Wednesday, May 29, 2013

Aircraft Technician Courses Result in Important Career

With millions of people using airplanes as their preferred mode of transportation, those with aircraft technician training are in high demand. That’s because these professionals are charged with a wide range of responsibilities that ensure planes are safe to take to the skies. Among the areas in which they must be skilled are: aircraft maintenance, power plant structures, inspections, troubles hooting, mechanical, electrical and electronic applications. Additionally, those with aircraft technician training repair a wide range of electrical and mechanical systems within an aircraft, including: hydraulics, fuels, environmental systems, engines, surface controls and undercarriage systems, and the aircraft’s frame and external skin. Rounding out responsibilities are familiarities of aviation maintenance servicing practices and procedures as well as aviation regulation requirements.

All of these skills are taught through Centennial College’s aircraft technician courses within the two-year Aviation Technician – Aircraft Maintenance program. And as a result, students not only gain an Ontario College Diploma, but are also prepared to work with airlines/operators (Air Canada, Kelowna Flight craft, Great Slave Helicopters); manufacturers (Bombardier, Magellan Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney); military (Department of National Defense); aviation training (Flight Safety Canada Aviation); repair and overhaul (SPAR Aerospace, IMP Group); and aviation equipment/avionics (MC2, Wright Instruments). In addition, aircraft technician training graduates are prepared to seek employment in non-aircraft related areas of certain repair and manufacturing industries

To apply for this aircraft technician training, applicants are required to present proof of completed of at minimum an Ontario Secondary School Diploma (OSSD) or equivalent or be 19 years of age or older. They must also have finished the compulsory English 12C or U or skills assessment or equivalent and Math 11M or U or 12C or U or skills assessment or equivalent. 

The aircraft technician training is facilitated from Centennial College’s transportation training hub, Ashtonbee Campus. This location boasts an aircraft hangar with a fleet of planes on which students can practice. As such, courses include much hands-on practice and to graduate, students must complete 200 performance tasks. Students also need to obtain a minimum C grade in all courses for graduation. Transport Canada accreditation requires both a minimum B grade in every course and an absentee rate of less than five per cent of the total program hours.

Specific aircraft technician courses include: Piston Engines and Propellers, Theory of Flight, Aircraft Publications, Avionics Fundamentals, Turbine Engines, Aircraft Instruments, Power Generation and Distribution, Rotary Wing Controls and many others.

This aircraft technician training holds Transport Canada (TC) accreditation, which is provided to graduates who meet attendance requirements, project completion requirements and attain 70 percent in each course. In addition, successful graduates who meet the accreditation requirements are eligible for an 18-month experience credit and technical examination credit towards the regulatory requirements for issue of a Canadian Aircraft Maintenance Engineer License. The program also holds the Canadian Council for Aviation and Aerospace accreditation and recognition towards meeting the basic training requirements for CCAA occupational trade certification as an avionics maintenance technician. Lastly, qualified graduates may also be eligible to participate in an articulated program with selected universities. These partnerships may allow graduates to apply academic credit towards further study. The aircraft technician training program’s partner is British Columbia Institute of Technology (Technology Management degree).

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