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Tougher Standards for the AMT Awards program?
Input needed
By Greg Napert
July 2004
For those of you who have always wanted to impact an FAA Advisory Circular — now’s your chance!
The FAA Awards Program AC65-25C, which became effective in 1992, and has had more than 20,000 awards issued annually since 1999, is now being modified to make the awards a bit more challenging to achieve.
The program has been running well for several years, but some suggested that the individual awards as well as the company awards were “too easy to obtain.”
As a result, the FAA Awards Committee, industry volunteers who administer the program, has proposed an increase in hours for awards for individual participants, as well as an increase in the percentage of involvement for company awards.
Your input is being solicited to comment on these changes.
The proposed AC 65-25C is available on the AMT website (click here), along with an e-mail link to send comments, or you can submit your comments (Identify AC 65-25C, Aviation Maintenance Technician Awards Program) to: William O’Brien, Aircraft Maintenance Division (AFS-300), Federal Aviation Administration, 800 Independence Ave., S.W., Washington, D.C. 20591. In brief, the new proposed award levels are as follows:
New proposed individual award levels:
- Bronze (total training — 15 hours)
- Silver (total training — 30 hours)
- Gold (total training — 45 hours)
- Ruby (total training — 75 hours)
- Diamond (total training — 100 hours)
New proposed company award levels
- Silver Certificate of Excellence requires 40 percent of the eligible employees
- Gold Certificate of Excellence requires 60 percent of the eligible employees
- Ruby Certificate of Excellence requires 80 percent of the eligible employees
- Diamond Certificate of Excellence requires 90 percent of the eligible employees
What did you do for AMT Day?
As many of you may well be aware from our May issue, May 24 was AMT
Day in 28 states (23 states had passed it at the printing of the
May issue). A national effort is also underway to make May 24 AMT Day
nationally, which is rumored to be accomplished by the time this issue
mails.
As this year’s AMT Day approached, I was offered the opportunity to attend the Colorado celebration of AMT Day at Frontier Airlines. The event took place beneath the jetway at Gate 36 at the Denver Airport. Colorado State Senator Sue Windels and State Representative Liane McFadyen (both sponsors of the AMT Day bill in Colorado) attended along with many other personal from Frontier as well as United Airlines.
Charles Taylor II was
also in attendance to speak on behalf of his great grandfather Charles
Taylor.
As the speeches came to an end, and the “Happy AMT Day” cake
was cut, I couldn’t help wondering how many others throughout the
country were celebrating this day in honor of the aircraft maintenance
technician.
I was soon reminded of a similar event taking place in Everett, Washington. Technicians and management from Goodrich Corp.’s Everett maintenance hangar, and SoundAir Repair were awarded with Diamond awards in conjunction with AMT Day.
Please write to us at AMT magazine if you held a celebration in honor of all AMTs who keep aircraft safe — we’d like to know.
Greg Napert, Proud to be an A&P
