Unfortunately, for the near future, this will be the new norm on the private GA side. I'm seeing more smaller 135 ops going through the same labor shortage issues but they are putting together internal headhunter groups who actively seek mechanic and pilot candidates. Know of one helicopter company that has effectively staked out several of the larger A&P programs to catch them at the gate.
FYI: there are a number of maintenance tasks, to include oil changes, a certificated pilot can perform and sign off on their aircraft under "preventive maintenance" rules. All depends on how involved you want to get. Part 43 Appx A gives a list of categories and there are other FAA guidance documents on the subject.
Yup. But there are other factors. So many kids have grown up in homes where Dad doesn't do any of his own maintenance on anything, and so the kid never gets any inspiration from it.
We never did that. If we couldn't get at it promptly, we told the customer and he could take it somewhere else. The basic problem was that there were few other places to take it.
Yup. Pop the hood. Takes one second. Look things over. Takes a few minutes. No carb to adjust, no magnetos that need inspections, no timing adjustments at all. No vacuum pump in some nearly-impossible spot to replace. No oil filter or screen blocked by engine mount tubing or anything else. No cutting open the oil filter for inspection. No long inspection checklists, no logbooks to fill out. No ground run to check everything.
That's just it, the aviation maintenance industry is not like most businesses. There have been several discussions on PoA on this but most don't understand it. There are variables that other type businesses don't have to deal with and can work right through without a hitch. Unfortunately, one broken stud or an IA out sick can throw a well planned out weekly schedule into a 2 month backlog in the blink of an eye. Even one-man shops can get into situations which bring the work flow to a halt. It was one of the reasons I got out of the ad hoc mx business as in my case any unexpected issue would automatically come with a 7 day delay as I also maintained a day job. However, not keeping the customer in the loop is just a lack of good customer service which to me is more a social issue and a similar problem in many other service industries.
That seems to be a fairly common business model, actually.
Actually they are paying better just not in the Part 91 world. So anyone coming out of A&P school is going straight the 135/121 side at a competitive wage. The main problem driving the shortage is lack of interest by the current generation from what I hear.
I was fortunate enough where that didn't happen to me. Hell, I was 3 when my parents let me drive the gas golf cart (sans governor) in the parking lot family business... located on a 4 lane highway. I couldn't touch the pedals so I had to stand. I was largely unsupervised and I'm pretty sure someone would be in jail today for child neglect. By the time I was a freshman in high school I was racing stock cars against men. Changing rear end gears twice every weekend as we raced Friday Saturday and Sunday at 3 different tracks. Greasing bearings with zero weight grease aka snot. Tuning carbs and gapping plugs. Sure was expensive but it kept me out of trouble. Go to a party...or work on the cars to go racing?
Perhaps that's how it is in your area, but that's not what I'm seeing in my area and there is a solid aviation base in the region. The numbers interested just aren't there as they used to be and I've been helping people toward their A&P for over 25 years. While I don't know about other trades, everyone I deal with all understand there is a time requirement to get the A&P and is usually one of the reasons they get directed in my direction. In my opinion, the ones that are interested in the technical side of aviation have shifted toward the drone and simulation industries vs the standard variety of aircraft. The few people I still do assist with the OJT route to an A&P seem to indicate the same. If commercial aviation gets back on the growth track predicted pre-covid, there's going to be a serious problem on the private Part 91 side when it comes to maintenance services. Time will tell.
Not at all. But there simply isnt the numbers of young people who want to be an aviation mechanic, car mechanic, truck mechanic, and so on. Maybe if they started paying more than pilots you'll get some of that crowd to turn a wrench but doubtful. Regardless, they already went through "nobody wants to work ...for what they're willing to pay" thing in the 2000s when most commercial wages tripled. Now nobody is simply not interested in this side of aviation. Curious, what wage do you think it would take tk redraw their interest?
A lot more than what I was making when I retired, for sure. And that will increase the cost of aircraft ownership and will result in fewer airplanes flying and more ramp queens.
Its this that will keep the Part 91 side in the hole. Nobody will be willing to pay a wage to keep independent APIAs at this level. The commercial side got smart 20 years ago when competing with the airlines and now are somewhat holding their own to attract and keep talent especially the experienced ones. Unfortunately, these higher mechanic wages are encroaching into the pilot wage territory which doesnt fare well for much additional growth at least on the commercial side. When I retired from the day job I made more than entry level pilots but had also been topped out for 10 years. So unless they rebuild the diehard interest in aviation with the up and coming generations as it was in the past, Part 91 aviation will continue its slow slide down the slippery slope.
Does that $150+ shop rate increase also include the independent APIAs who have a small one-man shop at the smaller local airports? You had a shop. What average wage do you think needs to be paid to attract/retain a 3-5 year A&P in a shop environment? What entry level wage do you think will restart the "trainee pipeline" again for Part 91 private aircraft? Forget geographical COL issues for now.
It’s always amazed me of the COL differences/rates found in CA and HI. But to get a useful comparison we’ll convert your COL to my area. The charts show a 40% difference but we’ll use 30% so that makes your $100-120K and $150K equal to $70-84K and $105k respectively. The 135 operators in my area have been paying these type wages for years and they include insurance and matching 401k.
This is the one thing I’ve seen slowly disappearing over the past 15 years from the up and coming A&Ps. They have zero desire for small Part 91 ops. They would rather work 7&7, nights, in the marsh on turbine helicopters than twist a wrench on a 172. Or most would rather move away and find an opportunity other than work Part 91 local. In the last 10 years only one of the individuals I helped with their A&P went into the local Part 91 side, but that was more due to the “family effect” than anything else.