MINNEAPOLIS — You've probably driven by a giant hangar of I-494 near Terminal 2 at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport.
The word 'Delta' looms large, and you'll usually see a few airplanes parked outside.
That got out KARE 11 Sunrise Reporter and aviation enthusiast, Ellery McCardle interested in finding out, what really happens inside?
No surprise, there are airplane in those hangar bays.
Aircraft Maintenance Technicians, also known as AMTs, are busy working on airplanes, inspecting them and making any fixes necessary.
On the particular day we visited, employees were working on an Airbus A330, a twin-engine jumbo jet that flies internationally.
It's up to AMTs to make sure airplanes are still safe to fly us around the world.
"There is never a time where we can miss," said Joseph McDermott, the Managing Director in Technical Operations for Delta Air Lines.
Safety is of top priority for these workers.
Every two years, the A330 we watched getting worked on, will go through a two-week-long inspection called a "C Check" where things like the engines, wings and nose are opened up.
"The bag bins get opened up. There's a lot of interior opened up as well. We're inspecting a lot of things like corrosion, worn rollers, worn fittings, making sure everything is lubricated correctly," McDermott said.
He said this building in Minneapolis is always busy with 150-200 airplanes coming in for service every year. Delta took over the hangar space when it merged with Northwest Airlines.
"We've grown it ever since. When we first took over, I can tell you there was never C Checks in this facility and you look at what Delta has brought to the table through the merger through the all the processes, our expansion here has been significant," McDermott said.
The hangar space is also used to inspect and repair jets from Virgin Atlantic and Hawaiian Airlines, which are aircraft that don't normal fly out of MSP Airport.
But with how busy the hangar is, there is looming concern about the future of mechanics in the industry, namely, a shortage of them.
"We know we have an aging workforce and we know the retirements are coming," McDermott said.
He added that in the 1990s there was a lag in hiring mechanics and now that effect is being felt.
Within the next decade Delta says 2,000 of its AMTs will be eligible for retirement.
So what is the airline doing about it? Trying to get ahead and focus on the next generation of students like Ramone Johnson and Aleksander Cedarblade. They're taking courses through Minneapolis Community and Technical College to eventually become AMTs, if they do the hard work and pass the necessary tests. These men can see their future just down the hallway.
"Some of them know nothing about aviation and by the time they graduate they're able to work on teams and accomplish extremely significant tasks pretty much anything that can be done on an aircraft so it's very rewarding," said Keith Norton, an instructor for MCTC.
Because of the projected shortage, Delta is working with nearly 50 schools in 23 states to train the next generation of technicians.
"Without these programs the workforce wouldn't have what it needs," said Norton.
"It's a pretty cool feeling knowing the work you're doing, there's going to be passengers getting on that plane and their lives are depending on you doing your job right and doing it right the first time," Cedarblade said.
"Aviation is everywhere and it's not going to go anywhere," said Johnson, who has words for future students who want to succeed, "Just buckle down and do your hardest," he added.
The second Minnesota school that's part of Delta's program is Lake Superior College in Duluth.
Ellery McCardle visits a Delta hangar at MSP
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