News

Savannah Air Center’s Change in Management

Swiss-based Jet Aviation acquired Savannah Air Center as the company was about to open its new 101,500-square-foot hanger in January. The Savannah/Hilton Head International Airport-based maintenance and completions company will keep its name following the acquisition and will add nearly 280,000-square-feet of space to the more than 650,000 square feet at Jet Aviation’s Midcoast Aviation subsidiary in East Cahokia, Ill. Both Midcoast and Savannah Air are engaged in interior completion and refurbishment and are completing green cabin work on Bombardier Global 5000s and Global Express XRSs. One of Savannah Air’s founders, Jeff Zacharius, will remain as the company’s CEO, but will report to Midcoast’s President Kurt Sutterer. There is talk that Savannah Air will move into the bizliner completion and refurbishment market. "The acquisition of Savannah Air Center supports Jet Aviation’s strategic objective of expanding its global services network," said Peter G. Edwards, CEO of the Jet Aviation Group. Edwards added, "Savannah Air Center’s excellent reputation, skilled workforce and state-of-the-art facilities make it a good fit for the Jet Aviation family of companies." There wasn’t any word on whether or not the company will expand its workforce and financial details of the acquisition were not disclosed. However, Savannah Air won’t incur any layoffs of its more than 280 employees. Midcoast also operates other domestic completion center with locations in Boston/Bedford, Mass., Chicago, Ill., Palm Beach, Fla., St. Louis, Mo. and Teterboro, N.J.

Car Awarded as Part of ABX Air Employee Incentive Program

ABX Air, Inc., surprised employee Larry Tankersley by presenting him the keys to a 2007 Chrysler PT Cruiser. Tankersley and many other ABX Air employees were entered in a drawing for the car simply by coming to work every day they were scheduled between November 1 and December 23, and meeting productivity standards. The Target 53 program was designed to reward the extra effort of ABX Air’s employees nationwide who see their workload intensify in the fourth quarter. The program targeted 53 days, with 53 prizes. "We ran a similar program last year and it was successful," said Gene Rhodes, corporate director of labor relations. "We saw increased commitment from our employees as they tracked their progress throughout the 53 days of the program." Beginning November 1, 2007, all part-time and full-time employees from the aircraft maintenance, air park services, logistics and ground departments were eligible for the grand prize of the PT Cruiser. The car was on display in early November at employee meetings. "I am so honored that my name was drawn for the grand prize...thanks to ABX Air and everyone involved," said Tankersley.

PAMA/SAE Institute Announce Certification Program for Aircraft Maintenance Industry

Aircraft maintenance technicians now have the opportunity to certify their skills through the PAMA/SAE Institute Aviation Maintenance and Production Certification Program. Developed in adherence with industry consensus standards, the program initially offers two designations: non-certificated individuals can earn the Aviation Maintenance Specialist (AMS) certification and FAA-certificated Airframe and Powerplant mechanics can earn the Aviation Maintenance Engineer (AME) certification

"This program is really the first of its kind," Brian Finnegan, SAE Institute director of professional certification, said. "It establishes a broad system of technical career paths, it quantifies knowledge at many different skill levels, and it enables technicians to verify and document their skills."

The certification exam launched on Feb. 18, and will available throughout the year in worldwide test centers. Organizations looking to certify their employees in groups can arrange for the exam to be administered in their own facilities. For more information on the PAMA/SAE Institute Aviation Maintenance and Production Program, visit www.pama.org.

Maintenance Oversight Urged But Not Forthcoming

"[Foreign MROs] don’t have to play by the same rules as [American MROs] do," said James P. Hoffa, general president of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, during the Aircraft Maintenance Outsourcing Summit held on February 11. The Summit was co-sponsored by the Teamsters Union and the Business Travel Coalition. "I hope we call for a moratorium for all overseas maintenance facilities and this moratorium should not be lifted until every one of those facilities meets our standards," Hoffa said. However, it doesn’t look like that moratorium will come to pass, nor will the FAA be able to increase its oversight for those foreign facilities any time soon. "We have a very limited presence overseas," said Linda Goodrich, VP of Professional Airways Systems Specialist. "When I was there I had 47 different stations and it wasn’t just in Singapore [and other Asian countries], but included Australia too." Goodrich continued, "We are heading for disaster if we don’t turn around where we’re heading in terms of outsourcing."

The Department of Transportation (DOT) released figures that included the percentage of heavy maintenance outsourced by nine major air carriers had jumped from 34 percent in 2003 to 67 percent in 2006. A March 2007 report by the DOT’s inspector general states 103 FAA inspectors are assigned to cover nearly 700 foreign repair stations. In September 2007, the House passed FAA reauthorization legislation that requires hiring additional FAA inspectors, but the Senate has not even begun discussing the bill. It doesn’t appear that more oversight for overseas MROs is coming any time soon.

On the flip side, the executive director of the Aeronautical Repair Station Association (ARSA), Sarah MacLeod, stressed the industry’s strong safety record. "Although the location of work may differ, quality does not," she said and added, "We are in an unprecedented period of safety. We are here [today] because we are committed to continuing this safety record." She was occasionally met with hisses and boos when her statements did not mesh with Teamster’s ideals. ARSA does support improvement in current oversight mechanisms and did urge Congress to work through the aforementioned ruling.

The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has tracked aviation industry data for 40 years and disclosed that civil aviation’s safety trend continued to improve in 2006 and general aviation posted its best record since the NTSB began data tracking 40 years ago.

What can be done to curtail outsourcing and ensure the safety of the flying public? One method could be to introduce the nation’s youth to aviation maintenance career opportunities. "Fourteen thousand mechanics will retire and only 6,000 are coming into the field," said John Goglia, former NTSB board member and a member of the panel at the summit. Without the trained technicians, outsourcing may grow out of necessity. SAE and PAMA are developing an advanced certification program that augments the FAA standards and develops multiple career paths for aircraft maintenance technicians. Options that would continue to level the playing field between foreign and domestic repair stations could help ensure the safety factor and should include mandated drug and alcohol screening and increased frequency and depth of FAA inspections.

Airmen Winning Frigid Fight for Air Mobility

Despite bitter temperatures that can cause frostbite in minutes, air mobility warplanes continue to climb slowly out of the mist and sub-freezing haze that cloaks Kyrgyzstan on their way to missions in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF).

Manas Air Base is the primary mobility hub for OEF, providing around-the-clock aerial refueling, combat airlift and airdrop, and aeromedical evacuation throughout Afghanistan. If the airmen here let the brutal weather slow them down, then forward-deployed ground units might not receive crucial supplies, wounded patriots might be delayed en route to medical care and combat aircraft might not have the fuel needed to conduct their missions.

It is the combined efforts of maintenance crews and logistics readiness airmen who brave the austere elements that keep the aircraft flying.

"It can get really miserable, and the cold slows you down," said Airman 1st Class Raymond Kittle, a KC-135 Stratotanker crew chief with 376th Expeditionary Maintenance Squadron (EMXS). "It takes a lot more time to do things in negative temperatures."

Negative temperatures can immobilize an aircraft if ice and snow buildup is not properly removed. The Airmen of the 376th EMXS use de-icers to keep the fleet thawed.

"Using two de-icers at the same time, we can get an aircraft ready pretty quick," said Tech. Sgt. Judson Bunkley, a flying crew chief with the 376th EMXS. However, some of the snow clearing and ice removal is still done the old-fashioned way.

"We go around with shovels and brooms in front of the landing gear, and when there’s a lot of snow we brush it off the wings," said Senior Airman Andrew Mitchell, another 376th EMXS flying crew chief. "The most difficult part is using a rope to break ice off the back of the fuselage — it tires you out real quick."

But the sub-freezing temperatures also wreak havoc on the de-icers themselves. Occasionally, the equipment designed to keep other hardware operational in the severe cold has suffered malfunctions of its own — which is where the vehicle maintenance technicians from the 376th Expeditionary Logistics Readiness Squadron (ELRS) lend their skills to the war effort.

"We overstressed our assets and when some of our critical de-icing vehicles broke, our sister ELRS special-vehicle-maintenance folks took the lead and worked long and hard hours to return those assets to the flightline and back into the weather fight," said Lt. Col. Thomas Eisenhauer, 376th Expeditionary Maintenance Group commander.

The vehicle maintenance crews’s efforts helped keep the de-icers operational and the flying mission unaffected. No small feat, it has been the coldest winter at Manas since the weather flight began keeping statistics here in 2003. "Temperatures have approached -30 degrees Fahrenheit and will continue to do so into the first part of the year," said Staff Sgt. Michael Funk, 376th Expeditionary Operations Support Squadron weather forecaster.

Airmen continue to keep aircraft ready despite sub-zero conditions by adhering to the 376th Air Expeditionary Wing’s (AEW) motto of "Mission First, Safety Always,"

"The safety of our aircrews depends on our ability to safely and effectively remove accumulated ice and snow, any time, day or night, when called upon," added Lt. Col. Eisenhauer. "Ice, fog, freezing drizzle, snow, brutally-cold temperatures and no hangars combine to make the generation of KC-135 and C-17 sorties challenging during extreme weather operations here at Manas."

The airmen of the 376th AEW are winning the war on weather — so far, no scheduled flight missions have been lost from ice or snow buildup.

"The cold is miserable," reiterated Airman Kittle, "but when you see that jet take off because of everybody’s efforts, you’re really happy and know you’ve made a difference." — By Senior Master Sgt. Stefan Alford