St. Louis Aviation Maintenance Association Holds Annual Symposium

By Carmelo Turdo

The St. Louis Aviation Maintenance Association held their annual symposium Tuesday at the Crowne Plaza Hotel Airport Convention Center. During the day-long event, current and future Airframe and Powerplant mechanics (A&Ps) participated in education sessions concerning current technical, compliance and human factors topics. Attendees learned about the latest equipment and products available, such as brakes, batteries and ADS-B transponders from industry specialists and the best practices for the installation and testing of these and other aircraft components. Other important subjects, such as aircraft records and human factors in aviation safety, including Mr. Bill Hopper's popular "Dirty Dozen" presentation, were also scheduled.

A staple of any maintainer safety program is Bill Hopper's version of the Human Factors "Dirty Dozen," compiled by Gordon Dupont during his service at Transport Canada before becoming CEO of System Safety Services.  As listed by Dupont (see previous link for details), they are: 1. Lack of Communication; 2. Complacency; 3. Lack of Knowledge; 4. Distraction; 5. Lack of Teamwork; 6. Fatigue; 7. Lack of Resources; 8. Pressure; 9. Lack of Assertiveness; 10. Stress; 11. Lack of Awareness; 12. Norms.  Sprinkled liberally with real-world examples, Bill Hopper's interactive session effectively heightens the awareness of the weakness of the human condition and how to avoid the potentially disastrous consequences of human failure due to maintenance errors.

Along with the seminar sessions, aviation product and service representatives were on site to demonstrate their latest offerings in the lobby exhibit area. Included with the exhibitors were two area non-profit organizations, the Greater St. Louis Air & Space Museum and Wings of Hope, both of which rely on volunteer A&Ps to support their operations. 

The Aero Experience commends the St. Louis Aviation Maintenance Association for producing an excellent training event and inviting a variety of exhibitors to participate again this year. Next year's symposium date will be January 25, 2019.