Quality on Display
Having quality tools that are both standard and specific in use were provided as prizes to the competitors of the 2013 Maintenance Skills Competition (MSC). These same tools were also used by the professionals during the many events that make up the MSC. The professionals I am speaking of are today’s Aircraft Maintenance Technicians (AMT) and Aircraft Maintenance Engineers (AME). The AMTSociety’s 6[sup]th[/sup] Annual Maintenance Skills Competition (MSC) was held during the Aviation Pros Live Expo in Las Vegas Convention Center in Las Vegas, NV.
The MSC is where each team of five Aircraft Maintenance Technicians competes in events that highlight just some of the many responsibilities that today’s AMTs carry in order to provide safe, airworthy aircraft worldwide. There are 5 categories for teams to compete in; Military Category, Commercial Aviation Category, General Aviation Category, School Category and MRO/OEM Category. There are 1[sup]st[/sup], 2[sup]nd[/sup] & 3[sup]rd[/sup] Place plaques and prizes for each category. Many different tool companies donate tools to these teams as thanks for competing against the best of the best. The events range from basic safety wiring to turbine engine troubleshooting to electrical/avionic troubleshooting. Snap-On provides all the tools that the AMTs require to complete each event requiring tools.
Although the competition is fierce the spirit of the competition is professional and friendly. This is because every AMT/AME competing belongs to a Brotherhood of professionals with a common thread of looking out for each other due to the fact that we all are entrusted with the lives of the people who fly on the machines we maintain… worldwide. This fact is evident in that the MSC has teams of AMTs that come from China, Australia, Canada, Mexico and the United States.
The 23 teams that competed in the 2013 MSC came to represent their respective companies and organizations as well as our craft & profession. The following teams stood tall for the AMT craft & profession:
FedEx Team LAX, FedEx Team MEM, FedEx Team INDY, UPS, Alaska Airlines, Australian Licensed Aircraft Engineers Association, West Jet Airlines, Boeing, TIMCO, Lode Technology, Constant Aviation, United States Coast Guard, Redstone College, West LA College, Spartan College of Aerospace & Technology, Aviation Institute of Maintenance Teams from Atlanta/Dallas/Houston/Chesapeake/Kansas City/Philadelphia/Indianapolis, Salt Lake Community College. All of these teams fielded professionals of the highest caliber. There are no winners or losers in the MSC but there are bragging rights. And this year the teams that were awarded 1[sup]st[/sup], 2[sup]nd[/sup] and 3[sup]rd[/sup] Place are as follows.
Commercial Aviation Category:
1[sup]st[/sup] Place FedEx Team LAX
2[sup]nd[/sup] Place FedEx Team INDY
3[sup]rd[/sup] Place UPS
MRO/OEM Category:
1[sup]st[/sup] Place Team Boeing
2[sup]nd[/sup] Place TIMCO
3[sup]rd[/sup] Place Lode Technology
School Category:
1[sup]st[/sup] Place Team Redstone College
2[sup]nd[/sup] Place: Spartan College of Aerospace & Technology
Salt Lake Community College
3[sup]rd[/sup] Place: Aviation Institute of Maintenance Team Dallas
NOTE: The 2013 MSC is the first year of the 6 years of competition that there was a tie for 2[sup]nd[/sup] Place.
Military Category:
1[sup]st[/sup] Place United States Coast Guard
General Aviation Category:
1[sup]st[/sup] Place Constant Aviation
There is also an award presented to the one team from all the teams that compete that has the lowest overall score and this year that team was FedEx Team LAX! This award is called the William F. “Bill” O’Brien Award for Excellence in Aircraft Maintenance. This prestigious recognition not only comes with extra Snap-On Tools but also a trophy created and sponsored by Snap-On Tools which consists of a bronze bust of Charles E. Taylor mounted on the top of two airfoils with polished metal supports and wire braces separating them. The glass sides are etched with the names of the five Aircraft Maintenance Technicians who earned this wonderful award along with the name of their respective company or organization. (The previous recipients of this award are Continental Airlines ‘08/’09, Southwest Airlines ‘10/’11, United States Coast Guard ’12.)
The AMTSociety also presents the Charles E. Taylor Professional AMT Award which is given to the single most professional looking, professional acting and highest team spirited competitors in the MSC. This year the recipient was United States Coast Guardsman AET 2 Michael Bosch from Air Station Clearwater FL. This award also has Snap-On Tools associated with it, most notably a gold engraved open end/box end wrench mounted in a shadow box.
Of the fourteen challenging events that were competed in this year all had tools that were presented to the team with the lowest score in that particular event. The AMTSociety would like to thank the following companies for their generosity for donating tools.
Snap-On Tools
DeWALT
SK Professional Hand Tools
Stanley Proto
ProBuilt Professional Lighting
Noise Buster Head Sets
David Clark Headsets
Top Flight Watches
Shure-Step Safety Step Stools
Bennette Desihn Group
Leatherman
Led Lenser
Crane Aerospace & Electronics
Protective Industrial Products
Silvertronic
Kennedy Tools
Virgin America
The 2013 MSC continued the tradition of providing a world class venue for the knowledge, skill & integrity of today’s AMTs to be showcased in. But the MSC would not be challenging and exciting if not for the companies that sponsored events to be competed in. The AMTSociety would like to thank the following companies for their support.
CAE
FedEx
Aircraft Maintenance Technicians Association
Alaska Airlines
Boeing
PPG Aerospace
DFW Instrument Corporation
Alberth Aviation
ATP
Nida Corporation
Fluid Power Training Institute
Spartan College of Aeronautics and Technology
Redstone College
AirDat
The MSC grows each year and the level of competition rises with each new event and team. The best of the best in the Aircraft Maintenance Profession come to not only compete against each other but to also stand together and help show the public who the true “Faces Behind Safety” are. If you would like to join the competition or just come and attend the MSC we would be happy to have you!