I got a tweet earlier that said, "Celebrate 100th anniv. of the first flight across the US! Vin Fiz event on Sept. 17 at Boeing theatre." The tweet had a link to the event website: www.vinfizlongbeach.com.
I had known about Charles Taylor's important contribution to the Vin Fiz flight, so I clicked through the links to see what was said about him.
I guess I shouldn't be surprised by what I found. Nothing. Not a single mention.
Aircraft maintenance professionals know about Charles Taylor. We know that Taylor is recognized as the first aircraft mechanic. After automobile engine manufacturers of the day told the Wright Brothers that their specs for the engine's power and weight could not be met, Taylor, a mechanic in their bike shop, told them he could do it. He designed and built the engine that powered the Wright Flyer into history. If it weren’t for Taylor, who knows how long it would have been before the Taylors took to powered flight. Although aircraft mechanics know about Taylor, most others in our industry like pilots and flight attendants have no idea who he was. The general public knows about the Wright Brothers, but practically none of them know about Taylor.
In regards to the Vin Fiz flight, Charles Taylor accompanied pilot Cal Rodgers on his entire flight. Rodgers followed train tracks while Taylor and his crew followed on a train with airplane parts and tools in a train car for repairs and planned maintenance stops. Rodgers crashed so often, it is said the plane that made it to Long Beach had little more than one strut remaining of the original aircraft that departed from New York. If it weren’t for Taylor and his crew, Rodgers would have been stranded in Middleton, NY after the first of his many crashes.
Unfortunately, just like his little-known contribution to the Wright Brothers’ first powered flight, it appears Taylor is again being forgotten in his contribution to the Vin Fiz flight.
If you would like to learn more about Taylor and other other aircraft mechanics of the past, I would highly recommend reading Pioneer Mechanics in Aviation by D.O.M. magazine contributor Giacinta Bradley Koontz (Gia). Visit her website at www.harrietquimby.org to learn more.
Thanks for reading!
Joe Escobar
Editorial Director
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Mr. Wayne Bailey sent an email to me after the July/August issue of D.O.M. came out stating he was amazed how I come up with subject matter for my editorial column. Here are what I think are the two most important factors that help me write my columns. First of all, I am an A&P mechanic. I have worked in the industry since 1988. Second – I pay attention. Whether it is at a trade show or touring a maintenance facility, I try to listen and observe.
I was recently visiting a nearby repair station. As the DOM walked me around, I heard one of the mechanics off to the side say to a coworker, “That son of a b**ch can kiss my f***ing a**! That’s not my job!”
There were two things that bother me about that comment. First of all is perception. Although aircraft mechanics are not doctors or lawyers, we aren’t Neanderthals either. The character Lowell from the TV show Wings may have been a skilled mechanic, but many of us cringed at the negative perception he cast on the profession. In most cases, we don’t work in a bubble. We have customers, pilots, vendors and others in and out of our offices and hangars. We must always be on our A-game. How can we expect to be treated as professionals if we act like children and curse like sailors?
Speaking of cursing sailors, that brings me to my next point – the “That’s not my job” attitude itself. One of my favorite shows on TV is Deadliest Catch. In the craziness of a crab boat environment, the work culture is a lot different than a typical aircraft maintenance shop. The captains rule with iron fists, sometimes cursing and yelling at the crew in order to run a “tight ship.” But there are some good life lessons that can be taken away from the show. One is the example of Jake Anderson on Sig Hansen’s boat the Northwestern. He is a young kid that has gone from being a greenhorn to deck boss in a few short years, passing other deck hands on the boat including his uncle that have been on the boat a lot longer than him. How did he do it? Perseverance and drive. You wouldn’t catch Jake saying, “That’s not my f***ing job.” Instead, does everything asked of him and then asks to learn more. He wants to be the captain of his own boat someday. It looks like he is on track to accomplish that goal.
I have heard it time and time again from successful aircraft maintenance professionals – an important part of their recipe for success is having a positive attitude.
On another note, on August 4 the FAA issued the long-awaited clarification of “actively engaged” as it pertains to IA renewal.
Those that follow D.O.M. magazine on twitter (@DOMmagazine) found out about the news right away. If you are an IA, you need to read the document! You can view it at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/FR-2011-08-04/pdf/2011-19741.pdf.
In a nutshell, the FAA acknowledged that IAs that worked part-time or on an occasional basis (a contentious issue in the comments) could be eligible for renewal. So would supervisors in a technical or executive capacity at maintenance facilities. But it did say that manufacturer’s technical reps and Part 147 instructors could be eligible for renewal if they document proof that they work on aircraft or parts on a part-time or occasional basis. The exclusion for FAA ASIs having to meet the same standard as those working in the industry (another contentious issue in the comments) remains in place.
The FAA says, “The FAA has determined to make this policy effective for the next renewal cycle in March 2013 to allow IAs and ASIs adequate time to participate in the required activity. The FAA will update FAA Order 8900.1 accordingly.”
Thanks for reading, and we welcome your feedback.
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July marks the third anniversary of the launch of D.O.M. magazine. Guess what? It’s true – time really does fly when you are having fun!
I have had the privilege to interview many diverse professionals over the past three years. These aviation maintenance managers have shared their experiences and knowledge with our readers. One theme that seems to repeat itself in each interview is the importance of education. “Never stop learning,” is a mantra many successful directors of maintenance share.
It was with pleasure that I read an article a few weeks ago in the Redlands Daily Facts titled “San Bernardino man ‘fulfills dream’ with college aeronautics degree” by staff writer Debbie Pfeiffer Trunnell. Ms. Trunnell discusses how Rickey Richardson, a 63-year-old San Bernardino man, earned an associate degree in aeronautics. He wanted to finish what he started. You see, in 1982, Richardson had spent a year and a half studying aeronautics at the college, but health problems forced him to back off. He ended up becoming a truck driver. Richardson told Trunnell, “For a long time, I described myself as a jack of all trades, master of none, so I wanted to finish and be a role model to my grandchildren. All I ever hear from them is how hard school is.”
But don’t think you can contact Richardson to work at your maintenance facility just yet. He plans to pursue his education even further. “I will probably work on getting yet another certificate in aeronautics,” he tells Trunnell. “This was never really intended as a career path. It is more about fulfilling a dream.”
Keep on fulfilling your dreams Mr. Richardson. You are an inspiration!
You can read the entire article at http://www.redlandsdailyfacts.com/news/ci_18142408
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In my editorial column in the May/June issue of D.O.M. magazine, I discussed the myth of multitasking. The column was the result of seeing a job posting for a director of maintenance saying that the candidate "must demonstrate the ability to multitask." I went on to discuss how it is impossible to "multitask" because our brains aren't wired that way. Dave Crenshaw, author of the book The Myth of Multitasking: How "Doing it All" Gets Nothing Done, says what we are actually doing when we think we are multitasking is multiswitching - switching between tasks. Those that think they are good multitaskers basically are good multiswitchers; they are able to switch between multiple tasks faster than others.
In my column I mention a quote from Crenshaw where he says, "To say that you are an effective multitasker is the same as saying you are effective at doing things in a less effective way."
While it is true that juggling multiple tasks is less efficient than concentrating on each one and completing them one at a time, the reality is some situations require the ability to handle multiple tasks simultaneously. Even though it is less efficient to accomplish the tasks while multitasking, handling them one at a time is sometimes not an option.
Bnet.com posted a blog this past Monday that discusses 10 Truths About Multitasking. You can read it by clicking here.
What are your thoughts on multitasking? How are you able to handle multiple projects? Is multitasking a necessary evil in management?
Joe
I was in San Diego, CA a few weeks ago attending NBAA's Maintenance Management Conference (MMC). On the last evening of the conference, I was approached by Brad Townsend, chairman of the NBAA maintenance committee, saying that a meeting had just been held between key members of the NBAA maintenance committee, AMTSociety and the Professional Aviation Maintenance Association (PAMA). I was told that an agreement had been reached in relation to working together towards common goals and that an official news announcement would be sent out in the near future.
Well, D.O.M. magazine just received that announcement. Here it is:
Taking Command of Our Industry
In a focused effort to continue to enhance and grow the aviation maintenance professional, a meeting was held on April 6th between members of the AMTSociety, National Business Aircraft Association (NBAA) Maintenance Committee, and the Professional Aviation Maintenance Association (PAMA).
With a spirit of camaraderie never before seen in our maintenance industry, all parties agreed to move forward in a positive and proactive manner in order to show a united front to our members and colleagues and take command of our industry.
Brad Townsend, current chairman of the NBAA Maintenance Committee, states:
“We have been talking about opportunities for a while. We acted on it during the NBAA Maintenance Managers Conference this year just held in San Diego. Coincidentally this year’s theme was “Building a Community of Leaders”. Choosing to act on that spirit, we made a simple but elegant commitment to build a community of partnership benefiting individual brother and sister aviation maintenance professionals around the globe as well as those we have pledged to serve.”
The organizations have agreed to align efforts on common interests for the betterment of aviation technicians throughout the industry.
Tom Hendershot, executive director of AMTSociety, states:
“At the Maintenance Management Conference we agreed to collaborate on issues related to aviation maintenance including regulatory concerns, National AMT Day and the education of technicians. This initiative puts together, for the first time, a prominent force dedicated to promoting the aircraft technician and professionalism within the ranks. As we move forward together with these initiatives, each organization will maintain their own autonomy and mission while partnering on issues of mutual interest.”
Clark Gordon, PAMA chairman states:
“It is incumbent as industry leaders for us to work as one to further the acknowledgement of the aviation maintenance professional.”
Dale Forton, PAMA president states:
“As our economy continues to grow the demand for well trained maintenance professionals will be in the forefront of each organization. Working together will ensure the proper recognition and economic growth of our individual members.”
All three groups plan to hold regular meetings together to build on this momentum and work through selected common causes that will unite the global aviation maintenance community.
What do you think about this announcement? What common causes would you like to see them working together on?
Thanks for reading,
The D.O.M. magazine staff was in San Diego last week attending NBAA’sMaintenance Management Conference (MMC). The theme of this year’s conferencewas “Building a Community of Leaders.”
If you weren’t at the conference,you missed some great presentations. One of the talks that I got a lot from was“The Global War on Error” by Dr. Tony Kern. Dr. Kern talked about the need fortrue professionalism in the aviation maintenance industry.
During his talk, Dr. Kern broughtup the example of a mechanic who feels he is a professional. “I’m aprofessional because I never violate the regulations,” this mechanic might say.But Dr. Kern pointed out that this mechanic might as well be saying, “I only dothe minimum necessary to meet the regulations.”
The FARs are the minimum standardestablished by the FAA. But just because the FAA sets the bar low doesn’t meanwe should settle for just hopping over the bar. We can set our standards muchhigher.
Greg Reigel, Legal Cornercolumnist for D.O.M., shed light onthis subject a few weeks ago at the Minnesota IA seminar. Reigel is an aviationdefense attorney in Minnesota. He told attendees that if a mechanic chooses tojust follow the FARs, that would protect him or her from FAA enforcementaction. But meeting that minimum standard would not hold up when faced with acivil lawsuit.
What do you think is the measureof a true professional in our industry?
As I write this blog, ABC World News with Dianne Sawyer is airing a series of reports titled “Made in America.” On March 1, it showed a family who agreed to have everything that wasn’t made in the U.S.A. removed from their home. They would sleep in the house for one night and have their house furnished the next day with nothing but U.S.-manufactured furnishings.
I was shocked when they showed the house after all foreign-made furnishings were removed. The house was practically empty. About all that remained were the kitchen sink, a vase in the dining room and a few blankets. Even the dog had to sleep on the bare floor because his bed was made in China.
ABC goes on to say that in the 1960’s, 10 percent of goods purchased in the U.S. were foreign made. Today that number is almost 60 percent.
Forbes blogger Dan Ikenson (http://blogs.forbes.com/beltway/2011/03/01/with-made-in-america-abc-news-gets-trade-story-all-wrong/) takes issue with ABC’s report. He says, “Today Americans are less likely to find in their homes products manufactured in the United States because U.S. manufacturers have moved on to producing higher value products. American manufacturing isn’t focused on products that consumers find in retail stores, like furniture, hand tools, sporting goods, flatware, draperies, carpeting and clothes. American factories produce more value than any other country’s factories by focusing on producing the highest value products: pharmaceuticals, chemicals, airplanes, sophisticated componentry, technical textiles, and other items often sold directly to other businesses.”
It’s nice to see Ikenson includes airplane manufacturing in his highest-value list. But how immune is aviation? We have seen most airlines shed maintenance jobs and outsource work to third-party repair stations, many of them overseas. Cirrus, Continental Motors and Superior Air Parts have recently announced acquisitions by Chinese-owned companies. Although manufacturing for those companies remains in the U.S., will we eventually see the exodus of those or other valuable aviation manufacturing jobs to other countries?
Made in America. What does it mean for the aviation industry today and in the future?
P.S. In the interest of full disclosure, I just realized that I am sitting at my desk that was manufactured in China, typing on my Toshiba laptop that was manufactured in Japan and drinking out of my favorite aviation coffee mug that was made in China. If you leave comments, I can view them on my Japanese-made smart phone.
Here is a scenario that we seem to see all of the time. Honeywell 331 customers have run into
massive part delay issues. In a playbook taken from the not so smooth Boeing 787 Dreamliner project,
Honeywell has decided to start outsourcing its engine parts from various overseas suppliers. Reports state that the
331 parts are coming from possibly Mexico, the Czech Republic, and India. Hindustan Aeronautics has been license
building the TPE331 engines for some time, and started to supply Honeywell globally in 2008. It is no suprise that
these items are being outsourced. But if outsourcing is so muchmore profitable, then why cant they stock these more
profitable parts on the shelf? I seem to see a trend with outsourcing. That trend seems to include lower
customer service, higher customer acqusition costs (becuase of express freight), lower customer profitability
(becuase their aircraft an unable to fly) and a significantly higher level of customer disatisfaction.
This process doesnt seem to be working very well, does it?
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Joe Escobar, Editorial Director, D.O.M. magazine
In the Jan/Feb issue of D.O.M., I discussed “actively engaged” as it pertained to Inspection Authorization renewal. If you haven’t read it yet, you can read my editorial column by clicking here.
There are a few more thoughts I wanted to share regarding the FAA’s effort to more closely interpret “actively engaged.”
First of all, the language in the notice would prevent IAs who don’t work full-time from obtaining or renewing their IAs. This could do a huge disservice to many aircraft maintenance professionals. For example, I recently had a discussion with a reader who is the only A&P/IA at his local fly-in community. He has been an IA for more than 30 years. He has retired from his full-time job but continues to work part-time maintaining all the aircraft in his neighborhood including annuals. The new interpretation would basically disqualify him from continuing to provide the professional maintenance services his customers have come to expect.
One of the biggest things that irritates me about this notice is that FAA ASIs would be exempt from this. That is ludicrous! If the FAA feels that more closely defining its definition of actively engaged is in order, and wants A&Ps to meet a higher bar when it comes to obtaining or renewing an IA, then that higher bar should apply to FAA inspectors. There is no reason at all ASIs should be able to stumble over a bar laying on the ground while the rest of us have to leap over a bar that has been raised.
What are your thoughts on this whole issue?
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