Gwinnett County school trains future aviation mechanics amid growing industry demand
Trade school training future plane mechanics
With spring break around the corner and summer fast approaching, travel is about to kick into overdrive. You know pilots and flight attendants are necessary to fly, but so are airplane mechanics.
GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. - There is a nationwide shortage of aviation maintenance technicians.
A trade school in Gwinnett County is training the next generation to work on planes.
The backstory:
According to the Aviation Technician Education Council, there’s a shortage of aviation maintenance technicians.
The organization says by 2028 there will be a deficit of nearly 25,000 certified mechanics, a shortfall of nearly 20% versus demand. "We’re trying to fill the gap that we expect in the aviation maintenance workforce," said Ben Sitton, Executive Director of the Aviation Institute of Maintenance in Gwinnett County. "The average age of a mechanic right now is 54 years old, so we expect at least 20% of the workforce to retire in the next 5 to 7 years."
The private school says a few years after graduating, students can make six figures. It says there are nearly 200 similar schools, but it is not enough to meet the need.
What they're saying:
The Aviation Institute of Maintenance in Gwinnett County says students get hands-on training to prepare them for a career in the business. "The real passion for it started when I came to the school," said Tiffany Bolin, a recent graduate.
Bolin graduated in December from the Gwinnett County trade school at the top of her class. Her goal is to be FAA certified by the end of the year in the male-dominated industry. Federal data shows just 3% of certified aircraft mechanics are women. "Being a woman here and being the only woman in my class the entire time I was here, you would think it's a lot more pressure, but actually, it feels great," she said.
Bolin says she is prepared to join the workforce with safety always at the top of her mind. "Everything you do is so critical, like one tiny little screw could be the difference between that plane staying in the air or crashing immediately upon takeoff," she said.
Once students graduate, they still need to be certified by the FAA before they can go to work.
The Source: FOX 5's Tyler Fingert spoke with instructors and students at the Aviation Institute of Maintenance in Gwinnett County. Additional details were provided from previous FOX 5 Atlanta reporting.