and carry on with the modelling and acting gig. NS: It is interesting that you actually ended up playing a doctor on the daytime drama The Young and the Restless. Did you have any kind of special training for this role or was a thought at the back of your mind that "I could have done this for real!"? PB: Yes, that is exactly right with the Young & Restless series, when I auditioned for that part, it just seemed to be fate I guess. I went to St John's to go and study pharmacy for five years and then my plan was to apply to a medical school and see if I can become a doctor. So, yes, I always thought that was kind of strange that I got casted as Dr Scott Grainger on the Young & Restless. In the long run, I am so much happier that I got to do it and I did not have to do it in real life because it seemed like it is a really tough gig, as well as acting, which is also a tough gig. However, the more you get into acting the more fun it becomes a pretty great lifestyle.  Peter didn't end up being a doctor in real life but ended up playing Dr Scott Grainger on the Young & Restless: Photo Copyright Peter Barton  Peter on the set of Burke's Law: Photo Copyright CBS Action NS: Who had a great influence on your career and life? PB: My mum and dad were the greatest influence on me. My mum, because she was so kind and loving and because my dad had an attitude of "Go and get things for yourself!". Also, I have not talked much about this until now, but I think my acting career would not have happened if I had not met a photographer and artist called Michael O'Brien in December 1978, before I got my first acting part in March 1979. He was a photographer who taught me how to be real and authentic in front of the camera because I was so uncomfortable in front of any camera, even a still one! He used to work me and coach me and say "Just look at me man, don't do anything. Just be authentic". And basically, over the two or three months, I wasn't taking an acting class, but I did a lot of test shoots with Michael, and he became a friend, and he got me way more real and just be truthful in front of the camera. I remember doing one test shoot with Michael in the middle of December 1978. I mean with his skillset; this guy could easily have become a film director. He had that quality in him. He could put you in front of a still camera and get you to be authentic and be yourself. Also, I recall Michael Schoeffling was working with Michael O'Brien. He just had this talent and skillset to make you feel comfortable and be in front of the camera. I wonder if he also did that for Michael Schoeffling. I never spoke to him but would love to know.  Michael O'Brien, captured thinking in 1979, had a great influence on Peter in his early days of acting and modelling: Photo Copyright Peter Barton NS: Did you have any acting heroes when you were younger? PB: Errol Flynn. When I saw Robin Hood, I thought he was the greatest thing in the world and he was just so cool in that movie. There were so many scenes in that movie that were great. Errol with his crazy, flamboyant swashbuckler stuff, and so many scenes in that movie that just are amazing examples of world class acting. Then I moved onto Jimmy Stewart with his 1946 blockbuster, “It’s a Wonderful Life”, because I just thought it was like unbelievably flooring. You know, just the common man, and Jimmy Stewart, an amazing actor, was so powerful in that movie by doing the right thing – that truly resonated with me about “doing the right thing”. Most recently, I have been watching The Gladiator with Russell Crowe so many times because it is another movie about doing the right thing. I believe that people thrive and excel if they just do the right thing. Life was so kind to me when I just did the right thing in front of me. NS: Do you come from a family who are very dramatic/artistic? PB: My mum was always a lover of Shirley Temple, and she could have become the equivalent of Doris Day or some kind of an actress of the same caliber. Acting was never in the family and nobody even thought of becoming an actor. Nobody in the family even thought about becoming a model. My sister was gorgeous and she kind of never persuaded it either. It just didn't seem in the realm – like growing up in Long Island, you wouldn't even try it in those days. Fortunately, because I needed money for the medical school at St John's, I persuaded it. I actually got turned down by four out of the five agencies. One said yes, and within six months, I was on a TV series. So, never take no for an answer, right?  Peter Barton with Louis Gossett Jr. during his Powers of Matthew Star days: Photo Copyright Peter Barton  Peter Barton starred with Louis Gossett Jr. as an alien prince in the Powers of Matthew Star, an American sci-fi television series that aired from September 17, 1982 through April 8, 1983 on NBC NS: That’s true. Talking of never say never, any career regrets, perhaps? PB: Yes, so I have a silly regret! Basically, I think I could have squeezed a lot more in my life, but I think I did pretty good. I did have a chance to be on the Johnny Carson show. When I was filming the Powers of Matthew Star series they wanted me to go and do an interview on the Johnny Carson show and I was too afraid. I mean I did take part in a Dinah Shore talk show, and I did take part in other talk shows back then, but I let go of the chance to take part in a classic talk show interview with Johnny Carson in 1982. I probably would have passed out, but I should have done it anyway! NS: But things happen for a reason, as they say. So maybe it was just not meant to be. But what about any favourite TV shows and movies? PB: I watch a lot of Netflix. I am watching House of Cards right now and this show kind of upsets me a bit because it resonates with how our political system works in the US and how our government really is. Also, I admire Mark Walburg’s work and watch his stuff because he picks these great characters and parts to play – a bit like a Jimmy Stewart character. Now with the House of Cards, to me that just turns my stomach, you know? Kevin Spacey and Robin Wright in their characters are just so gross, and I don't know why they'd even want to portray characters like that because it just makes you look so creepy. But on the other hand you have someone like Mark Walburg who I love watching and anything he does! It is self-evident of how he takes care of himself. But I just love his roles from "The Departed", "The Shooter", and many others. I mean he plays these roles where you have the common man or the underdog is stuck in a really bad position, and where the government is out to get you or whatever. He never falters about doing the right thing, and just like the Powers of Matthew Star character which I played, where the character helps the common person, it helps to resonate with me. Jimmy Stewart also has this ability to act and showcase how to humanize and help the common person. With the parts Walburg and Stewart pick, they always exemplify how they live it in their life, too, which is crazy. It is amazing how that habit and ethical way of “doing the right thing” carries into their personal life.  Peter on the set of Powers of Matthew Star with Hollywood legend Leonard Nimoy: Photo Copyright AP NS: You have had some significant roles in your career, such as playing the lead role in The Powers of Matthew Star, with Louis Gossett Jr. [a role you won over many actors, among them Tom Cruise!]; Burke's Law with Gene Barry; and the soap opera Sunset Beach, where you played good cop gone bad, Eddie Connors. How do you prepare for your roles? PB: Mostly when I was young, for me it is just my personality that when I read stuff it resonates with me. So that goes all the way back to the first role that I did with Shirly Jones, it was kind of a thing. That storyline and narrative of conflicting with dad, and the storyline of Powers of Matthew Star was again where parents were killed and the main character I played conflicted with parents and tried and come of age. I loved that character, which was essentially an alien who had telepathic ability to move objects with his mind. Working with Louis Gossett Jr. was great, and someone bumped into him a few years back and he was like “Oh, I would love to catch up with Peter again!”. Even in the Young & Restless, the scriptwriters and producers saw it in me and write in the script "Dad" in the first year. So, I just read stuff and when it resonates with me, I can be authentic with it. Same with horror pictures, too. With Hell Night, at that point I was ready to give up acting because I was only in it for like a year or two years at most, and I was just so stressed out and the whole experience of shooting a horror movie made me a nervous wreck. I didn't even want to do it — they had to get me drunk to convince me! My co-actress for that movie, Linda Blair, she was so kind and nice, and she talked me into doing the movie. When I finished working with her in January, I was then auditioning for the Powers of Matthew Star, and then just continued from them onwards. There were so many times that I did not want to be an actor. The opportunity to act in the movie Friday the 13th came up just between another project, and my agent at that time put me up for auditioning for the part, and I ended up getting the part. I also knew Amy Steal in Part 2 and she encouraged me to continue acting the part in that, too. In my mind, I thought, 'Oh, I'll be in the last one. That's kind of cool. These things are famous.' Little did I know.  Peter Barton and Linda Blair in Hell Night: Photo Copyright Reuters  Peter Barton and Linda Blair on the set of Hell Night. Photo Copyright Reuters. NS: In one of our conversations, you have described playing Eddie Connors on Sunset Beach. What was the fun part and why? PB: Playing Eddie Connors was fun because out of all the roles I did, it was the first role where I played a character who was a bit of a jackass! This character was constantly upsetting people and was doing all the wrong things all the time by being selfish. I just thought it was fun because it was a different role to play – just an obnoxious character that say what you weren't supported to be saying. I’d never played a villain before so playing Eddie Connors, and Aaron Spelling just thought that would be fun to see me play a villain. NS: What was it like to working with Aaron Spelling? How did it happen? PB: So, after I left Young & Restless I did not do an audition for quite some time – six years at least! So, when I went to do the audition for Burke's Law and read the script I realised I can play the part because it was another father-son situation. It just instantly resonated with me. I am not sure where the confidence came from, but I was like "Ah, Peter Burke...Peter Barton…you gotta hire me!", and the script looked good partly because of the way the character was perceived. The thing that people don't know is that when I auditioned for it, it was in this big room with about 4 or 5 guys there and I just got nervous and blew the audition. Dennis Dugan, who has made Adam Sandler movies, was the director. I totally blew it, and Aaron [Spelling] came out of the room and he was like "Team, we're going to do it again". He came over to me and asked, "What happened, Peter?". My response was that I was just so intimated with the way it was set up in there and I felt like I could not do anything because the feeling was like as if was in front of 50 people instead of the 4 or 5 folks!". Aaron asked me "What can I do for you? I really want you to get the part, Peter!". My thinking was that if Dennis reads with me then maybe I can do a lot better than I did before. So, with that, Denis got up and performed with me and I got the part for Burke's Law there and then! If it had not been for Aaron fighting for me, I would never have got the part because I just totally blew it. A few weeks into the series, Aaron came back to me and said that the team were very happy with my work. There is an example that if it had not been for Aaron sticking up for me, I would not have got the part because originally, I blew the audition. So, yes, a lot of twists and turns in everybody's career and mine if no different.  Peter [left] with [L-R] Lesley Anne-Down, Aaron Spelling, and Randy Spelling on the set of Sunset Beach in 1998.  Peter Barton on the set of Sunset Beach in the late 1990s: Photo Copyright Peter Barton  Peter Barton and Tracey E. Bregman on the set of the Young & Restless in the 1980s ©CBScourtesy Everett Collection NS: Your last acting role was in the 2005 film Repetition. Did you ever want to come back to acting, or if offered a role, would you still come back? PB: Yes, my last part was in Repetition and after that I got busy with the joys of parenthood. It has been nothing but pure joy watching my daughter grow up into a young intelligent bright lady. Sure, I mean if there are certain roles out there that I like to do then why not? I would love to audition and go back to acting. NS: On July 16, 2012, a man in Illinois named Ray Fulk died at age 71. Fulk, who had no family of his own, was a fan of yours and your former Hell Night castmate, Lucan star Kevin Brophy. Despite never having met either of you, Fulk bequeathed half of his $1.3m estate to each of you. What was your reaction to this? PB: It sure did come as a surprise! It was one of those things that was too good to be true. When my late dad got the letter and told me that there was this guy named Ray Falk who had left money in his will for Kevin and myself, we could not believe it and thought it was a scam! I called up Kevin, who was working at a normal job as by now he was a father of five kids and had left acting altogether. I knew Kevin for many years, and we worked together in the 1981 movie “Hell Night” with Linda Blair. He never married, had no children or close family and few friends. I would describe him with all due respect as a hoarder. Somehow, he loved our TV shows and considered Kevin Brophy and me to be his friends. He liked the shows in which we acted but never met either Kevin or me. Kevin was in the 1977 TV show “Lucan” in which he played the title character who had been raised by wolves. Ray kept a Lucan poster on the wall of his house many years after the show went off the air. After receiving the letter concerning the bequest, I flew to central Illinois to check it out, and to our shock we learned that this is real. I saw the ramshackle farmhouse where Ray Fulk lived as a hoarder and the empty corn bin where he was found dead. It was quite sad and just weird. It was just bizarre to see that in his will, Ray referred to Kevin and I as “my friends”. We knew he was a fan because he would write letters to us both, but in our heydays, we had quite a few fan letters, so it is bizarre to see this for the first time. I never imagined ever that someone would be so fixated as to share their wealth with complete strangers. The fact that he had no family and considered us as his friends….it just is sad but also shows the loneliness of the man. I also think Ray felt an especially close, perhaps even telepathic, connection with me, probably because of the connection of “The Powers of Matthew Star”. That’s why I think my life is just so bizarre because these connections and things have happened.  Gene Barry with Peter Barton on the set of Burke's Law: Photo Copyright Reuters. NS: Finally, you mention soccer. Any team you support? Why soccer?
PB: Now, I was loving football and I didn't like the varsity coach and all my friends were on the soccer team. My skills were not that good because I never played soccer in 11th and 12th grade and I was a fullback, because I was kind of big, 160-165, you know? I would just tackle people and had the physical strength to stop people come down the wings! I enjoyed watching the Olympics, the Football World Cup, and I had a lot of English mates who would watch the league in the England. So, I guess that's where the interest came about. I don't have a favorite UK team, sorry! NS: Peter, thank you very much for spending time to share your thoughts. It has been an absolute pleasure having you on my blog! PB: Awesome. The pleasure is mine. Thanks a lot, Nav! |
Get in Touch:LIFE MATTERSHere I share my thoughts
and experiences during my travels, and how some things have affected my life as an expat and world traveller. Travelling is about capturing that moment in life. Every word, view and opinion on this page is that of Navjot Singh - except where indicated. The most recent is at the top. Scroll down to read the archive. Or search using CTRL+F (COMMAND + F) and enter a keyword to search the page. Just some of the stories you never heard before. The NAVJOT-SINGH.COM web blog is separate to this web site....Click blog, which may not be visible in some countries due to local firewall restrictions, so in those cases this weblog may be read. The weblog also includes some of my press trip reports- most of which are not published on the official blog because of copyright issues. The weblog also contains articles that may be associated directly with a PR trip for a country, airline or a hotel. These are PR reviews done in relations with various companies. If you are an investor or a trend watcher then you may find this website useful as investing has a lot to do with personal observations and finding the ideal trend or next big thing. The average human on the street frequently knows far more about the state of the economy than politicians, university professors, subject matter experts, and financial analysts who seldom travel, or if they do so, only from one hotel to another hotel! The pulse and vibrancy of an economy is nowhere more visible than on a country's streets. 
All photos and words are © Navjot Singh unless stated. Photos taken by others or by agencies are appropriately copyrighted under the respective name. No photo or word/s may be taken without the prior written permission by the author (i.e. Navjot Singh). All Rights Reserved. 
Navjot being interviewed by Cecila Lu at GDTV.
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