Duncan Aviation Rolls Out Registered Apprenticeship Program with Official Ceremony

Jeremy Rangel, Duncan Aviation Airframe Manager, accepts the official registration document for the Duncan Aviation Apprenticeship Program from Deb Creemens-Risinger with the US Department of Labor. Click image for high-res download.

LINCOLN, NEB. — Duncan Aviation today hosted a Registered Apprenticeship Ceremony to roll out its newly registered Duncan Aviation Airframe Technician Apprenticeship Program. The ceremony was a fitting mid-week celebration of National Apprenticeship Week.

“The aviation industry is currently seeing a workforce shortage for qualified aircraft technicians as the number of retiring certified Airframe Technicians is higher than the number of young adults expressing interest in the field of aircraft mechanics,” explains Todd Duncan, Chairman of Duncan Aviation. “In response, Duncan Aviation is educating young adults about the joys of choosing business aviation as a career and looking at new and different ways to introduce talented and motivated individuals to the company and the industry.”

Registered apprenticeships benefit communities and the workforce by providing on-the-job training that gives participants a clear career path and national credential from the US Department of Labor through an earn-as-you-learn program. Jeremy Rangel, Duncan Aviation Airframe Manager, says, “The work-based learning strategy helps Duncan Aviation increase team member skills and engagement while developing the company’s future leaders.”

Duncan Aviation has offered apprenticeships, or full-time careers that include on-the-job training and instruction, to interested candidates for the last few years. By on-boarding new team members as Tech Helpers, experienced technicians would offer guidance and on-the-job training. No formal instruction program was in place, Rangel says. “Though it was successful, we identified areas of theoretical and practical training that would yield better results through standardization. That is exactly what we did, working with the US Department of Labor and the Nebraska Department of Labor. We now have a true pathway to help new team members become knowledgeable, well-rounded aircraft technicians.” This formalized apprenticeship program has now been nationally registered with the US Department of Labor and the Department of Education.

The classroom instruction and hands-on lab training developed for the program has heightened our training effectiveness to the next level, says Matt Stolz, Airframe Shift Supervisor. “The Registered Apprenticeship Program at Duncan Aviation is designed to provide those who enroll in it a streamlined and focused approach to training for the FAA Airframe Technician certificate. The program carries with it Duncan Aviation’s reputation for quality, knowledge, and leadership in the business jet world.”

Currently, Duncan Aviation has 24 apprentices who are working full-time while learning and preparing for their Airframe Technician certification test. They have up to 24 months from joining the program to earn their certificate.

For more information about Duncan Aviation careers, visit www.DuncanAviation.aero/careers.

About National Apprenticeship Week

According to the US Department of Labor, National Apprenticeship Week (NAW) is a national celebration that offers leaders in business, labor, education, and other critical partners a chance to demonstrate their support for apprenticeship. NAW also gives apprenticeship sponsors the opportunity to showcase their programs, facilities, and apprentices in their community. The week-long event highlights the benefits of apprenticeship in preparing a highly-skilled workforce to meet the talent needs of employers across diverse industries.

About Duncan Aviation

Duncan Aviation is an aircraft service provider supporting the aviation needs of business aircraft operators, government agencies, and other aircraft service providers. Services include major and minor airframe inspections, engine maintenance, major retrofits for cabin and cockpit avionics systems, full paint and interior services, engineering and certification services, fabrication and manufacturing services, and preowned aircraft sales and acquisitions. Duncan Aviation also has international aircraft components solutions experts available 24/7/365 at +1 402.475.4125 who can handle any aircraft system problem with immediate exchanges, rotables, loaners or avionics/instrument/accessory repairs and overhauls. Complete service facilities are located in Battle Creek, Michigan; Lincoln, Nebraska; and Provo, Utah. We also have dozens of other facilities strategically located throughout the United States to provide customers with scheduled regional support and the quickest response possible to avionics, engine and airframe Aircraft On Ground (AOG) situations.

For more information about any of Duncan Aviation’s services, call +1 402.475.2611 or visit https://www.DuncanAviation.aero/services