National Aviation Day Presents Opportunity to Spark Interest

A looming technical labor shortage has prompted a push to get youth interested in becoming aircraft mechanics.

Thursday, August 17, 2023 at 01:21 PM ET

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According to a Boeing forecast, the industry needs “to recruit, train, and hire 610,000 new maintenance technicians.” [Credit: Flight Safety International]

Key Takeaways:

National Aviation Day celebrates advancements in aviation and honors all professionals in the field, with a special emphasis on aircraft mechanics.
The aviation industry faces a critical and growing shortage of aircraft maintenance technicians, exacerbated by an aging workforce and increasing demand.
To address this labor shortage, the article advocates for sparking interest in aviation and technical trades, particularly maintenance, much earlier, ideally starting in elementary school.
Numerous educational resources and activities are available from organizations like KidsKonnect, NASA, and IEEE to engage children and foster early interest in aviation.

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On Saturday, our country will celebrate National Aviation Day—Orville Wright’s birthday. President Franklin D. Roosevelt created the holiday in 1939 to celebrate advancements in aviation. Born in 1871, Wright was still alive to see the first observation before his death in 1948.

Aviation entities nationwide will host fly-ins, roast hot dogs, and honor those who preceded us in the grand experiment of air travel. National Aviation Day (NAD) is for pilots, air traffic controllers, fuelers, logistics professionals, flight attendants, and aircraft maintenance technicians. Each of these trades owes a tip of the cap to the decades of individuals that blazed the trail or runway.