Articles for tag Maintenance Minute
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Jul
26
2021
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Posted by Admin
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Several years ago, I attended an aircraft maintenance course designed for a specific model of aircraft. On day one, the instructor told the class that in the classroom environment we would only retain twenty percent of the information that we would be taught. I promptly raised my hand and asked if we would receive an eighty percent refund. Everyone laughed except the instructor. In the years that have followed, the only thing I remember about that class is that statement.
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Maintenance Minute
Mark Tyler
Categories:
Maintenance Minute
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Jun
27
2021
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Posted by Admin
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Adversity…we can try to run from it, but it is in the adversity that we find growth and ultimately, we find excellence. Leadership coach Les Brown says that there is greatness inside us all. I believe that is true, but I also believe that greatness is revealed through the pain and suffering of adversity.
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Maintenance Minute
Mark Tyler
Categories:
Maintenance Minute
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Apr
26
2021
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Posted by Admin
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It all began with a motivational poster bought from the trunk of a car. That poster hung on my bedroom wall for years, positioned so it would be the last thing I saw before going to sleep and the first thing I saw upon waking up. (No, I was not married at the time.) These seven words I saw and contemplated multiple times every day:
Change Your Thoughts and Change Your World.
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Maintenance Minute
Mark Tyler
Categories:
Maintenance Minute
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Mar
22
2021
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Posted by Admin
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I recently came across an unsigned quote about professionalism. It read, “We do not convey professionalism by loud talk or fast work. We do convey that we are professional by demonstrating that there is only black and white, right and wrong, one way and one way only; by thinking ahead, double checking, asking when we are not sure, being responsible for our actions and not assuming anything!” In fact, the dictionary defines professionalism as the competence or skill expected of a professional and goes on to say that professionalism is the key to quality and efficiency. Personally, I believe professionalism goes far beyond competence and skill but most assuredly effects quality and efficiency. As a professional helicopter mechanic, how do you demonstrate your professionalism? What does the top of your toolbox look like? What about your work area? Do you empty the trash cans, or do they spill over on the hangar floor? Do you clean the helicopter windows before the pilot arrives? Do the little things matter to you? I was taught that you never get a second chance to make a first impression so… yes, the little things always matter. When I look in my box of essential tools I will ask if my professionalism passes the test. Will my speech pass the professional communication test? Am I committed to my customers and employees? Am I growing both personally and professionally?
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Maintenance Minute
Mark Tyler
Categories:
Maintenance Minute
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Feb
22
2021
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Posted by Admin
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I recall starting the day with excitement, yet nervous anticipation as my civilian helicopter maintenance career began. As a young man, I didn't have a taller-than-me stacked toolbox filled with every possible combination of tools one can imagine. What I had was a two-drawer portable toolbox that was stocked with the bare minimum. When my new boss and future mentor saw this, he asked, “What are you going to do with those plow tools?” By his raw honesty, he certainly succeeded in his intent to change my perspective. If I was going to be a professional aircraft mechanic, then I had to be equipped for the role.
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Tags:
Customer Service
Maintenance Minute
Mark Tyler
Categories:
Maintenance Minute
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Jan
22
2021
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Posted by Admin
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It was April 1990 and my day one as a new helicopter mechanic for Carraway Methodist Medical Center. I was not quite thirty years old and had previously served in the US Air Force and for the helicopter maintenance contractor at Fort Rucker. My prior duty and experience were to support and defend and train but at Carraway it was helicopter emergency medical service. With no idea what was about to happen or how it would impact my life and work and even my view of life, the squelch of the radio broke the silence with” Scramble Lifesaver, Scramble Lifesaver - self-inflicted gunshot - Scramble Lifesaver.”.
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Maintenance Minute
Mark Tyler
Categories:
Maintenance Minute
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Dec
28
2020
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Posted by Admin
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My first exposure to aviation began in the U.S. Air Force. When training in my chosen field was postponed, I was asked to crosstrain to a secondary career field. “We really need aircraft mechanics,” I was told. I readily agreed, and so the adventure began. Later, as a crew chief for the F16 Fighting Falcon, I quickly learned the importance of marshaling aircraft and the use of hand signals…flight controls-check, speed brake-check, stop, go, chock, and the aircraft salute. Little did I know at the time that these simple hand signals would become part of an especially important essential tool that we must use every day. We have already discussed the tool of integrity: doing the right thing, and the tool of commitment: the fuel for action. Let us now look at the essential tool of communication.
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Maintenance Minute
Mark Tyler
Categories:
Maintenance Minute
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Nov
17
2020
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Posted by Admin
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My favorite part of the aircraft maintenance process is the post maintenance operational checks or commonly referred to as ground runs. During my early days working for the helicopter maintenance contractor at Fort Rucker, I was engine run qualified for the UH-1H and the OH58 and performing ground runs was something I did on a regular basis. This is the time we see the fruits of our labor, but it is also the most dangerous time. The maintenance event may have called for component overhaul, engine replacement or flight control rigging. The maintenance process calls for checking, rechecking, and verifying. It is always good to have a pre-runup discussion with the pilot and every mechanic that is involved with the runup. Communication is key to keeping everyone safe. When the pilot yells, “CLEAR” and the mechanic responds with, “CLEAR” the setting will get noisy in a hurry. Prior planning with everyone is a must. The person behind the controls should know where everyone is always located so ducking under the tail boom to change sides is not allowed.
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Maintenance Minute
Mark Tyler
Categories:
Maintenance Minute
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Oct
19
2020
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Posted by Admin
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I clearly remember that life-changing day in April 1990. It was my first day working as a helicopter mechanic at Carraway Methodist Medical Center in Birmingham, Alabama. The radio call dispatched the helicopter, the pilot brought the machine to life and the medical crew strapped in as the Bell LongRanger took to the air. It seemed like only minutes later the aircraft returned, and the patient was rolled past me to the Level I trauma center. From that moment on, life was different as the purpose for my work became clearer in that instant.
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Maintenance Minute
Mark Tyler
Categories:
Maintenance Minute
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Sep
18
2020
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Posted by Admin
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Aircraft maintenance comes in many shapes and sizes. There are so many different models of airframes and engines that one can become overwhelmed with all the manufacturing differences and operational requirements to keep these aircraft flying safely. Inspection requirements range from daily checks to major overhauls, progressive to periodic, scheduled and unscheduled. As an aircraft mechanic, we train to a standard and once that standard is achieved we receive a certification card from the United States government verifying that we have met the standard and are therefore authorized to inspect and return to service aircraft registered in the United States. With our signature on our certification card, off we go to make a difference in the world of aviation.
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Tags:
Maintenance Minute
Mark Tyler
Categories:
Maintenance Minute