Career Alternatives in a Shrinking Job Market

You say you’ve just gotten a pink slip from your employer? Is it your first? Congratulations and welcome to the club. It only took two furloughs for me to learn that working for a large company, with a powerful union, did not mean I had job security. Quite the opposite, in fact. Airlines, by their deregulated nature can grow and shrink their routes and fleets almost at will. Good pay and steady work are an illusion. If you bought into that mirage without an alternative in mind, shame on you. If you bought into it twice (as I did), double shame on you. In fact, you have nothing to blame but your own short-sightedness.

At this point you have many alternatives. Don’t you dare consider permanent unemployment as one of them. Discard the "pity party" attitude, get off your butt, and improve your life.

The first thing to do, if you want to continue as an A&P mechanic, is to supplement your skills. That can be as simple as getting your FCC license. This can be accomplished in as little as a week, and like the A&P, this is a permanent certificate. It’s a great resumé builder and puts you at the head of the line at most corporate flight departments. One good school can be found at www.aesa.com. Chances are they also have an advertisement in the back of this magazine, so be sure to mention where you saw their name. It won’t get you a discount, but their advertising revenue is what allows us to send you the magazine at little or no cost.

Corporate flight departments, fractional aircraft operators like NetJets and charter operators may all benefit from the airline schedule cutbacks, so they may be expanding their operations in certain geographical areas that are losing airline schedule frequency. Coincidentally, the airlines are furloughing mechanics in exactly those areas. Check with the larger operators in your area and see what their requirements are for new A&Ps. If they require airframe-specific training, make a counter offer for a cost sharing arrangement. In short, do whatever it takes to get your foot in the door. Sometimes, they’ll pay it all if you commit to them for a minimum period of employment. Trust me, it’s worth it. In my experience, I’ve found that the larger, multi-jet charter operators operate with less pressure on the mechanics, higher than airline pay and almost all day shift work. They are also far more likely to recognize and reward superior work. The director of maintenance in these operations almost invariably makes a six-figure income as well. You can move up that ladder much faster than at an airline. Airlines, on the other hand, are more likely to punish the good workers. Unions. Go figure.

If you are financially able, by all means go back to college and get that degree. Many community colleges, especially those with FAA Part 47 A&P schools, offer management and/or engineering degree programs including batchelor’s degrees that draw on the A&P education for advanced standing credits. PAMA can advise you on where to look, as many of these schools are PAMA members and supporters. The courses you take, such as accounting, computer training and even typing will all serve you well in your A&P career, as well as keeping you mentally sharp for whatever lies beyong your schooling.

A word of advice from a dean of academics, given to me when I was on the verge of flunking out of his thermodynamics course for the second time: "Look through the course catalog for the entire college, not just the engineering school. Pick the subjects that interest you and sign up for them. When you have enough credits, we’ll give you a degree, even if we have to invent one." I followed his advice and my D’s became straight A’s. Thank you, Dr. Elberfeld.

If you’re not committed to this industry, and if you are, you probably should be committed, there are a number of other fields that desperately need your skill set while you wait out the furlough. The first that comes to mind is the wind power industry, which is experiencing a severe shortage of wind turbine maintenance technicians. You’ve probably seen some wind farms, with their tens and even hundreds of tubines. Well, that may be your employment answer blowing in the wind, right there in front of you. Those wind turbines need the same type of regular preventive maintenance you’re used to in the aviation industry and much of it the same type that you’re used to. They require precision, cleanliness, regular lubrication and attention to detail. A good place to look for advice on other job requirements is the American Wind Energy Association at www.awea.org.

That was just one example, I’m sure that if you think about it, you can come up with several others. Surfing the internet is probably the best job searching tool you have available. Use it wisely and often. The key here is that your individual skill set of troubleshooting analysis, careful attention to detail and pride in a job well done are the same skill set in demand in many industries. Your A&P mechanic certificates are proof to the world of your superior abilities.