sheet metal to licensed engineer?

[zigmund]

Hi,
just wondering is it possible to become a licensed engineer if the only real on the job experience you have is with sheet metal in aviation?
I am training at the moment and am sitting all my A exams this year. But its looking like my only on the job experience could be working with sheetmetal and composites, I will have the opportunity to sit B exams but will they be useless unless I can get someone to hire me to be a mechanic? Im asking this as I hear you must build up a certain amount of hours as a mechanic and where Im working now it doesnt like im going to get that opportunity when Im finished my A modules. Im hearing we will be put into sheetmetal and composites.

Any help would be greatly appreciated as this is bugging the last few weeks. I took this career to be in aircraft mechanics and electrics not to work in sheetmetal.
Thanks again
J

[Mr.Brown]

Zigmund, I take it your at Shannon Aerospace!
I know ex-Shannon Aerospace sheet metal guys that went on to become licenced engineers.
Take all the training thats giving to you and move on. Do the exams and before you know it (if your still not at shannon) you'll have enough in your log book.

[zigmund]

cheers Mr. Brown , yea thats where im at, thats kind of all I needed to know . Ive been asking around on different forums cause as you'd imagine I was worried I was going to be taking a completely different route to what i had intended! And its tough getting info inside there.
Thanks
J

[Salusa]

Know of several sheeties who became A&C (Rotorcraft). Bloody good they were to.

[asheng]

Hi Zigmund,

I spent 15 years dragging my butt about as a sheetie only to go and get my licences (It was more than one in those days) and have just recently left one of the biggest and busiest line operations in Europe. This week I went back to my roots and for the first time in over 10 years I ended up repairing a hole in the side of one of our finest and able to sign off the repair, all of the functions for the disturbed systems and a majority of the duplicates.

The bonus is, when the repairs are done, you just move on to the functions and tests with your certifacation rights.

You get to see both sides of the world and are able to manage to carry out work that the normal mechs can't.

Go for it mate, but remember, having a licence dosn't make you a better engineer and there are some superb unlicensed engineers out there that haven't had the chance or opportunities to get there licences and vice-versa there are licensed eng's that you wouldn't want working on your bike. However, experiance is worth a fortune.

[BAe146s make me cry]

Totally in agreement with Asheng

Never undersell any skills you have, especially sheetie work.
You lot are invaluable and rightly so..

There will be opportunities to gain experience on systems
mechanical, electrical & avionics later. But for now, record
every task you do in a Personal Experience Record, quote
SRM, AMM, SPM References in ATA100 order, A/C reg & date.

Finally, only record tasks you have genuinely been involved
with or completed. Far too many embellished records out there
at present. Not that our Competent Authority truly cares,
they just collect ££££...

Good luck

BAe146???

[zigmund]

cheers for all the replies , having read this and having had a chat with a lad I know working in Air atlanta its changed my views of the whole thing. Im looking forward to whatever comes to me, whether im put straight into composites and sheetmetal or put into mechanics and electrics

Thanks again