New Horizons

I had an epiphany while waiting waiting for the rest of the passengers to board. We were on our way from Bogota to Santa Marta.

As with most of my good ideas, I had some help from my lovely assistant and wife.  We were briefly discussing how aircraft work, and how interesting it must be to work on them.

There was a beat; a pause in the conversation. We both looked at each other and I think the idea hit us at the same time: why don't I work on aircraft?

I remembered a recruiter from what was then known as Spartan School of Aeronautics coming to talk to us in high school. Their marketing was effective: they gave us a sticker with a black cat branded with the number #13

Their motto is "Knowledge and Skill Overcome Superstition and Luck."

I dig that sentiment.

I gathered some information about Spartan, and Wifey and I had made mental preparations for me to relocate to another state to attend this school.

We discovered only a short time later that a local community college offers A&P courses.

With only two weeks between our arrival back to the US, and classes starting, we jumped in feet-first to a new career for me, and a new way of life for her. It should be interesting to say the least.

In the two weeks between then and now, I scoured the internet for advice, suggestions, and an outlook for people like me who were going to attend an A&P school after having already been in the workforce. I found none.

While waiting for class to start today, I occupied my time by jotting some emotions and thoughts in my notebook. I realized that I could do some good by recording the process from my perspective, and sharing it with the world in blog form.

I present to you, dear reader, my account of A&P school, as I'm living it.
I intend to be a licensed Aviation Maintenance Technician in under 2 years.


Why A&P?

Long-Term Goal

I love aircraft and always have. While other boys were talking about cars, I was talking about aircraft.

People want to talk about freedom and having the wind in their hair... forget your motorcycle, go fly a plane!

And I'm a good mechanic. It only seems natural now that I think about it. Isn't that how things always work, though? They seem obvious and apparent once you've already figured them out.

Long-term goal is to fly, but I can only do/afford to do one thing at a time. This will get me a job that pays more, which is something a PPL wouldn't do. This gets me in and around aircraft, in the aviation community, and if we want to talk about Maslow's hierarchy, it gives me a good shot at self-actualization.

Mine is a dead-end job with little reward, challenge, or financial renumeration. I would take any two of those three, but I think that the A&P Licensure, and the AMT status that comes with it, I'll be able to get all three.

At least I hope.