Plane maintenance training doubled with new funding
Kelowna’s aerospace industry is getting a boost from the provincial government to train more people to fill labour shortages.
Okanagan College’s aircraft maintenance engineering structures program, run out of KF Aerospace, typically accepts 14 to 16 students per year.
The provincial government is contributing $88,000 to create a second class of 14 students, Melanie Mark, minister of advanced education, skills and training, announced Thursday in Kelowna.
The funding comes through the government’s Industry Training Authority.
KF Aerospace is also contributing $88,000 to the program, the Aerospace Industries Association of Canada is contributing $20,000, and Okanagan College is covering the remaining operational costs.
The ITA is also committed to funding another cohort next year, said Gary Herman, CEO of the ITA.
“With a global and regional demand for people in the aerospace industry exceeding the supply of qualified apprentices, it is critical to find solutions to meet the needs of industry while creating good-paying jobs for people,” said Mark.
There are currently about 14 people on the waiting list to get into the 10-month aircraft maintenance engineering structures program, so the addition of another class will allow those people to begin their training sooner, said Tracy Medve, president of KF Aerospace.
“We’re experiencing a significant skills shortage in our sector,” she said, adding KF Aerospace currently has more than 20 vacancies for aircraft maintenance engineering structures apprentices. “Having this additional group of specially trained students is going to go a long way in closing that gap.”