Colorado's Cherry Creek Innovation Campus students compete in global aviation skills competition
A group of local high school students studying aviation are getting the chance to show off their aviation maintenance skills at the world's largest aviation skills competition. The global competition is being held in Atlanta, where Cherry Creek Innovation Campus students will show how quickly they can finish aircraft maintenance tasks.
It's a great opportunity for these high schoolers, as Cherry Creek Innovation Campus is one of only two high schools competing in this year's competition. CCIC is one of very few high schools in the country that teach aviation maintenance and has a career pathway program to train students to land a job in the industry.
The students will be facing off with some of the best of the best in aviation maintenance. Ninety teams from around the world will be there, including teams from major airlines, military branches, and universities.
Jon Ackerman, an 11th grader studying aviation maintenance, has been preparing and practicing his skills since February.
Ackerman said he has loved airplanes since he was a kid and added that this is a great opportunity for students pursuing a career in aviation maintenance. They get to network with the pros and get hands-on experience.
"It'll show me how much I need to work on other things. For me, it would be that I need to work on wiring diagnostics, so it'll show me how far behind I am the other competitors," said Ackerman.
Students who participate in the competition oftentimes get a job offer in a field where there is a national shortage of aviation mechanics. Many people in the industry will be retiring soon, so these kinds of jobs are in high demand right now.
Ackerman said the opportunities are what he's most looking forward to.
"Job opportunities, mainly, show up, do my best, if I can get any job invitations, and hopefully that'll move me along in my career," said Ackerman.
Victor Avila-Herrera is an aviation maintenance teacher at CCIC. He said this event is based on skills and where students are judged on time. Whoever completes the fastest time will claim the title.
He said some of the events include safety wire, troubleshooting, wiring harnesses, drilling, working with different kinds of sealants and painting.
"It's a wide slew of things that a maintenance technician would have to do out in the industry," said Avila-Herrera.
Avila-Herrera added that students have been practicing things like how they're going to set up their stations, cutting safety wire, working with bolts, and some of the equipment they will see at the competition.
"We're just happy to have students, a young generation of 16 or 17-year-olds that are excited to go into this industry and start replacing people in the industry where they can make a lot of money," said Avila-Herrera. "They're also getting good connections in the industry, basically, all the students had job offers if they wanted them once they completed their certificate."
Students from Cherry Creek Innovation Campus will be competing against the major airline, Spirit.
The global competition is happening in Atlanta from Tuesday through Thursday. Last year, CCIC placed 63rd out of 93 teams.