Just A Mechanic

[Guest AME]

Just A Mechanic

by

Allen D. Booher

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Have you ever said the words: "I am just a mechanic." I have. In the past I have used it as an apology for dirty hands, or an excuse for not taking charge and solving a difficult non-technical problem, or to justify being lazy, when the boss wanted something out of the ordinary done.

As I have grown older, and hopefully wiser over the years that I have spent in this profession, I have discovered, to my dismay, that every day, more and more mechanics are repeating those same words over and over again: "I am just a mechanic. I am just a mechanic." This negative mantra reinforces a belief in a flawed, fatalistic, and unproductive attitude that says, to be a mechanic is somehow, in some undetermined way, to be something less.

This unspoken and undefined belief has cursed our profession for the last 68 years. As a result of this belief, we continue to remain stalled at the "semiskilled" level when compared to other occupations. This belief is growing. It has become a "self-fulfilling prophecy," a mindset malaise that is slowly attacking our professions very soul by infecting our self-confidence with tiny cankerworms of dispair.

The belief is becoming more than noticeable in our younger mechanics. They are becoming more cynical about their profession. In their eyes, I see a loss of confidence and pride in what we do. When we mechanics, especially the younger ones, lose our self-respect, we open our profession to outside ridicule, especially from the media.

Don't believe it? Turn on your television set. An actor playing an FAA-certificate mechanic working for a part 135 operator is presently portraying one of us, on nationwide TV, as having a room temperature IQ, a village idiot. The mechanic is the outsider, the butt of jokes, and so completely lacking in social skills, that his idea of having a good time is to take a six pack to the town dump on Friday and shoot rats.

So conditioned are we to this attitude, this belief, this self-fulfilling prophecy of ours, that we sit in our comfortable chairs on a given night and with our families and we laugh on cue at the TV aircraft mechanic. We laugh at the aviation throwback; we laugh at the fool with the dirty hands.

Shame on us, we deserve better. Thousands of lives, millions of dollars worth of aircraft are entrusted to us every day. With that kind of responsibility we should be recognized as professionals.

But we are not recognized as professionals, and why not? Because not enough of us have a professional attitude! And just what is a professional attitude? While a professional attitude is difficult to identify and in words to explain, it can be recognized by the following characteristics and traits.

A true aviation professional loves his work. This is his or her chosen profession. He or she wants to be the best that they can be. Aviation professionals are always seeking to learn and grow in their chosen profession. They have an insatiable curiosity about everything relating to their chosen field of endeavor.

An aviation professional takes the same amount of pride in a tire change as a turbine engine overhaul. To an aviation professional there are no minor jobs. Each task deserves and gets the same effort and attention to detail. An aviation professional seeks, performs and maintains a high-quality standard in everything they do.

An aviation professional dresses the part. He or she is clean in appearance, exudes confidence, and speaks from knowledge. An aviation professional would never use language which is offensive, regardless of the place or situation. For these reasons, professionals are sought out by their customers, colleagues, and associates.

So, how do we turn ourselves into professionals? How do we turn around a 68-year-old attitude? The solution is to be found in the root cause of the problem. We must change our attitude! We must change our daily mantra from "I am a professional."

Once we convince ourselves that we can be, and are professionals, then act and perform as professionals, we will convince others in our trade that they too can be professionals. Then and only then will we shed the term "semi-skilled" like an old worn coat.

All it takes is a change in our attitude. Yours and mine, a belief, that one individual can and does make a difference. A belief in the power of one. Let's start changing our attitudes today! Let's get rid of that old coat, "just a mechanic." You an I are the very best in the aviation industry today. Without us this industry would grind to a halt. So why settle for anything less than the recognition and pride that a professional excepts and deserves? Let us be aviation professionals.

Repeat after me: "I am a professional. I am a professional. I am a professional."

NOTE: Allen D. Booher is an FAA airworthiness inspector at the Baton Rouge, LA, Flight Standards District Office (FSDO), 1-504-357-1790. This article appeared in the November/December, 1995 issue of Aircraft Maintenance Technology.

[Guest Gadgeteer]

Give the man a cigar! I feel the same about our profession. C Ya at the dump on Friday. I will bring the 6 pack.

[Mitch Cronin]

Thanks for posting that Brett.
I'd like to say I'll never call myself "just a mechanic" again, but I know I probably will in sarcasm at some point.
He's right and most of us know it... We are our own worst enemies.

Cheers,

Mitch

[Guest jettech]

I remember reading that article with the guys at work(on coffee break of course) when it came out. After that we started using the word "technician" which sounds a bit more professional but some how just didn't seem like the right moniker.It didn't stick.It sure gave me a wake up call,though, about how I view what I do and I went back to saying "I am an aircraft mechanic." I belive totally that this poor view of ourselves is one that we veterans pass on to the young ones just out of college.I now work at a new place with new guys and we discuss quite regularily how BIG our responibility is in everything we touch and also what a unique group we are to do what we do.All I can hope is that this instills a bigger sense of pride then what I started with.

[Guest tsmech]

That is why we are actually called engineers when we have a licence. Personally I do not think of myself as just a mechanic. I am an engineer and that is what my licence has said I am for over 20 years... Have a bit of pride in that licence.. It does mean a lot..

[Mitch Cronin]

And while you're on to reprinting old articles that still have as much meaning... here's one I thought looked appropriate. I won't tell you the authors name:

Dear America:

I've learned that there's nothing like an American's sense of national pride. You people take the prize for your unmatched patriotism. So, in an attempt to jerk you all to your feet, I'm going to tell you all what I think of your country for allowing the unbelievable state of affairs regarding the incredible treatment of a highly skilled group of people who have the lives of your loved ones in their hands every day.:

The "AMT" , Aircraft Maintenance Technician. In Canada we are called Aircraft Maintenance Engineers but apparently in the good 'ole US of A, the title "Technician" is all they can be afforded. Same job....
What do they do you might ask?:
Those great big fabulous ships that defy gravity and take your sons and daughters and mothers and fathers and doctors and lawyers and highly valued politicians hurtling through the atmosphere at 600 mph.. are mechanical machines. They are composed of hundreds of separate mechanical gadgets and in some cases computers, that all work together in harmony to make that big mother machine work. The complexity is enormous. Most of you take all of this for granted, of course... It's an Airplane... Sounds simple enough. Didn't the Wright Bro's make theirs from a few bicycle parts?... Well we've come a long way and now these mammoth machines can weigh in at close to a million pounds gross. There's more separate parts involved in making just one of it's landing gear legs move than the Wright Flyer had on the whole thing. We all know what it looks like when things go wrong. I'm not going to remind you, it's ugly and painful to think of.
The AMT's in America are the people who are RESPONSIBLE for keeping all of that incredible complexity functioning properly and SAFELY! They prevent them from disaster and they fix them when they break.

Think about it! These machines fly thousands of hours a year and millions of miles. Every time the throttles are pushed forward, those wonderful big round things slung under the wings that make all that noise, suck and burn huge quantities of kerosene from right under the tender cheeks of your loved ones, and propel that collection of machinery and humanity from the earth to the heavens! Everything just has to be right. You place all your faith in the captain. You are justified in relying on his (or her) skills. You know they are well trained and well paid and must be trustworthy. But wait a minute.... How does he (or she) know that it's all going to work right? Do you think they know how it all works? Do you think for a second that, in addition to their knowledge of flying and navigation and meteorology they have the knowledge and skills to FIX what doesn't work? They don't. Nor do the folks who wear the pretty suits and smile as they take your money.... Nor do the older grey and balding folks who wear the expensive suits that sit at the board meetings... They all trust the Aircraft Maintenance Technicians to do that. And they should, and you should.

These are indeed a highly skilled, highly trained bunch of folks who do an awful lot of work behind the scenes to keep you all safe. But how are they treated???? With respect? With admiration? With appreciation?
Nope.

You see, in America - That civilized nation the rest of the world looks up to as being the most advanced, powerful nation on the planet - airline employees are governed by the Railway Labor Act.[?!] This act names the National Mediation Board as guardians of smooth running of the railroads of your country....

"There is established, as an independent agency in the executive branch of the Government, a board to be known as the "National Mediation Board", to be composed of three members appointed by the President, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate, not more than two of whom shall be of the same political party. "

(and it goes on to state that those three can hire as many as they like to do their dirty work and act as officers of the board, etc...)

Now the NMB has established that the group of people who can organize together under the "semi-skilled" [?!] classification of mechanics shall include:
Mechanics (Aircraft Maintenance Technicians, Auto mechanics, Shop mechanics, Machinists, and Building maintenance) , Aircraft Inspectors, Shop Inspectors, Flight Simulator Technicians, Ground Communication Technicians, Computer Terminal Technicians, Meteorologists, Apprentice Mechanics, Mechanics helpers, Utility Employees, Cabin Services, Aircraft Fuelers, and Seamers...
There are an awful lot of people in that grouping who have very different interests than the AMT's and yet 50% +1 support of THE WHOLE GROUP is required to decide who will be the organized union to represent them.... What this means, of course, is the AMT's are not very well represented at all! At most, if not all airlines, the unskilled workers are paid very well and the people who are legally responsible for maintaining and ensuring the safety of the aircraft, are paid less than most auto mechanics, less than plumbers, less, in fact, than a huge portion of your population that have far less knowledge, skill and responsibility in their work.
I guess it's tempting to say "That's America.... Land of opportunity..." But don't you think it'd be worth looking after the folks who are responsible for the lives of your sons and daughters? What kind of people do you want to attract to do this kind of work? Are you going to rethink that after the next time you hear of one of the unspeakable horrors that none of us ever wants to hear about?
Come on America! Where the hell are your priorities?
What a country!
We're no better in Canada. Our aviation laws are, for the most part, clones of your own.

[Guest tsmech]

Good one longtimer,

If only everyone remembered that....

[Guest lame.]

"Ode to the Engineer"

The Airline Transport rated pilot;

Leaps buildings in a single bound.

Is more powerful than Concorde. Is faster than a speeding bullet.

Walks on water. And discusses policy with God.

The Multi-Engine rated pilot;

Leaps short buildings in a single bound.

Is more powerful than a Boeing 767.

Is as fast as a speeding bullet.

Walks on water on a calm day. And talks to God.

The Instrument rated pilot;

Leaps short buildings with a running start and a favorable wind.

Is almost as powerful as a Boeing 737-200.

Nearly as fast as a speeding bullet.

Walks on the water of a deep puddle. And talks to God if specifically requested.

The Commercial rated pilot;

Leaves fingernail scratch marks at the top when trying to leap a short building.

Loses a tug of war with a BAE 125.

Can fire a speeding bullet. Swims well. And is occasionally addressed by God.

The Private pilot;

Rarely clears a Scout camp tent.

Is run over by a single engined aircraft.

Sometimes recognizes a speeding bullet.

Can dog-paddle. And talks to animals.

The Soloed student pilot;

Runs into buildings.

Recognizes a Cessna 172 two out of three times.

Has never seen a speeding bullet.

Can stay afloat under instruction. And talks to the wall.

The Non-Soloed student pilot;

Trips over door sills on entering buildings.

Says "Gosh, look at the airplanes" a lot.

Does not know what a bullet is.

Only stands in the shallow end. And mumbles to himself.

The Licensed Aircraft Maintenance Engineer;

Lifts buildings and walks under them.

Kicks aircraft out of hangars.

Catches speeding bullets in his teeth and chews them.

Freezes water with a single glance. And talks to every body.

The Licensed Aircraft Maintenance Engineer IS GOD.

[Guest WINGER]

Some people do have huge egos to feed do they not.

You're just a mechanic get use to it. IF you do not like being called a mechanic take up another trade!

Now go grease that aircraft before I call you a grease monkey!

Engineer my ass!

[boestar]

I hope you are not a pilot WINGER....Because I AM an AIRCRAFT MAINTENANCE ENGINEER and if you don't like the fact that I keep pilots SAFE you do NOT belong in that seat. Fortunately most of the pilots I deal with RESPECT the fact that I do a good job at keeping their ass out of the grass.

B

[Guest doogs]

And we Flight Attendants also have a huge respect for those of you who keep us in the sky!

Forget Winger! His/her comments don't deserve comment or even reflection!

And from those of us who don't say it often enough and take what you do for granted too often - we do thank you and appreciate you... everyday that we dont have to think about what you allow us to do and from all of us who try to keep our customers coming back so we all have jobs - THANK YOU!!

[boestar]

You're Welcome.

B

P.S. That is a great way to start the day.

[Guest]

Winger = Wing Nut

[2.0EPR]

Winger------u obviously don't know what u are talking about....I back Robert up.......winger=wingnut