AA Mechanics - Gloified Parts Changers

[The Phantom]

Eliminate Avionics Crew Chief and Avionics AMT positions
at line stations, as well as all Avionics local letters of agreements.

Permit Management to establish qualifications and to implement changes to the Qualifications Administration Manual.

So this is what the company wants to do!!! Over the years our work force has been watered down so much by managements inability to actually hire and train mechanics properly. Incompetence has run rampant through out the system. What little actual troubleshooting has been done in the past from the Avionics departments around the system, will now go away. WOW what idiot came up with this plan.

I know, lets get everyone Qualified as Avionics, then they can all do the work and we will see no drop off in the quality of the troubleshooting or the work performed. RIGHT

There are so many Management and Mechanics that have no idea how to actualy troubleshoot Avionics problems. I think we are in trouble. Oh wait, I know, we have all those Tech Service guys to help troubleshoot.
But if this is what they want, lets give it to them.

Management will establish new qualifications now???

For the past years they have not been able to properly follow the established Qualifications Manual properly. How do they intend to change this? I guess just make us professional parts changers. No need to troubleshoot, just pick a part that Tech says to change and change it. The qualifications will be to follow instuctions from management and do what ever they say.

The qualifications will be rewritten by the same people that don't have a clue how to ACTUALY fix the plane, they just want to move planes. We will see how many start falling apart very soon.

 

[Mach85ER]

No, you won't be a parts changer, you will be a member of the Geek Squad with these new jets. Like alot of the problems with the newer electronics, the manufacturers advice will be "off-then-on" then OK for service

I have no insight to the new 777/Airbus/787 electronic issues, but I'd be willing to bet as part of the deal that they station enough spare boxes in their own stores to trade/lease with the malfunctioning AA boxes. Was there any proposed language about manufacturer techs working at any AA station? Wouldn't surpise me that Boeing/Airbus would set up a contractor to service something like that.

 

[787nightmare]

I haven't been particularly impressed with some of the so called "Tech CCs" around TULE. Hell I can shotgun/throw parts at an airplane. :-/ Some stuff they said, I thought "wth"?? -/

 

[mike7863]

Eliminate Avionics Crew Chief and Avionics AMT positions
at line stations, as well as all Avionics local letters of agreements.

Permit Management to establish qualifications and to implement changes to the Qualifications Administration Manual.

So this is what the company wants to do!!! Over the years our work force has been watered down so much by managements inability to actually hire and train mechanics properly. Incompetence has run rampant through out the system. What little actual troubleshooting has been done in the past from the Avionics departments around the system, will now go away. WOW what idiot came up with this plan.

I know, lets get everyone Qualified as Avionics, then they can all do the work and we will see no drop off in the quality of the troubleshooting or the work performed. RIGHT

There are so many Management and Mechanics that have no idea how to actualy troubleshoot Avionics problems. I think we are in trouble. Oh wait, I know, we have all those Tech Service guys to help troubleshoot.
But if this is what they want, lets give it to them.

Management will establish new qualifications now???

For the past years they have not been able to properly follow the established Qualifications Manual properly. How do they intend to change this? I guess just make us professional parts changers. No need to troubleshoot, just pick a part that Tech says to change and change it. The qualifications will be to follow instuctions from management and do what ever they say.

The qualifications will be rewritten by the same people that don't have a clue how to ACTUALY fix the plane, they just want to move planes. We will see how many start falling apart very soon.

you should of figured it out by now. management doesnt give a rats ass about who fixes the airplanes. all they care about is who can do it cheaper. they dont care about qualifications, experience or training, hell they dont even care about the flying public all they care about is lining their pockets with money..

 

[Mechanic]

I'll grant the fact we have many box changers in avionics in ORD. Box in and get down. The fact were now gone makes me happy in the regard that these lazy incompetent pricks may have to work for once in their lives. But if the company believes that when we are all one that all avionics problems will go to ex avionics people and we'll hop in and fix it they are still smoking the crack pipe. The 10 time A/P repeater will go to a guy who can't even find the E&E. I for one will help no one T/S avionics problems once I'm line side again. And if I'm forced to maybe I'll be smoking the pipe to.

 

[DallasConehead]

You'll go out there and bail that guy out and you'll like it too....

 

[Mechanic]

If thats the way they are going to play it I'll be bringing a taxi crew with me. Not that I would ever with any intention take a plane OTS, but just in case.

 

[The Phantom]

I truly believe that over the years there have been many Avionics Technicians that have put forth a good and honest effort to do a good job across the system. Granted, there are many that still just do what is necessary to just get bye.
As for the line side mechanics, there is a lower percentage of mechanics that have learned to troubleshoot problems effectively.

This is because managment has not cared to push them to try to learn. They have typically leaned on the Avionics technicians to troubleshoot. If this goes thru (eliminating avionics) and changing the Qualification Manual, There will be added pressure on the mechanics to perform troubleshooting on all systems.

Just watch out for them trying to evaluate everyone and call us in for performance issues.

Its going to get ugly.

 

[tech2101]

This entire thread is puzzling to me. Myself, and all the other professional A&P / AMT's I have worked with, worked on airplanes! We did not work on pieces/parts or individual systems.

In Line Maintenance, we had mechanics. Working Airbus and new generation aircraft, how could you not be? I was a Crew Cheif. Everyone did everything. Some were better than others in troubleshooting avionics problems, but everybody was an avionics guy, and everybody changed tires and brakes.

I am beginning to see why your labor costs are above the others.

 

[chris perry]

The whole reason there is a Avionic's shop and General workforce is simply management.They made a decision they didn't want to train everyone and spend the money...doing so. That's it plain and simple.I personally made the decision on my own to Learn both. I guess it will come in handy looking for work elsewhere.

 

[Mechanic]

Honestly the percentage of line mechanics in ORD who can read a wiring print and find connectors and re pin them and find the pins let alone T/S from a print is so small it's not worth mentioning. They run us through this stupid little class during Bday school about wiring and using a meter it's pathetic. Now does every line mechanic now need to become "avionics" qualified? They had to spend 6 months on nights getting trained then test. How does that work now? And avionics who are not line qualified, do they spend 6 months getting trained? Do they test and what happens if they fail? Can they fire a 20 year line or avionic mechanic who can't pass the test. Or maybe they should fire all of us and we would need to reapply to get our jobs back. We would have only the best left and the others can sleep at home instead.

 

[Mechanic]

I know this whole thing with getting rid of Avionics has many of us upset, me included. For as many years as I have in Avionics I'm still learning. My frustration shows in my posts for the company to disregard this department. Although there are many in this department who do as little as possible as with line also there are many who do all they can to insure we send out a quality product. I have always felt I was in that group. I realize we need to work together if were ever going to dig out of this mess, whoever is to blame. Outsourcing, downsizing and many job losses has all of us on edge. It's the unexpected we all fear. We all need to work together to insure the success of our company. Avionics and line.

 

[Wretched Wrench]

There will be a lot of demotivated former avionics techs. Many will play dumb, or perhaps just not try as hard or learn as much. Tech training will no longer teach avionics material to avionics techs, but will teach it to all techs.

There will also be a lot of mechs who will be starting out from ground zero on avionics stuff, so some will be overwhelmed, and some will be embarking on a very steep learning curve. Neither produces much efficiency.

The two areas are different. All mechs will not make good avionics trouble shooters, and all aviionics techs will not make good mechs. I have spent years in each area, and have seen a lot of that.

 

[Mechanic]

Very true. And many avionics techs have never worked line maintenance. They came right into avionics. Some haven't even changed a tire or adjusted a tray table on anything. So it's going to be a huge learning curve on both sides. I'm not sure what the time line is for getting line mechanics up to speed for avionics but it sounds like avionics will continue to do avionics work. When there is no avionics work we will become line mechanics. Probably a good way to utilize manpower but does that mean I am eligible for OT for avionics and line work where line mechanics can only work Line OT? How long would that last?

 

[Duke787]

How am I going to learn to do the avionics work, if the avionic guys are going to to continue to do all the avi work? How do I get LMP qualified, if I don't get the chance to go to the 40 hour avionic schools?

I see nothing but pain coming from doing away with avionics, the line side c/c's don't even like this idea.