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An aviation maintenance technology facility at Winchester Municipal Airport has reached punch-list status with the vocational program gearing up to accommodate its first students in January 2024, pending Federal Aviation Administration approval.

Katelyn Sanders, Winchester Municipal Airport manager, updated the City Council on Oct. 10 about the project’s status, saying that plans are to have about 25 students at a time enrolled in the program. She added that the aviation maintenance technology program will be one of four in Tennessee offered through the Tennessee College of Applied Technology, which opened a satellite to its Shelbyville campus in Winchester in 2021.

After hearing Sanders’ assessment, Mayor Sean Crabtree said having the aviation maintenance program at the airport is a big plus for Winchester.

“That’s exciting. It’s really encouraging,” he said, referring to the planned January opening.

Sanders told the council that Scott Scarborough, aviation maintenance technology instructor, is the hands-on contact for the project.

Scarborough said later that equipment is being installed, and a goal has been set to start a new class every trimester, which is a four-month time frame. He added that students can receive their aviation maintenance certification from the FAA after completing five trimesters of course work.

Scarborough said demand for aviation-maintenance technicians is extremely high with a widespread shortage of them. He added that the program’s graduates will have no problem finding high-paying jobs in very rewarding careers.

Jon Foote and Bruce Hatch will serve as adjunct instructors.

Scarborough said that he and the other two instructors each have more than 40 years’ experience in aviation maintenance technology to pass on to students who participate in the program.

Foote said that although January is the target date to begin classes, the entire process hinges on FAA approval. He added that aviation programs have extremely high standards because of the safety and redundancy requirements to keep aircraft in the air.

Foote said the facility’s equipment has to adhere to those strict standards, and if a hurdle surfaces, the FAA will delay approval. He added that the COVID-19 pandemic had thrown supply schedules off-base, but the instructors are optimistic everything will fall into place to meet the January opening goal.

However, Foote said that if the January goal is not met, the next likely time to begin accommodating students would be April 2024.

Through the program, students will be trained to inspect, repair, service and overhaul airframes and power plants in large and small aircraft.

The aviation maintenance facility includes a 22,000-square-foot main building, plus a 1,400-square-foot addition to the hanger section to be used as storage space.

Scarborough said a second building to accommodate the power-plant section is in the planning stages.

The project is an extension of Franklin County’s Tennessee College of Applied Technology, located on Dinah Shore Boulevard in Winchester. It is being funded by a $2 million Tennessee Economic and Community Development grant.

Laura Monks, president of the Tennessee College of Applied Technology-Shelbyville, which is the parent entity involved in the Franklin County project, said recently that it’s the first time in a decade that TCAT has added such a beneficial new technological program to its curriculum.

She said TCAT campuses in Memphis, Nashville and Morristown offer avionics maintenance technology courses, but there was nothing offered for potential students in Southern Middle Tennessee.

Monks said the program being offered in Winchester will fill a void and better serve aviation industries in a corridor that expands from Huntsville to the Arnold Engineering Development Complex and to Oak Ridge.

She added that aviation industries are being developed in the immediate surrounding area, creating job opportunities for students who will graduate from the program.

“It’s great to be able to offer something that will greatly benefit students in the area,” Monks said, adding that, at present, any Franklin Country residents interested in careers in aviation technology have to make the trek to Nashville to study in the field.

Former Winchester Airport Manager Zachary Colescott, who had been involved with the project at the outset, had said local high school students are discovering they don’t have to pursue four-year college degrees to have careers that lead to higher-paying jobs.

He had said the aviation maintenance technology program will be a great benefit to the local students who venture into the high-tech field.

Upon completion of the program, students will be eligible to take the FAA Certification Exam to become licensed airframe and power-plant mechanics who diagnose, adjust, repair and overhaul aircraft engines and assemblies, such as hydraulic and pneumatic systems.

The educational field includes helicopter and aircraft engine specialists.

Scarborough said the building is being equipped with such items as drill presses, welders, air compressors, aircraft maintenance stands and other items.

He added that donations are welcome and are tax-deductible. He added that airlines and other aviation companies tend to support aviation maintenance programs because it it ensures the continued education of future workers in the profession.

The Franklin County Commission had approved a grant application to provide money to aid in equipping the facility.

The commission unanimously approved a resolution on Dec. 6, 2021, to apply for an Appalachian Regional Commission grant with the commission and the county each chipping in $125,000 to have $250,000 in total funding.

Scarborough said companies that benefit from employing aviation-maintenance technicians often contribute to vo-tech schools that educate them.

He explained that FedEx Corp. had backed the county’s effort to get the ARC grant,

Scott S. Ogden, vice president of FedEx aircraft maintenance, had sent a letter to then-Franklin County Mayor David Alexander supporting the effort.

“On behalf of FedEx in Memphis, TN, please accept this letter as a pledge of our support towards Franklin County’s Appalachian Regional Commission grant proposal,” Ogden had said. “It is my understanding that the grant, if awarded, will fund the purchase of equipment for the Tennessee College of Applied Technology-Shelbyville aviation maintenance technology program which will be located at the Winchester Airport Authority.

“As a member of the worldwide aviation community and particularly here in Tennessee, I realize there is a shortage or need for more men and women to enter the aircraft maintenance technician vocation. Though the demand is high, we are seeing waiting lists at some schools for enrollment.”

 Ogden had said there is also a wave of retirement-age technicians who will be leaving the industry in the next five to 10 years, and this gap will have to be filled.

He had said aviation technicians can make a solid living wage with potential annual earnings at $100,000 or more after gaining experience.

Ogden had said many of the skills learned in aviation maintenance are transferable to other industries, such as automotive, trucking, railroad and cruise ships. He had said FedEx is not the only company looking for airframe and power-plant licensed technicians, and he listed airlines, regional carriers, maintenance repair and overhaul companies and corporate and general aviation businesses.

“FedEx currently supports TCAT-Memphis aviation maintenance technology with scholarship money for tools, books and exams,” Ogden had said. “Additionally, we have donated aircraft and equipment.

“We look forward to helping TCAT-Shelbyville aviation maintenance technology in similar ways.

“I commend Franklin County for their support of this major workforce need in the state of Tennessee. FedEx is excited about the additional opportunities this will mean for both our industry and for our statewide workforce.”

Colescott had said he believes the aviation maintenance technology facility will fill a largescale void in providing aviation mechanics.

“I don’t look for the demand to slow down any — actually quite the opposite,” he had said. “I look forward for the demand to increase.

“They haven’t been able to turn out mechanics fast enough, and this is the first school that I know of its kind that has been built specifically to help address the need. I know that there are others being brought online, but again, it takes time. The wheels turn slow.”