Opportunities in aerospace careers

294 Pages·1996·0.61 MB·English

by  Wallace R. Maples

Opportunities in Aerospace Careers VGM
title:
Opportunities Series
author: Maples, Wallace R.
publisher: NTC Contemporary
isbn10 | asin: 0844245771
print isbn13: 9780844245775
ebook isbn13: 9780071397520
language: English
Aeronautics--Vocational guidance,
subject
Aerospace industries--Vocational guidance.
publication date: 1996
lcc: TL561.M285 1996eb
ddc: 629.1/023
Aeronautics--Vocational guidance,
subject:
Aerospace industries--Vocational guidance.
Page i
VGM Opportunities Series
Opportunities In Aerospace Careers
Wallace R. Maples
Foreword by
William K. Kershner
National Flight Instructor of the Year-1989
Aviation Writer
VGM Carrer Horizons
a division of NTC Publishing Group
Lincolnwood, Illinios USA
Page ii
Cover Photo Credits
Clockwise from upper left: National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA); Bell Helicopter; Middle Tennessee State
University; Bell Helicopter.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Maples, Wallace R.
Opportunities in aerospace careers / Wallace R. Maples; foreword by
William K. Kershner.
p. cm. (VGM opportunities series)
Includes bibliographical references. (p.).
ISBN 0-8442-4577-1 (h). ISBN 0-8442-4579-8 (p)
1. AeronauticsVocational guidance. 2. Aerospace
industriesVocational guidance. I. Title. II. Series.
TL561.M285 1995
629.1'023dc20 95-21864
CIP
1997 Printing
Published by VGM Career Horizons, a division of NTC Publishing
Group
4255 West Touhy Avenue
Lincolnwood (Chicago), Illinois 60646-1975, U.S.A.
© 1996 by NTC Publishing Group. All rights reserved.
No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval
system, or transmitted in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise,
without the prior permission of NTC Publishing Group.
Manufactured in the United States of America.
7 8 9 VP 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2
Page iii
Contents
Foreword v
Acknowledgments vi
About the Author vii
1. Definition and History of Aerospace 1
Education versus training. History of flight.
2. Careers with the Airlines 6
Airline organizational structure. Airline pilot.
Maintenance technician. Reservation sales agent. Flight
attendant. Avionics technician. Other airline positions.
Canadian airlines.
3. Landing Facilities 40
Airport manager. Other airport careers. Fixed base
operator.
4. Engineering Research and Development 52
R&D specialist. Technical change.
5. General Aviation 58
Divisions of general aviation. Business aircraft use.
Executive flying. Commercial aviation. Personal
aviation. Instructional flying. Airplane sales. Other
general aviation flying. Advances in general aviation
technology.
Page iv
6. Government Aviation 77
Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). State
aeronautics agencies.
7. Aerospace Industries 95
Manufacturing of major-carrier aircraft. General
aviation manufacturing. Employment with
manufacturers of U.S. aircraft. Aircraft engine
manufacturers. Military and space manufacturing.
8. Military Aerospace 111
United States Air Force. United States Navy. United
States Marine Corps. United States Army. United States
Coast Guard. Military salaries and benefits. National
Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.
9. National Aeronautics and Space Administration 127
(NASA)
NASA's occupation classification system. Technical
support positions. NASA astronaut selection and
training. Future in space. Major NASA locations in the
United States.
10. Postsecondary Aviation Programs 142
Structure of postsecondary aviation. FAA airway
science program. Internship and cooperative education.
Aerospace problems to be solved. Youth activities.
Summary comments on aerospace careers.
Appendix A: Global and Major Airline Corporate 149
Addresses
Appendix B: Recommended Reading 151

Page v
Foreword
As this book is being printed I am celebrating my 50th year as a pilot.
Things were very different in 1945, and one of those different things
was the lack of information on planning a career in aviation.
In 1945, a pilot got private and commercial certificates and then
perhaps would get a flight instructor's rating (it was a rating then) and
hope to "build time" to go with an airline or into military flying. But
times were bad then; there was a surplus of military and ex-military
pilots in the year immediately following World War II and such was
the case for the early-1990s.
Wallace Maples tells it like it is, without fake optimism. He lays out
the requirements and expectations for the person who wants to make
aerospace a career, and suggests the best steps to be taken in reaching
that goal.
All important phases of aerospace careers are covered in this book.
Not all readers axe interested in being a pilot; there are many other
rewarding jobs in the field and, as the author indicates, there should be
an increased demand in all areas for careerists until the year 2000 and
beyond.
This book would have been a great help to me in launching an
aviation career back in 1945. Dr. Maples has compiled the current
information most needed for those aspiring to a career in aviation.
WILLIAM K. KERSHNER
Flight instructor and Aviation writer

Page vi
Acknowledgments
It is impossible to compile such a gathering of facts, impressions,
statistics, and information about broad career fields without the
support of many people and numerous organizations. Not to recognize
and thank them would be unconscionable.
The writer is clearly indebted to the following organizations for
providing recent statistics on salaries, requirements for employment,
and the numbers of people needed in the industry: Future Aviation
Professionals of America (FAPA), National Business Aircraft
Association (NBAA), AeroAcademe, National Aeronautics and Space
Administration (NASA), American Airlines, Inc., the General
Aviation Manufacturers Association, and the Federal Aviation
Administration (FAA).
At the risk of omitting someone who has made a significant
contribution, the following persons are recognized for donating time,
effort, ideas, and moral support: Dr. Michael Schukert, Dr. Peggy
Baty, Captain Stan Smartt, Dr. William Herrick, Commander Gary
Odom, Captain Louis SmithPresident of the Future Aviation
Professionals of American, Alex Evans, Buck Davis, Brett Fulford,
A.Scott Crossfield, Lynn Crane, Irene Henley, William Kershner, and
the aerospace faculty of Middle Tennessee State University.
To those who assisted and encouraged my entry into aerospace: Dr.
Bealer Smotherman, Jack Sorenson, Dr. Merv Strickler, H.Miller
Lanier, Dr. Ralph White, and Randall Wood.
Finally, with special thanks to my wife Carolyn, my three sons Greg,
Steve, and Bill, and my mother Mary G. Maples, who "thought I
could."