Joe Matz is both the vice president and director of maintenance for Vintage Wings Inc. and an AMT with Classic Jet Center.
“I’ve been at Classic for around seven years. We do everything from jets to Piper Cubs Aeronca Chiefs, stuff like that. And then at Vintage Wings, I’m vice president and director of maintenance. Our flagship is Beach City Baby, which is a 1942 C-53, which is basically a DC-3,” he described.
With the two duel roles, Matz said he enjoys the variety they bring.
"The variety of it, that’s what I love the most. Classic gives a unique variety. How many places you can go from working on a Lear 75 to an Aeronca Chief in the same day,” he said.
Matz's interest in aviation was sparked by his father, a pilot, who bought his first plane when Matz was 2 years old.
“That gave me the bug and I loved taking stuff apart when I was a kid. I just kind of gravitated towards that side of aviation. That doesn’t say I don’t want to be a pilot eventually, but I did enjoy the mechanics of it,” he said. “There are not many industries like it. There’s a unique set of challenges, like at Classic we deal with all kinds of stuff. So, I enjoy learning about all kinds of different systems that you wouldn’t normally be learning about – just the challenges of it.”
He began his aviation career as a line service tech at Classic after figuring college wasn’t for him. When a mechanic later quit, Matz was asked if he wanted to take on an apprenticeship.
“That’s how I got my A&P start really. I did the whole apprenticeship and got my A&P that way, but I learned so much more doing hands on than I would’ve ever learned in the classroom,” Matz said.
It’s a route Matz said more people should consider for education.
“It’s a unique experience. You get to work on some really cool stuff. It’s also very rewarding getting to see a project you’ve been working on for maybe a month or so take off and watch it fly. I just enjoy it. If there’s other people out there like me, it’s definitely worth it,” he said.
