hahas. let's just attribute ATTC to being my Chpt 1.
and so, 1 month of OJT in SHAECO has gone by just like that.
made many friends on the line. found out some of the ppl who crossed paths with Poon Snr.
and thank u all to those who have patiently guided us despite having those time pressures and all. thank u for the countless soybean drinks, lending me ur screwdrivers and evenbrighter torchlights, and engine/ hydraulic oil stains on my overalls. indeed, they can never be forgotten! hahas.
more importantly, thank u walking this starting path with me as i unfold the first chapter of my Aviation journey. i must say its really a good start and i want to thank God so much for this opportunity in this company especially that it's in Changi.
i mean, it could have been otherwise right.
hahas. ytd was the last morng shift and i significantly spent almost 9hrs stucked in a plane with EW. from the bright morng sun till the evening setting sun. with #nolunch, #nodinner, food ration running low, almost zero drinking water supply, and warm air blowing. but still bearable at least with good company! (: hahas.
ahhaas. abt 12.40pm, got there, did some daily, fixed some lighting probs and started on some painstaking, patience-testing B2 avionics task. basically, its just the transferring of software from the many floppy disk to the plane's computer. there was some software incompatibility with the navigation database which caused the flight to delay once, almost twice before it was decided on the planes to be swopped.
from there i've really learnt that one small problem can have severe implications.
and its really not just a ok-good-to-know-from-the-textbook thing.
just one delay and 1 phonecall, jobs gotta be rotated. plans gotta change. decisions to be made.
i could see the implications visually. like the different security guard coming on at the different times, the re-fulling tank that came and went, ground handling staff coming in and out, cleaners in and out, and i haven't mentioned the passengers. each of them got their own arrangements to be accounted for. perhaps meeting with ppl at their respective destination airport, missing out performances/ dinner dates/ events... etc.. perhaps even loosing a business deal or a another planned en route transportation. everything, could just go haywire-ly wrong because of a small problem.
at the airside, i'm probably exposed to the different systems that are constantly in operation to keep the planes flying, the passengers coming and money rollin'. definitely a profitable business but also along with the demand for high maintenance practices and severely mandatory safety requirements.
people have to work hard.
and ppl have to work hard, for the money. some do it for pride. some do it for passion. some do it for self-fufillment.... and some do it coz they dont really have a choice.
as i go to work every shift, i dont just carry out my OJT requirements, or fulfill some required skill-based requirements. making the best of our every opportunity becomes secondary after i realized that i was starting to really enjoy myself at work. i rmbr talking with different ppl, with different hierarchy in the industry, backgrounds and past experiences in different companies and from different walks of life. as constant and mundane the controlled industry may seem, different ppl have different views and advices for me. hahas. i take in everyone of time and determine my own weight management. they probably have their own set of values or experiences which have crafted who they are today; so i guess, every piece of advice is valuable to me. and the fact that they bother to explain so much to girl who's just gg to be in the company for a month only.
be it technicians or engineers as how these terms can be used so interchangeably in a textbook setting, i really think that both ppl group-set should posses certain similar qualities. the biggest quality i feel is being responsible and yet humble. humble towards technology and respect for its roots i guess. hahas.
i.e we shouldn't assume anything because we think we are competent.
being detailed and meticulous may not be an easy thing for everybody to practice but i guess with a mindset that we're dealing with lives that are up in the air with an airplane that we've got our hands on as their only safety buoy, safety standards can be well maintained right.
i mean i've seen the way how some technicians and engineers carry out the tasks. i can't really comment much coz 1) they have probably inhaled more hydraulic fumes than i've inhaled helium, 2) my level of practical technical+life experience combined is probably less than a stage 1 of their whole skill-set.
but definitely, it's pretty much obvious when one really enjoys his job vs one who does it for the money.
hahas. teamwork.
as cliche as it may sound and seemingly more important in a Business setting, i think its definitely more crucial in an Engineering setitng. to generalize it, in Business, if everyone can't work together, the tasks either takes a longer time to complete and worst case: loss of money. but in Aviation, if ppl choose not to work together, primarily, there will be loss of money. and especially with such negativity in the air, mistakes become so easily committed. and minor mistakes may lead to, as u know it, severe disastrous outcomes. simply put it, maybe like a screwdriver may be unknowingly dropped somewhere which cause some mechanics to fail in the air or smth (landing gear can't be deployed and so on.)
for me, i really witnessed the importance mostly during the night of Engine change together with manpower deployment / especially when there's a shortage of staff for a shift. i dont think i wanna elaborate here. all i can say that if everyone covers everyone's ass, together, things can really be done swiftly and steadily with that unspoken assurance.
and especially if the elements of Mother Nature aren't so friendly and kind with us, we need the support and understanding of friends or at least people u're working with right. so everything becomes more bearble, allowing to ride on the winds and sail through the storm.
ahas. i mean i can really go on with what i've learnt and realized throughout just this 1 month of OJT and how it has intensified my passion for fixing things, especially aircrafts.
and like how one engineer has inspired me... how his passion towards aeroplanes grew when it really initially started out as by chance/ didnt have a choice... hahas. and as he learned more about the planes, the realization that an airplane is actually a self-sustainting machine in flight that can not only manages herself, but also creates her own environment.
its probably something humans are not even capable of.
roughly, i've got a mental makeup of the kind of engineer i want to strive for and work towards to. as straightforward as it may sound, but may the forces from external pressure, be it necessary or uncessary, not sway the goal i have in mind. hahas. it may perhaps be altered, but hopefully, for the better. and i should be focused on taking one step at a time.
and i believe with God's guidance, i'm able to do so even if the path may be patience-testing, alone, long and winding and even build tenacity out of it.
as aviation aims to be a perfectionistic zero error industry because error would mean that Man hasn't invented vehicles that kill more people than how it should serve its purpose; certainly, there are the differences. maybe not such a big deviation since the system would probably have room for us humans to let our humanly way run in coz after all, we're not machines. i guess to me, every personnel allowed to the airside should at least encompass the most basic level or responsibility and abit of initiative. this way, everyone can play a part in ensuring the safety and confidence of all passengers right.
and so,
and to end off with a photo with my man.
i'm sure he'll be proud of me.
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