Career Colleges » Alabama » Trades and Careers » Aviation
Looking for accredited career colleges, technical schools, and universities in Alabama offering Aviation degrees. Aviation: Aircraft Powerplant Technician and airframe mechanics work on repair and maintenance of private and commercial airplanes.
This jewel of the South is a great place to go to college, particulary if you have an interest in authentic American southern culture. Alabama has some major cities, such as Birmingham and Mobile, which offer entertainment and cultural options such as nightclubs and fine dining. College students will find life in Alabama to be quite affordable, with housing costs below the national average, and a low crime rate.If your car breaks down on the highway, it might be extremely frustrating, but it isn't necessarily life-threatening. If a plane breaks down in the air, however, this can easily translate to disaster. That is why aviation maintenance programs are so vital to the airline industry. Every plane must be thoroughly inspected, certified, and cleared before it can take off. As you can imagine, those with training in this very detail oriented field have a very challenging job.
Most programs will expose you to a variety of disciplines including: electrical engineering, engine repair, GPS/satellite systems, communications equipment, and navigation. You'll learn all or most of these different areas, but many airplane mechanics only specialize in one or two areas. So you might focus primarily on the landing gear, or the navigation system, or the life-support systems. In any event, your 2+ years of training will prepare you for an on-site licensing exam administered by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC).
With the proper certification and training, there are numerous positions within the aviation industry that you can secure. The vast majority of aviation maintenance program graduates go on to work for airports around the world making sure that the major carriers are up to speed before take off. But many graduates decide to go into the manufacturing and engineering side of the aviation industry. In this capacity, they help engineers design and improve the airplanes for tomorrow.