breaking into the industry

[gliding_bum]

Hey all,

My lifetime ambition was to become a pilot although recently diagnosed medical conditions will prevent me ever following that career path and i am awaiting to hear back from the medical guys to find out I'f i'm fit enough to be a tech.

I'm just coming to the end of an apprenticeship studying electronic engineering/project management which will leave me with a HNC in electronics (highest qual. i will have) but the job at te end of the apprenticeship is not what it said it was going to be "on the tin" when i applied, being desk work (which in this case is dead boring and poorly paid) and i wish to follow a career path which is better paid and more hands on.

I know a guy that finished a JAR 66 course about 5 years ago but could not get a job (Although i dont know exactly how hard he tried...) on completion, muttering something about a type rating??

Now down to the actual area where i need advice...

Providing i manage to pass the final year of this HNC and get my deeds of apprenticeship i would like to know how i would go about breaking into this profession, and how you go about applying for work once qualified? There is my local college 5 miles from home which do the same JAR 66 course as the guy i know.

I have been accepted on a BEng electrical/electronic degree starting this september, and am undeided which option to go for as i have little intention of remaining in my current job, past graduating.

Thank you in advance for any help and my appologies for the length of this post!

G_B

[WenWe]

My advice: with the current financial climate & state of the airline industry, you should do the degree. You needn't stay in the same job/industry at the end of it (and I'd guess an electronics degree might have a bit more weight to it than one in "media studies".......?). You could also apply to the likes of BAe, RR etc for sponsorship/interns positions, although these wouldn't be "hands on", if you wanted to be involved in aviation.

To get into the aviation maintenance industry you need to either:

1 - Get accepted onto an apprenticeship (not easy but your HNC should help).

2 - Take one of the ab-initio schemes that Brunnel/Kingston etc offer, then hope that you can get a job at the end of it.

3 - Be ex forces trained & experienced.

WRT #2: My thoughts are that these courses are misrepresented to those enrolling.
By this I mean that they are sold on the basis that you will come out with a Licence & will be snapped up.
In reallity you will most likely (unless on a joint scheme with one of the airlines/MROs) come out at the end with a frozen licence - i.e. you have passed the exams but have not met the CAAs experience requirements. You would therefore not be eligable to hold any type authorisations/types on the licence & as such could not be considered by an employer for a "certifying" job. Even if you did obtain an unfrozen licence your lack of experience would stop most employers even thinking of you.
So, at the end of the course, you have been promised that after years of study & financial outlay a certifying job awaits you - but in reality you'll have to try & get in right at the bottom (a cabin/junior mechs job if you are very lucky, have made an effort & a good impression whilst on work experience & you can find an enlightened employer).

I know guys who have been to Brunnel - a long time ago tho' - & am told it's a good course. They have gone on to good positions (one did get frustrated at the time it took to progress from mech to certifier) - but did finish at boom times for the industry.

I also know guys who've been to Northbrook (Shoreham) & I can say that from what I've been told it's not up to the same standard.

Good luck whatever you choose.

[WenWe]

You might also want to look at the Monarch thread when considering your options.

50 experienced/licenced guys ahead in the line........ Not to mention the ex BA & excel guys out there.

Not a good time for a job that has supposedly had a manpower shortage for years. Guess we'll all retire one day & it'll come true!

[Miles Gustaph]

Just a personal opinion, but I wouldn't come into the aircraft maintenance business unless it's something you really want to do.

Try getting some work experience, have a really good read through the engineering section on pprune, and maybe airmech.

While there is someone born every day who looks up at a plane and wants to fly, aircraft maintenance might not satisfy that desire or need in a person, and boy is it a line of work with ups and downs.

That said, there is a shortage of licensed engineers, and in the next 5+ years it will get much worse.

[gliding_bum]

Thank you for your replies looks like I’ve got some thinking to get done.

My initial plan when I left school was to work on aircraft as I could never realistically afford the fees to learn to fly commercially and I am too tall/fat/blind to be a forces pilot so that’s that option out.

Then I inherited some cash and the pilot option appealed and seemed more feasible although I was half way through my apprenticeship and wanted to see it out before I moved on. Since that point I have been diagnosed with a medical condition that will keep me grounded so aircraft maintenance seems back on the cards.

I have always had a fascination with flight and aircraft and always loved being hands on and have always felt more comfortable in a pair of overalls than a shirt and tie, although the usual "blue collar" work is on the most part very poorly paid so I must admit that it does look tempting.

Admittedly now probably isn't the BEST of times to be job hunting for anyone but surely people are going to be retiring etc so the companies will need new blood coming in at the bottom? Or will they just expect the people left to work harder! lol

So am I right in assuming that after passing an intensive course I would STILL be unemployable? Caught in a no job --> no experience --> no job situation. How does everyone else get into the trade? Just being in the right place at the right time? :confused:

Thanks again

G_B

[Fargoo]

surely people are going to be retiring etc so the companies will need new blood coming in at the bottom? Or will they just expect the people left to work harder! lol

Got it in one! In my experience as people have retired in large numbers they simply haven't been replaced.

[WenWe]

"How does everyone else get into the trade?"

Historicaly:

Join one of the airline apprenticeship schemes. Now gone or vastly scaled down in numbers (i.e. when i started with a small British airline there were 12 of us, the big British airlines scheme took on 200+ in the same year).

Or

Join the military, serve your time & then leave to join an airline/MRO.

Or

Do ab-initio course, start at very bottom if you're lucky & wait. Promotion in most established places would be a "dead mans shoes" waiting game for you.

Most of the "younger" guys in the industry are now late 30's/early 40's. There are people in their 20's (quite a few of which have done ab-initio courses) but they are much fewer in number.

Like I said before, I don't see the much talked about (written about?) shortage becoming true in the UK for 10-15 years.

I don't know what condition is stopping you from flying as a career - but if it is in any way physically debilitating for then aircraft maintenance probably wouldn't be the best path, as it can sometimes be very hard work physically & mentally with lots of unsociable hours. A tech services type role would not have the physical demands so don't dismiss that option.