Building aviation careers

Yes, government – especially CASA – needs to do a lot more to simplify requirements, red tape and reduce cost rather than increase it. Yes, there are considerable concerns with the direction CASA is taking on a number of fronts with huge cost implications for industry with no safety benefit and yes, industry must continue to fight silly decisions that affect its livelihoods.

But industry can also step up and play a stronger role in creating pathways to aviation careers.

Aviation is one of the few careers that can grow with you, with such a wide expanse of career options – from pilots and LAMEs to operations and air traffic control. It also offers an environment in which it is possible to transition from technician to entrepreneur or from pilot to business owner.

One of the ways the wider industry – especially suppliers and service companies – can do this is by partnering with aviation associations to offer scholarships to ease the financial burden and to provide encouragement and recognition to people coming into the industry, or those seeking to gain further knowledge.

The AAAA is pleased to announce it is partnering with QBE Aviation Insurance to offer a $5,000 scholarship, focused on aerial application, for an individual in the industry to further their professional development, with a focus on improving safety.

The QBE Aerial Application Scholarship is aimed at reinforcing the message that professional development should continue throughout every aviation career and that safe operations are a foundation stone of all successful aviation companies.

The AAAA welcomes the scholarship as a further development of the longstanding relationship the industry has with QBE Aviation Insurance and congratulates QBE on its initiative.

The QBE Aerial Application Scholarship applications are now available on the AAAA website and the closing date is May 17.

This scholarship complements the Col Pay Scholarship founded by the Pay Family and the AAAA to commemorate the life and values of long-time AAAA member, Col Pay.

The Col Pay Scholarship is aimed at providing a pathway into the aerial application industry by providing aerial application training to the value of $10,000 for an agricultural rating. That scholarship has already attracted a number of new entrants to the industry as well as inspiring many more to consider a future in aerial application.

Of course, the AAAA is not alone, with the Regional Aviation Association of Australia also partnering with a range of supporters to offer seven scholarships for pilots and engineers, and others such as the Royal Federation of Aero Clubs and Airservices providing similar opportunities.

However, support for training needs to run even deeper than scholarships, as worthy and welcome as they are.

Any decision to add staff has to be made in the full glare of economic reality – if the dollars and workload don’t stack up, then neither does the new position. And again, that is where government needs to contribute.

Reducing red tape and making it easier to employ people – especially those who should receive government support because they are still being trained – would go a long way to fuelling the general aviation industry that underpins so much of aviation’s capabilities.

The range of challenges to improving career paths for newcomers should not result in industry paralysis – sometimes we need to smash through what we previously saw as problems.

For example, the number of small piston aircraft available in aerial application for on-the-job training and supervision continues to dwindle, but we now see some operators putting less experienced pilots into turbines.

The quality of supervision remains key to safe outcomes, but anecdotal evidence indicates that the safety ‘bulge’ in aerial application is with more experienced pilots becoming complacent, rather than new pilots making fundamental errors.

Of course, there will be exceptions and stuff-ups, but this is one example where industry must adapt so it can maintain a strong training culture without having to rely on imported skills.

Aviation is one of the few careers that can grow with you.