In General

Aviation is one of the fastest growing industries worldwide. Renewed emphasis on aviation safety and operational efficiency has made the role of the Federal Aviation Administration Certified Airframe & Powerplant Mechanic more vital than ever. The FAA regulatory system for certification of technicians, operations, and maintenance is the dominant world standard.

Aviation Maintenance Technology is a highly technical and unique career in great demand. Today, only 160,000 individuals are working as FAA certified Airframe and Powerplant Mechanics nationwide. Many factors, such as workforce attrition due to retirement and industry growth, has led the FAA to estimate that an additional 73,000 technicians will be needed in the next decade.

Industry News:

Employment is expected to increase by 10% during the 2006-16 period, most job openings for aircraft mechanics through the year 2016 will stem from the need to replace the many mechanics expected to retire over the next decade.
- U.S. Dept. of Labor, December 18, 2007

Aviation Maintenance Technicians are AMONG THE TOP in Best Career Overall, Best-Paying Career, Fastest-Moving Career, Highest-Strength High-Activity Career Requiring Post Secondary Vocational Training
- Farr, M., & Shatkin, L. 175 Best Jobs Not Behind a Desk. JIST Works March 2007

More than 400 Aviation Positions are coming to Tampa International Airport Beginning in 2008! - St. Petersburg Times, March 24, 2008

There are 11,000 Annual Aviation Maintenance Career Openings!
- U.S. Dept. of Labor

AINalerts: July 26, 2007 - Gulfstream Has "Best Quarter Ever Experienced"
Nicholas Chabraja, chairman and CEO of General Dynamics, the parent company of Gulfstream and its General Dynamics Aviation Services cousin, said yesterday that this year?s second quarter was ?the best quarter from an intake perspective that Gulfstream has ever experienced.? The Savannah, Ga.-based OEM achieved $1.2 billion in sales in the second quarter, up more than 13 percent from the same time a year ago. Earnings were up even more, for a total of almost $200 million, or a 20-percent increase. According to Chabraja, 51 percent of the sales were international and ?every geographical segment grew, but the Middle East, Africa and Latin America were the largest growers.? Gulfstream?s order backlog stood at more than $10 billion at the end of the quarter, a more than 40-percent increase from the second quarter of last year. The company delivered 72 airplanes in the second quarter, compared to 55 during the same period last year. Chabraja confirmed production would increase next year to keep up with demand.

Largest Passenger Jet Makes First Flight
PARIS, April 27 -- Europe's Airbus A380, the world's biggest passenger jet, completed its inaugural flight Wednesday, landing with tons of test equipment on the same runway near Toulouse where the supersonic Concorde also had its maiden flight in 1969.Airbus SAS chief executive Noel Forgeard expressed pride in what he described as the plane's flawless performance, as the A380 took off on time at 10:29 a.m. (4:29 a.m. EDT) in remarkably good weather. In front of about 30,000 onlookers, the double-decked white and blue jet, dubbed a "super-jumbo," lifted its 22 wheels off the ground and took to the air after reaching a takeoff speed of 150 knots at the Blagnac airport. An hour into the flight, the chief test pilot, Jacques Rosay, reported that the "takeoff was absolutely perfect" and that the massive plane "handled like a bicycle".The A380 was designed for about 555 passengers, although it could hold as many as 800 seats. © 2005 The Washington Post Company

Japan, France to jointly develop new supersonic jet to replace Concorde
TOKYO (AP) - Japan and France will jointly develop a new supersonic commercial aircraft to succeed the retired Concorde, Japan's trade ministry has said.The co-operation opens the possibility of reducing by almost half the flight time between New York and Tokyo to six hours on an aircraft with about three times the capacity of the Concorde with 300 seats, according to Japanese media reports Wednesday. The ministry said the two sides will try to resolve the difficulties that had plagued Concorde, including jet-engine noise and high fuel consumption. Japan has successfully tested an engine that can reach speeds of up to mach 5.5, or more than five times the speed of sound. It offers this technological know-how as well as its research in engines and energy-saving technology, the ministry said. The French side brings experience from the Concorde, the world's first and only supersonic commercial jet operated by Air France and British Airways, which flew at twice the speed of sound. © The Canadian Press, 2005

10-year Forecast Predicts 35-percent Bizjet Delivery Increase
Some 7,417 business jets will be delivered between 2005 and 2014, peaking with shipment of more than 800 jets in 2013, according to the Teal Group's 15th annual business jet forecast. This projection is nearly 35-percent more than the approximately 5,500 jets actually delivered between 1995 and 2004. The Fairfax, Virginia based company says the, "Biggest intrinsic market risk to our forecast is fractional provider demand, which is about 40-percent of the much-vaunted backlog." Of the 1,265 very light jets (VLJs) that Teal projects will be delivered between 2008 and 2014, nearly half (600) are Citation Mustangs. Teal doesn't single out the other VLJ manufacturers. Gulfstream is forecast to have the largest share of the market in terms of value (25.3-percent) and Cessna in terms of units delivered (nearly 38-percent). Aviation International News - May 3rd 2005