Somebody's selling their A & P...

[RandolphB]

Interesting item for sale on ebay...:

http://cgi.ebay.com/AIRCRAFT-MECHANIC-T ... 522wt_1165

[The Inspector]

I admire the guy for trying this novel approach to market his formidable knowledge and skills. I feel for the guy because all of us could very well be in the same fix, tons of knowledge (over skilled) and no one will hire you because you are 'not quite what we are looking for' in other words 'we think you're too old and would rather hire some snot nose that we can get cheap and train to be what we want'. Boeing is starting to experience the 'knowledge loss' phenomenon, over the last few years they've given the 'golden handshake' to so many folks that now there is a perceptable canyon of experience loss between the 20'isher newbies and the very few silver backs left and no one has the middle ground that can figure things out and "git 'er done' because those people were Boeing and were the Spirit of Boeing, now everyone wants to be 'a 'zecutive' and can't understand that it's impossible to text or twitter an airplane together, they lack basic mechanical skills and curiousity about things, they take everything literally and question nothing you sometimes can almost hear the sheep bleating as they rush around in a big clump and go nowhere and accomplish nothing for days on end.

It's really a sad commentary on the state of our industry when a guy with that much 'hands on' on so many different types is unable to find permanent work. His having been @ US SCARE and UNTIED may appear to be failings on his part 'why did he leave them?' they probably left him I'll bet. Look @ the recent histories of both carriers, if you are a long term United individual you'll need to work until you are 347 years old to make a dime in retirement due to all the gives backs and 'gimmie thats' that have gutted the futures of those folks who work there, and USAIR is still a very very long way from the edge of the woods and just might be gone along with how many others in the last 31 years since dereg? Seems the only place you can get a secure job these days is in prison. Like I tell my newbie students 'welcome to one of the few jobs in the world where you can have lifetime, permanently temporary employment'.

As those of us who have gone from piston to jet get older, retire, and die off, no one is going to be there to fill the void we leave in the business. Currently the four Part 147's in Washington State can produce around 200 A&P's per year, a brand new MRO in Spokane needs around 400 A&P's per year into the future, the math won't work, and that doesn't even venture into gen av mechanics needed in the future.

Again, I (even if no one else does) really do admire this guy-

[A2C]

If Inspector is correct, isn't that discrimination in violation of labor laws?

I see other phenomena at work. One is the really young guy has a limited value, but the experienced collaborative other guy with skills is of greater value. The younger one is unable to lead and solve problems like the experienced fellow. The more experienced guy is irreplacable.

Let's look at it from another angle. In the talk radio industry, Rush Limbaugh is I believe 58 years old, but no younger guy can replace him.

In other words certain skills cannot be touched, but by a select few.

[skymstr02]

In GA, he'd be a lot more marketable if he had an IA.

[The Inspector]

There's a difference between that_______________(your personal adjectives can be inserted here) on radio, where no one can see your age and applying for a real job with real responsibilities. And, yes it IS a violation of the law to discriminate on, amongst other things, age. But the turn downs have been sharp edged to such a fine point by HR lawyers (HR, thats a joke, Resources should mean cultivate and nurture, not harvest and dump out) that the terms used couldn't be brought to bear in a court room because they are 'ambiguous' and cannot be definitely defined, kinda like 'describe porrnnography to me' what you find ugly and offensive may be just fine with the next person. Case in point, I had a pre-employment student (early 20's female) who cruised the net during breaks to look @ photos of women bound and gagged in painful looking poses, she saw nothing wrong with that. Same thing in the employment office, after a certain age, 'your qualifications don't exactly match up to our needs @ this time...' is your opportunity to be bound and gagged with no recourse because you are too old and no one in the employment office has a problem with that, because you will want much more money than they really wish to offer, have your ways of doing things that may be faster and more efficient, but not the accepted norm @ the place you are trying to get a job with. Companies sometimes also post openings in the general public, but have a specific 'inside' person who is 'greenlighted' to get the open job but the company must put on the dog and pony to satisfy the labor laws, so you would never get past the first inteview because 'good old Dave' has been prechosen to get that opening. As you get older, the slope gets steeper and slipperier

[hang the expense]

Relying on companies today for long term employment is pure folly.Hang out your own shingle and give it a go.If you dont have the gumption to strike out on your own then you "AINT" hungry enough.

[bax101]

'welcome to one of the few jobs in the world where you can have lifetime, permanently temporary employment'.

Im using this as my quote.

I dont get what needs to be done to secure a job in the avation world right now. Ive been out of one for 7 months or so. So now i do construction and im making 5 times the amount i was making working in GA. But i must be crazy bc im not a big fan of the work in construction and im looking for a job still in avaition.

[b17engineer]

I hav e been working at the aforementioned Untied for nearly 25 years now and can't say that I believe there is a real future here. We have lost 20+ mechanics in the last 2 years to other jobs (they thought the grass was greener, but are finding out otherwise). Recently I've started my own company to try and fill in when I decide to retire from here.

RICK

[Steve Pierce]

I've been working for myself since 1997. I'm not getting rich but I enjoy the work and the bills get paid. Worked my way from a warbird restoration shop to my own GA shop and now do restorations on antique and classic rag and tube types. There is more work than me, my wife and two mechanics that work for me can do.

[Airplanejunkie]

I hav e been working at the aforementioned Untied for nearly 25 years now and can't say that I believe there is a real future here. We have lost 20+ mechanics in the last 2 years to other jobs (they thought the grass was greener, but are finding out otherwise). Recently I've started my own company to try and fill in when I decide to retire from here.

RICK

I've been at United (pilot) for about the same amount of time. Reached the conclusion that there's no such thing as a secure job in aviation. I've seen too many companies come and go to to think otherwise. For now I stay because it's the best gig available to me, but for sure my planning includes the very real possibility that each paycheck could be my last......

Steve

[Mike Robinson]

Steve Do I know u? I am the guy who got mugged at TK

[Airplanejunkie]

Steve Do I know u? I am the guy who got mugged at TK

Sort of...at least I think

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