Originally Garret Fischer signed up with the Navy through the delayed entry program and was given the job of aircraft mechanic. But a baseball injury derailed that plan and after he healed he attended Southwestern Illinois College's AMT program. His father was a mentor as he was the one that directed him to the local college with an aviation maintenance program. In regards to aviation, "when I started at AVMATS, Steve Bordogna helped me a lot with learning the ways of aviation and sharing his knowledge of engines."
After AVMATS, he worked for Jet Aviation in Cahokia, IL, as a technician, engine shop lead, and engine shop supervisor. Currently he is lead, aircraft maintenance technician at West Star Aviation. He organizes and assigns work to team members, ensures work is completed efficiently, provides guidance and keeps projects on track in regards to safety, hours, and schedule. Fischer also works with customers and OEMs to ensure all requirements are met to the satisfaction of all parties involved and travels as required to assist customers with any issues or AOG events.
He has received advanced training on the Honeywell RE220 Series APU, P&WC JT15D series hot section inspection, Honeywell 131-9 (A) APU and HTF series (AS907) Turbofan, Rolls-Royce BR710-A2-20, GE CF34-3A1/3B and CFM56-7B line maintenance.
Nominated by Matthew Harter, Instructor, Southwestern Illinois College: "Garret has been immersed in aviation, especially turbine engines, since his first day of A&P school in 2002. After completion of the indepth, one-year A&P program at Southwestern Illinois College, Garret hit the ground running in the workforce. He first worked for AVMATS in O'Fallon, MO, in its engine overhaul facility. After a few years, he took his new skill set to Jet Aviation in Cahokia, IL. He quickly adapted to the pace of working on the floor rather than the overhaul shop. He excelled on the engines for the Bombardier line of aircraft as well as engines for Gulfstreams, Falcons, and Hawkers. Within in a short amount of time he became the manager of the engine shop. This did not relegate him to a desk, but rather added to the responsibilities he already handled extremely well as a lead technician. In 2017, looking for a new challenge, Garret moved to West Star Aviation in Alton, IL. In his short time there, he has become an integral part of the Bombardier team. Using the wealth of knowledge he has gained at several factory training schools, he has been a key resource on the engine side of operations.In regards to giving back to the industry, he shares his experiences, good and bad, in order to help educate others and make the maintenance world more knowledgeable.Fischer's career goals are pretty simple, "I would like to be a go-to person for assistance in resolving aircraft-related problems. Whether that is in a management type role, a technical adviser, or a senior mechanic who travels to the customer during scheduled or unscheduled events. My main goal at the end of the day is to deliver a quality product."
