Cape Fear Community College’s aviation maintenance technician program is settling into a new home on the grounds of Wilmington International Airport, in a building formerly occupied by Avelo Airlines.
 
“It’s just like moving into a new house,” Jason Justice, the program’s full-time instructor, said in mid-October during a tour of the new facility. “We’re still moving things around to try to find out what’s going to give us the most lab space and be the most efficient.”
 
The program moved last month from CFCC’s North Campus, where it shared space with the college’s diesel technician program. The new, 3,700-square-foot building allows the program to spread out, Justice said, with a classroom, stations for electronics work and an expanded lab space.
 
In the new lab, Justice and part-time instructor Derrell Weitman had room to assemble two small, donated planes and unbox new aviation trainers, which helps students learn about the components of various aircraft systems.
 
The move also supports an effort to secure Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certification for the program.
 
In August, CFCC applied to the FAA for certification of its airframe program. Airframe programs teach students how to inspect, repair and maintain an aircraft’s physical structure, everything except the engine and propeller, Justice said.
 
The college’s application was accepted for review in September, Justice said, and while the approval timeframe is unclear, it will entail a curriculum and equipment review and a site visit.
 
Cassidy Irvin, the college’s workforce training coordinator, said the new ILM space was a natural step in the program’s growth.
 
“We always knew that we were expanding the program,” Irvin said, “and when we started the FAA application process, we realized that we were going to need our own space.”
 
Erica Talbert, CFCC’s senior director of workforce development, said the FAA wants to see aviation maintenance technician programs operating in their own space within a controlled environment.
 
“They don’t want other programs using the tools and the supplies,” she said.
 
Securing FAA certification would mean students who complete the course would be eligible to take the written, oral and practical exams to become FAA-certified airframe mechanics, Justice said. The course currently operates as a familiarization course with a certificate available through the Aviation Technician Education Council, Irvin said.
 
Once the airframe program secures FAA certification, CFCC officials plan to apply for certification of a powerplant program that’s currently under development, Justice said. Powerplant coursework focuses on inspecting and repairing aircraft engines and propellers.
 
The aviation maintenance technician course was among the CFCC programs developed with a $5.5 million grant from the New Hanover Community Endowment in 2023, Talbert said. School officials developed the program in response to a shortage of aviation maintenance technicians in the region, and conversations with local fixed-base operators and a commercial airline that operates out of ILM informed its creation, according to Talbert.
 
“We listen to the employers in our area, in the region, and we look at where there are gaps and how we can fill them,” she said, “and we want to fill those gaps with careers that are family-sustaining – good careers, not just a job.”
 
According to CareerOneStop, a webpage maintained by the U.S. Department of Labor, the median salary for aircraft mechanics and service technicians in North Carolina is nearly $77,000, and the number of jobs in the field is expected to grow by 12% statewide between 2022 and 2032.
 
“We have a need for qualified mechanics in this area,” said Jeff Bourk, ILM’s director. “Not only in this area, but around the country there aren’t enough certified airframe and powerplant technicians.”
 
New Hanover County’s 2022 Economic Mobility Report identifies aerospace as a target business sector to help the county meet its economic development goals. The report identifies a lack of local technician training programs as one limitation to the sector’s growth.
 
Weitman said establishing an FAA-certified program in Wilmington could help former service members transition from military aircraft maintenance to civilian operations.
 
“They do the aircraft maintenance, but the military and FAA have different rules,” he said. “So, being military, (they would) have to go to another school to get certified.”
 
So far, Justice said he’s seen a mix of students, from those with no prior mechanical experience to pilots and high school students. Irvin said she expects class sizes to grow once the school gets FAA certification.
 
“Once we get that FAA approval, I anticipate that we’ll have a pretty big jump in enrollment,” she said.
 
Irvin added that the airport location is ideal for building employer connections, facilitating tours and hearing from those in the aviation industry. At the facility, all Justice has to do is roll up a garage door to let students see planes landing and taxiing at Aero Center next door.
 
“They’re here and they can … see what’s going on,” Justice said, “and hear and smell the airfield.”