Is There a Mechanic in the House?

I live the metro Washington, D.C. area and read the Washington Post as my "hometown" newspaper. I am always on the lookout for information about aviation and obviously, maintenance in particular. I also watch for references to aircraft maintenance and mechanics in every genre of media I look at, including pop culture.

It was the first time in a long, long time that I had seen such a positive reference about mechanics in the media.

For instance, whenever I see the old show Wings in reruns, I am always slightly chagrined that they portrayed the aircraft mechanic, Lowell, as eccentric and less than brilliant. I’m always delighted, however, when I see the old movie, Airport. Not the farce, Airplane, I should point out, but the original movie from 1970 with Burt Lancaster, Dean Martin and Jacqueline Bisset. That movie has one of my favorite portrayals of an aircraft mechanic ever. Actor George Kennedy played the tough, cigar-smoking mechanic, Joe Patroni. There is a line in that movie where he tells a group of people they will be able to do something with a Boeing 707 that seems impossible. The dialogue goes like this:

Assistant: The instruction book said that was impossible!

Joe Patroni: That’s one nice thing about the 707. She can do everything but read.

I love that character for his knowledge and belief in the aircraft he is tasked with maintaining. He obviously knows the aircraft inside and out and what it can and cannot do. And he is willing to stake his reputation on it. It’s so great when he gets the job done, just like he said.

Last week, after the historic election of Barack Obama to the highest office in our nation, I saw a reference that made me smile. I’ve been thinking about it ever since. The story was in the Washington Post and was about what the Obama administration might be like and how there would be a lot of work to do in the coming years. The story quoted an official in the transition team who said, "What we need are mechanics, who can get things done." It was the first time in a long, long time that I had seen such a positive reference about mechanics in the media.

Think about that quote. "What we need are mechanics, who can get things done." Truly, mechanics are the ones who get things done. Over the years I’ve seen a gradual shift in the respect given to maintenance and mechanics. But it’s still not enough for the work you do. I think it is clearer in the business jet world because so many pilots there know they are clueless when it comes to what may be wrong with an aircraft and so many flight departments rely on MRO facilities to help them keep their aircraft legal, safe and well-maintained. Whereas in the commercial arena, there still exists some delineation of caste among the facets of workers, i.e. pilots vs. mechanics.

But in my experience working for two commuter airlines and a regional, the best pilots are always the ones who nurture the relationships they have with mechanics. They are the ones who sincerely work together as a team and provide clear, concise information to the maintenance team so they can "get things done."

On another sad note, I want to acknowledge the death of one of the best, most ardent advocates for mechanics, Bill O’Brien. Bill had a long and illustrious career with the FAA. He was instrumental in establishing the Charles E. Taylor Master Mechanic Award, an award that recognizes mechanics who have fifty years (thirty as a certificated A&P) of working experience in aviation maintenance. He also worked to gain the recognition of an A&P certificate as worthy of college credit at a university in New Mexico and promoted the AMT Awards among many other quietly championed areas to further the respect of the professionalism of aviation maintenance and aircraft mechanics. He was a true gentleman and his leadership in the industry will be missed.