I was fascinated with aircraft from a young age. I knew early on in my formal education that I needed to study math, physics, chemistry and the like to eventually enter some part of the field of aviation. In High School I selected all the courses that were in line with my goal. After having successfully completed High School I entered the Community College system of the Province of Ontario. I studied the "Aircraft Maintenance Technician" course and graduated in August of 1980.
After having interviewed for a number of available positions I accepted an offer of employment from a regional airline, called Nordair Ltd., based in Montreal, Quebec. Nordair operated regular scheduled passenger service throughout Quebec, Ontario, Manitoba and the Eastern Arctic with a fleet of B-737 aircraft. They also conducted an extensive amount of charter operations flying many vacationers to southern destinations. In addition to the fleet of B-737s they operated several Fairchild Hiller FH-227 aircraft in the Arctic as part of a supply contract with the Canadian and US Airforce and Locheed L-188 aircraft specially outfitted for the Canadian Atmospheric Environment Service for generating maps of the ice in Canada's northern waterways.
Initailly I worked as an apprentice. One was partnered with experienced personnel in various component shops and "on the floor" in the hangar where the aircraft as a whole is worked on. This way one was exposed to all aspects of aircraft maintenance. Nordair was involved in every level of maintenance, from daily inspections through a complete overhaul. I was exposed to and learned a broad range of tasks required to completely maintain an aircraft.
Once I had gained sufficient experience I also became involved in the northern operations of the company. One was flown to the Arctic and travelled with the aircraft operating there, carrying out the required maintenance on the aircraft once it had finished its day's flying. This kind of work was rather challenging as the work days were extremely long, the environment harsh and the conditions very basic. Time passed quickly though, because one was always busy. It was also an experience which taught the necessity of team work.
After having completed my apprenticeship time I completed all required exams with the Department of Transport and received my Aircraft Maintenance Engineer's Licence. I continued in the employ of Nordair. With changes to regulations governing air carriers Nordair eventually merged with the international carrier, Canadian Airlines. Canadian Airlines rationalized its operations and I moved from Montreal to Toronto, where I joined the crews which maintain aircraft in regular passenger service, usually referred as "line maintenance". Subsequently Canadian Arilines merged with Air Canada.
Up until now I have described in very general terms what an Aircraft Maintenance Engineer is. As today's world is however becoming more and more specialized in what each of us do to contribute to society and earn a living for ourselves, I will go into more detail at this point to facilitate a better understanding of the subject either for those contemplating this as a career or perhaps to satisfy a need of passengers everywhere to understand how the aircraft they fly in is maintained in a safe condition through the expertise of Aircraft Maintenance Engineers.
To begin with, one must attend a specifically designated college (approved by the Federal Government's Department of Transport) that runs approved courses to become an Aircraft Maintenance Engineer ( A.M.E ). Upon completion of the course one receives a diploma and the first half of the credit requirements to qualify for issuance of the A.M.E. Licence. One must then find employment with an organization with licenced A.M.E.'s where one works under their supervision. This allows one to acquire the remainder of the time requirement for qualification in becoming an A.M.E. While gaining work experience one uses a logbook to record and document all the various tasks mandated as necessary in the list of qualification requirements. This list covers all areas and aspects of maintaining aircraft. When all time and task requirements are met one must write the Department of Transport examinations for A.M.E.'s. These include exams for regulations, airframe and powerplant ( engines- turbine and or piston ). A letter of recommendation from the Licenced A.M.E. under which you apprenticed stating that you have acquired the knowledge, skill and experience as mandated by the Department of Transport, your logbook documenting all tasks carried out, your employment record, your diploma and all your exam records in hand, one may now apply for an A.M.E. licence.
To complete the picture I will discourse on the aircraft itself and how they are maintained in a safe condition for flight. When an aircraft manufacturer designs and builds an aircraft it must first have its product certified and approved for sale by the Federal Department of Transport. In order to receive this approval the aircraft's design specification are thoroughly reviewed and an extensive flight test program must be completed to prove that the aircraft meets or exceeds all mandated safety requirements including flight characteristics. The manufacturer must submit all documents on how the aircraft is to be operated and maintained. If all is in order an Aircraft "Type Certificate" is issued. Each aircraft of this type when it is made is then issued with a "Certificate of Airworthiness" ( C of A ) atesting to the fact that it is airworthy and conforms to its Type Certificate.
In a nutshell it is the A.M.E.'s job to maintain an aircraft in the same condition as when the aircraft was first issued its C of A. Any and all work carried out towards this end must be fully documented and then certified as such by a Licenced A.M.E., in order to keep the aircraft's C of A valid. This is done by following the documentation supplied by the manufacturer, detailing what work requires carrying out, at what time and to what standard. The time requirement is broken down in two ways. By hours flown and by cycles. Hours flown or air time is from the moment the aircraft leaves the ground to the moment it touches the ground at the end of a flight. Cycles are defined as a complete sequence of take-off, climb, cruise, descent and landing. The manufacturer will specify that at, eg. 500 hours or 150 cycles, a number of specified tasks must be carried out. At the completion of these tasks an A.M.E. will certify that all specified tasks were completed and the aircraft is airworthy.
Aircraft maintenance is progessive. The higher the air time and cycle time become the more detailed and extensive the work becomes. In general large aircraft, referred to as transport category, will have maintenance accomplished in accordance with a system called daily, A, B, C, and D checks. Each higher check integrates elements of lower checks. The entire aircraft will be inspected, serviced, repaired or overhauled to maintain it in its original condition. There will however be times when discrepancies occur that do not fall at the same time as a scheduled check. When encountering these they are evaluated in accordance with establised rules. Serious discrepancies can under NO circumstances be flown with. They must be repaired before flight. Discrepancies where sufficient redundancy exists, each being on a special list, may be flown with for limited amounts of time and only with specified warnings and procedures in place. Discrepancies of little consequence may be scheduled for a later time.
All of the foregoing must be carried out by a Licenced A.M.E. or a qualified aircraft mechanic under the supervision of a Licenced A.M.E. and then must be signed by a Licenced A.M.E. certifying that all work conducted has been in accordance with establish standards and practices and that the aircraft in question still meets its original certification standard. In addition to this, any items considered critical to the aircraft in terms of its flight controls and characteristics is required to be inspected by and certified by two Licenced A.M.E.'s. Also if the aircraft is a large ( transport category ) aircraft the certifying A.M.E. must have a specialized course for this aircraft type and have passed all technical exams pertaining to this type. This is referred to as a Licenced A.M.E with type endorsement. All in all it takes many years of learning, working and writing technical examinations to qualify for all of the foregoing. It is however a fascinating and rewarding profession. Today's modern aircraft are sophisticated pieces of machinery requiring detailed knowledge in order to maintain them.
Over the course of my career I have been involved in every level of maintanence check from daily through "D" check. I have worked on the following types: Boeing B-707, B-737, B-767, B-747, B-777, Embraer 175/190, Locheed L-188, Fairchild Hiller FH-227, Airbus A-310, A319, A-320, A321, Douglas DC-10 and a variety of general aviation aircraft ( light aircraft ). After almost 40 years with Air Canada and all the predecssors I retired in 2020.
If any of the above interests you and was not explanined extensively enough or you may want to know of a specific aspect which was not covered here you may contact me at my e-mail address shown on the home page. Also anyone wishing to know more about Air Canada or any of its "Star Alliance" partners can visit their respective web sites. The following are among the many parteners:
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