Jason Yoder listened intently as he learned the scores from Team Tulsa Tech (Oklahoma) after the first day of action in last year’s Aerospace Maintenance Competition (AMC) Presented by Snap-on. Likening what he heard, Yoder’s fists clenched up, pumping his hands once with excitement, “You smoked it, good for you!” he said to Faith Hogue, who was standing next to him. “You deserve to be here and now you know it. Way to go Faith!”

Like many participants, Yoder wears many hats at the AMC. He likes being part of American Airlines’ Tech Ops – Tulsa Team and competing alongside his colleagues. But what he loves is the opportunity to help mentor students at the event. For the past several years, American has taken the cross-town college under their wing and helped them prepare for each AMC. “They’re doing great, and that’s one of the best things about the competition every year is the teaching and coaching we can do to help these students succeed and prepare for a career in maintenance,” Yoder said.

Mentoring has become a large part of the AMC, and something that’s so invaluable to both the professional technicians and students. Both Yoder and Hogue will be back at this year’s AMC (https://www.aerospacecompetition.com/), which kicks off April 28 at the Kay Bailey Hutchinson Convention Center in Dallas, Texas.

Bigger and Better

The AMC has become a global sensation for aviation maintenance. Under the direction of organizers Ken MacTiernan, The Honorable John Goglia and its presenting sponsor, Snap-on, the AMC has grown tremendously in the past seven years. “Snap-on is pleased to once again be the presenting sponsor of the Aerospace Maintenance Competition,” said Tom Murray, director of marketing, Snap-on. “We’ve watched the competition grow from 20 teams to upwards of 90 teams, and 500 competitors. The AMC is so much more than simply a competition; we wish everyone the best of luck this year in Dallas.”

The AMC provides a venue for professional mechanics to come together and test their skills against each other, while also developing a strong sense of camaraderie over two days of friendly competition. This year, the diverse lineup of teams in Dallas will show off their knowledge, skill and integrity by competing in 28 events, including airframe damage inspection, cable rigging, fiber optics, engine fan blade removal and many others that challenge their knowledge of aviation maintenance.

“The AMC tests the multiple skills required for both basic and very detailed performance-based tasks. There are also events that require techs to use their minds,” said Goglia, a former National Transportation Safety Board member. “In aviation, it’s not just mechanical dexterity that gets you through the day, you have to use your head and think. That’s what aviation maintenance is all about, using your hands and head to come to a solution.”

Teams compete to see who’s best in six divisions: Commercial Aviation, General Aviation, Space, Military, MRO/OEM and School, which attracts teams from the country’s top A&P schools. Each event has a 15-minute time limit; the action is exciting, fast-paced and great drama for fans to watch.

International Flavor

The AMC is once again attracting teams from across the border…and in some cases, across oceans. This year, fans can root for teams from Australia, Canada, Italy, Qatar and the United Kingdom.

Stephen Fotoulis, a member of the Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineer Association, has both competed and served as a judge in past AMCs. He said the opportunity to connect with other technicians from around the world is invaluable. “For me, the AMC is about making friendships for life,” he said. “Every time I go, I make friends that I keep in contact with. It’s not just about winning; it’s about making lifelong friends.”

Creating the AMC to be an international event helps bring the industry closer together as technicians share information and experiences that help advance the profession forward. “Collectively we have tribal knowledge. What I don’t know, someone else does. Then, they teach me and then I pass it along. That’s how we become stronger as a profession,” said MacTiernan, a San Diego-based technician for more than 30 years with American Airlines. “I want these participants to take away the knowledge that we belong to a global community of skilled craftspeople. An aircraft doesn’t care about my gender, the color of my skin or the color of my uniform, it cares about the knowledge, skill and integrity of the wrench that’s going to be fixing that aircraft. That’s what’s on display at the AMC.”

Vying for No. 1

All teams will be chasing the top prize in aviation maintenance: The William F “Bill” O’Brien Award for Excellence in Aircraft Maintenance. Presented by Snap-on, the O’Brien Award is given to the team with the best overall winning score. That team receives the honor of displaying the five-foot tall trophy in their facility for a year. In addition to the trophy, Snap-on is awarding more than $75,000 in tools and equipment as prizes to the top finishers in the competition.

For the past three years, United Airlines Team Cleveland has taken the O’Brien Award with them back to Ohio. But that streak will be ending this year as United has restructured its four teams attending the AMC.

With a new team destined ready to claim the top spot, what does it take to win the O’Brien Award? “Practice, practice, practice,” Goglia said. “For the pro teams, they need to go back to basics and learn to do things that may not be in their daily work because they may not have worked on a specific task in a very long time. From the students’ perspective, they’re learning things that are sometimes not taught in school. But the key is practice. Some of these events are decided by seconds, that’s how close this is.”

Mentoring

Many teams spend months practicing for the AMC, such as Tulsa Tech, which trains closely with their professional mentors from American’s Tulsa Tech Ops team. “The mentoring we receive is extremely valuable,” said Hogue. “They come to our campus, they’re super friendly and patient. Just being able to observe and learn from them helps set us up for success, both during and after the AMC.”

This level of mentoring is fairly common between professional teams and schools competing in the AMC. United, UPS, Alaska and many others all work closely with schools to help prepare students for the competition.

Admission to the AMC is free with your MRO Americas convention credentials. If you can’t be in Dallas, you can still catch the action through the AMC live stream at www.mroamc.live.

Steve Staedler is a senior account executive at LePoidevin Marketing, a Brookfield, WI-based business-to-business marketing firm that specializes in the tooling and aerospace industries. Staedler has been covering aeronautical maintenance for more than 10 years; is a former newspaper reporter and retired master sergeant from the U.S. Air Force Reserve, where he worked maintenance and public affairs.