Ageing workforces, post-pandemic disruptions, and training gaps threaten to derail aviation maintenance worldwide – can the industry rise to the challenge? Ian Fitzpatrick, managing director of Resource Group, shares his insights.
Resource Group’s training division has been at the forefront of aviation maintenance basic training for more than 21 years. In that time, thousands of students have passed through our doors in the UK and locations across Europe, Asia, the Middle East and the Caribbean. The company training credentials cover all categories of rotary and fixed wing aircraft in both civil and military environments.
Many recent studies have highlighted a looming global shortage of aircraft maintainers. In particular, the demographic challenge of an ageing workforce that existed pre-COVID-19, before the industry stopped almost all training activity for the two years of the pandemic.
Add to that gloomy scenario the fact that many existing experienced engineers did not return to the industry after the pandemic and you have something of a perfect storm developing. Skills shortages inevitably drive-up costs as personnel are attracted to the highest bidder, resulting in an overheated labour market at a time when the industry least needs yet another challenge.
We also see high levels of workforce mobility where richer countries that can pay high salaries attract experienced people away from less affluent countries. Activity which may leave some regions short of vital experience and which cannot be good for global aviation safety overall.
When other factors are considered, such as the dropping out of EASA by the UK due to Brexit and the subsequent mutual non-recognition of qualifications by politicians on both sides of the divide (one does wonder if the term ‘in the national interest’ got lost in translation somewhere), it is without doubt a growing problem.
The blindingly obvious answer to the current labour malaise is therefore to collectively fill up the (global) labour pool, cool down the labour market and get back onto a sustainable footing. This may sound straightforward, but the problem is that there really is no quick fix.
Training and certification challenges
From my own experience, having been involved in many different aspects of aviation maintenance for 44 years, I find the time taken to qualify new maintenance certifying staff has often been grossly underestimated. In simple terms, for a new starter it can take at least as long to become suitably qualified and experienced as a European licensed engineer as it takes to qualify as a pilot, around seven years when being realistic and considering type rating. Also, the options for existing maintenance staff to upskill and enhance qualifications are often limited in reality.
I feel basic training is often treated as the poor relation so beyond the regulatory requirement I have seen very little consistency. For industry entrants, training is mostly delivered through a small number of Part 147 approved training providers and further education colleges (without Part 147 approval) and subsequent on the job training requirements are met by piecemeal approaches in the workplace. Funding options for basic training also seem to vary quite widely.
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Resource Group’s training credentials cover all categories of rotary and fixed wing aircraft in both civil and military environments.
In the UK, for instance, the apprenticeship levy that large employers pay into establishes a pot of money for them to draw against to fund their training needs. The problem is that government rules stipulate that to get their money back out of the pot, their training need must be met by a recognised apprenticeship. Any approved training provider (which can include employers, if they wish to run their own programme) needs to meet the requirements of a separate government, Register of Apprentice Training Providers (a rather onerous and inflexible process in itself). They must also satisfy not only the industry regulator but also the government education oversight authority, the Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills (Ofsted).
It is as painful as it sounds and, in some cases, has led to operators either ceasing training apprentices altogether or outsourcing the activity to a limited number of providers. Add in the fact that aviation apprenticeships in the UK are chronically underfunded due to the apprenticeship levy cap (the maximum amount employers can get out of the pot per apprentice) barely rising since 2017 when inflation alone has added around 28% to the cost of training delivery. This ineffective model inevitably leads to a lack of ability to invest in innovation and improvements.
For personnel who have industry experience but not the required licence and certifying privileges, passing the requisite modular examinations is the ultimate goal although viable options seem limited. EASA Part 147 approved training companies with examination privileges are thinly spread, so often the only option for individuals is to study ad-hoc training material and sit examinations with their national aviation authority, an approach which comes with its own pitfalls.
The content of examinations in fundamental modules such as mathematics and physics is naturally generic so they could be attempted at any examination centre. However, where modules require the use of specific aircraft examples, such as structures and systems, the examples can vary widely, so reassurance that an individual has covered the examination content in their studies is far from guaranteed.
Solutions
Resource Group has attempted to address this issue by providing an affordable, web-based distance learning product accompanied by the opening of regional examination centres, most recently in Amsterdam, and guaranteeing the examination content is covered by the training material. The ability for an individual to learn at their own pace and in their own time also provides the flexibility to continue working while studying.
Taking time off work for study can often be a showstopper for a hardworking engineer with a family to feed and bills to pay when considering self-improvement. Of course, not all individuals can self-study every module and may need some supplementary instructor led training. The pandemic pushed many training organisations to deliver instructor-led training via Zoom, including our own. Although compelled through necessity, this has proven to be a positive development and saves the engineer the cost of travel and accommodation during training, whilst examinations can be taken at regional examination centres.
Against this fragmented backdrop it is not surprising that few operators seem to have their own reliable pipeline of new starters. I disagree with some commentators that the candidates are hard to find, that is not our experience when the opportunities have been created. A career in aviation maintenance still provides a myriad of opportunities and a route for people from any background to a highly lucrative career. Through our work we see a ready pipeline of budding engineers and the industry certainly needs these people more than ever. Thankfully the current labour shortage has brought appropriate levels of recognition for their skills.
Employer, training provider and funding authority cooperation in a fully supported, unbureaucratic initial training programme, followed by a path for career progression that attracts the best candidates, are all that are needed. It shouldn’t be that difficult really.
Thousands of individual students have passed through Resource Training’s doors in the UK and locations across Europe, Asia, the Middle East and the Caribbean.
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