The Aviation Maintenance Technology program is designed to prepare post-secondary students for entry-level employment in aviation and related fields as an FAA licensed Aviation Maintenance Technician. The Federal Aviation Administration mandates the competencies identified in the program curriculum along with the required performance standards and mastery levels. Program graduates are expected to demonstrate technical knowledge relevant to aircraft systems and structures along with a high standard of integrity and pride in professional competence.
OBJECTIVES
To provide the requisite technical knowledge and basic manipulative skills necessary for program graduates to take the Federal Aviation Administration examinations for certification/licensure. Students are instructed in 44 separate subject areas requiring 2170 clock hours, with a classroom-to-laboratory ratio of 40:60. Theory, principles and abstract concepts must be mastered before students can benefit maximally from laboratory projects. Emphasis is placed on timeliness, honesty and working with others throughout the classroom instruction and laboratory projects.
ADMISSION
Admission to the Aviation Maintenance Technician program complies with all admission requirements for Wichita Area Technical College and each year the AMT Advisory Committee reviews these procedures to keep the requirements current.
INSTRUCTION
The Aviation Maintenance Technician curriculum consists of three sections: General, Airframe and Powerplant. The General section, a prerequisite for Airframe and Powerplant, consists of 470 clock hours of instruction. Airframe and Powerplant sections consist of 900 and 800 clock hours respectively. The curriculum is structured so that students have the options of obtaining certification for Airframe, Powerplant or both. Day and night classes are offered concurrently. The General section is offered full and part-time, and high school seniors may participate in the part-time day section. Airframe and Powerplant sections are scheduled full-time only and offered only to post-secondary students. Full and part-time classes are in session 5 ½ and 3 hours respectively, Monday through Friday. Examples of core classes include fluid lines and fittings, hydraulics, pneumatics, fuel systems, landing gear and turbine engines.
For the AAS degree, some of the specific core classes required are College English, General Psychology and Introduction to Sociology. The school is certificated by the Federal Aviation Administration, which mandates course content and minimum teaching levels. The AMT program curriculum is competency-based and criterion-referenced. Each of the 228 competencies mandated by the FAA is identified in the program curriculum along with required performance standards and mastery levels. A vast array of equipment is used throughout the program ranging from sheet aluminum to fabric hose material to modern jet aircraft.
Instruction is relevant for a diverse student body. In spite of the fact that the AMT profession is male-dominated, the school graduates female students on a regular basis. Remedial English is available to students who do not meet FAA requirements relating to English proficiency. Pell grants, guaranteed student loans and some scholarships are available to economically disadvantaged students.
The Advisory Committee is recruited from across the spectrum of aviation businesses, large and small, manufacturing and service. The Committee meets twice each year and a wide range of topics are discussed, from industry needs to school program suggestions. They provide us with information concerning the latest trends in aviation employment, technology, forecasts and feedback on graduates employed.
Work ethics and other necessary job skills are stressed throughout the program and are demonstrated by staff. The aviation industry is booming and the forecast is that it will continue through the decade. The AMT program is positioning itself to take advantage of the opportunities that will occur during this period to provide not only our current program but also others as the industry need arises.
HEALTH AND SAFETY
Aviation by its very nature--running engines, whirling propellers and jet blasts--is a dangerous profession. Safety is stressed daily in the classroom and especially during laboratory projects. Safety must be second nature to students, not only for themselves but for fellow workers as well. Long hair, rings and metal watches are an invitation to injury, or worse. When aircraft are jacked into the air for projects, they are roped off so no one will inadvertently enter the danger area. When aircraft engines are to be run, the aircraft is chocked at the wheels as well as tied down, and fire extinguishers and a safety guard are always close by. The campus conducts fire drills each month and tornado drills each spring and fall. A crisis intervention plan and bomb threat plan have been developed and are discussed with staff on a regular basis.
STUDENT EVALUATION
Students are evaluated for mastery of FAA-mandated competencies in accordance with FAA-approved standards. All laboratory work and subject area tests must receive passing scores. The current grading scale used in classes is: 100-93=A, 92-85=B, 84-77=C, 76-70=D and 69 or below is an F. Provisions are in place for additional instruction and limited repetition of work that does not meet specified criteria. Performance records are maintained for each student throughout the program including written exam grades, laboratory work performances, attendance information and make-up status.
Policies pertaining to students’ performances and performance records are presented to students verbally and in the form of a student handbook during new-student orientation. Students are continuously evaluated during each of the courses on 27 workplace habits/skills. The entire curriculum for all three courses, General, Airframe and Powerplant is provided to each student at the beginning of each course in the form of the Federal Aviation Regulations which contains the syllabus for the program and the skill levels required for each subject and laboratory project.
PROGRAM EVALUATION
A large percentage of the students (80 to 90%) who attend this program are already employed in the aviation industry and their company pays their tuition. Local companies through campus visits, job opening postings and telephone calls recruit the remaining students. The Advisory Committee helps in job placement by notifying us of openings in various local companies. The program is evaluated in accordance with Federal Aviation Regulations, Part 147.43 that requires the FAA to inspect the school normally once each six months “to determine if the school continues to meet the requirements under which it was originally certificated. After such an inspection, the school is notified in writing of any deficiencies found during the inspection.”
Other informal inspections may be made from time to time. The Advisory Committee also reviews the program’s curriculum to provide their opinions as to our meeting the needs of business and industry. Occasionally, informal meetings will take place with members of the aviation community, the FAA and others to discuss program areas and possible ways of improving the program.
SUMMARY
This program is relevant to vocational/technical trends, and it is consistent with the philosophy and objectives of the institution. An acute shortage of aviation maintenance technicians exists in Wichita and across the nation and the demand for graduates is very strong. At this time, there are over 14,000 vacancies nationwide for AMT’s and nearly 2000 for Wichita. The industry forecast is for the national and local numbers to continue to increase for the next decade.
