New aviation mechanic school in Blount Co. training locals for in-demand field

MARYVILLE, Tenn. ( WATE ) — A new aviation mechanic’s school is coming to Blount County , in hopes of keeping young people in the area and meeting the demand for the role from local companies.

Blount Partnership worked with Pellissippi State Community College to develop the new program. Students will earn an associates degree of applied science and an airframe and powerplant, or “A&P” certification.

Students will take general education courses at Pellissippi’s Blount County campus, and do hands-on machinery work at a newly-acquired building located at 1749 Triangle Park Drive.

Local aviation companies helped develop the idea for the school after seeing a shortage of A&P mechanics.

“Our A&P mechanics are a significant portion of our workforce, upwards of 25-30% of our current work staff here on site at our Maryville business unit and they provide critical roles,” Greg Krekeler said.

Krekeler is the Vice President and General Manager of Standard Aero’s Maryville facility. They helped create the concept for the school, and are hoping to keep local talent local.

“It helps with retention. People that are interested in keeping their families local, it provides a great opportunity to do highly technical work in this area that a lot of folks are aware is actually here,” he said.

Cirrus, another Blount County aviation company that employs more than 80 A&P mechanics, also worked on the project.

“We plan to support the establishment of the school, helping them develop their curriculum, providing training aids in the form of parts and aircraft components that are currently unserviceable for them to train on, and also perhaps with some delivery of curriculum as well,” Eric Brammer with Cirrus said.

In addition to aiding in the shortage of mechanics, the school also aims to bring more business to the area.

“There’s a lot of interest from other aviation companies that are looking to relocate to Tennessee or to our region, so we see continued growth in that,” Jessica Belitz with Blount Partnership said.

Belitz also said the school will help guarantee a workforce in the future.

“We also see a lot of retirement. It’s an aging workforce in aviation maintenance. So we have a lot of aviation mechanics that are retiring over the next ten years, which is going to give us an even bigger gap,” she said.

According to Belitz, the starting income in the area for an A&P mechanic is around $63,000 and the median income is $83,000, but it’s possible to make over six figures.

Several different local governments are investing in the building and program: Blount County, City of Maryville, City of Alcoa, Knox County, City of Knoxville, City of Lenoir City and Monroe County.

The National Guard also uses aviation mechanics and has a base at the nearby McGhee Tyson airport. Lawmakers have been hoping McGhee Tyson will also be the new base for the Air Force’s KC-46 Pegasus aircraft. Belitz said the addition of the new school to the area could help their case.

The school is expected to be up and running starting in Fall 2025.

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