The absence of a national carrier with a home base in Jamaica has displaced many in the aviation industry. National carriers often use their home base for basic maintenance and other repairs. When this happens, there is a need for trained aircraft maintenance engineers (AMEs) and other personnel. With our national airline changing hands, it was inevitable that some of our AMEs would be out of work.
But every adversity presents an opportunity. There is great demand in the region for the kind of trained aviation professionals available in Jamaica. Jamaican AMEs have vast experience and valuable expertise.
Additionally, the presence of such a large pool of AMEs means Jamaica is in a good position to create an Aircraft Maintenance Organization that will bring carriers to the island and expand employment. AMOs usually locate where the environment is conducive for business and one critical factor in picking a location is the presence of trained professionals in aircraft maintenance. Moreover, in the USA, the Middle East, South America, Europe and Asia many AMOs are important sources of revenue in the airline industry.
Further, Open Skies policies that have been adopted elsewhere and in Jamaica will help to expand opportunities in the industry for AMEs. (The Open Skies Agreement is a liberalized air services arrangement for air services between countries that remove the normal restrictions on routes, arrival frequency and capacity of aircraft).
Many important carriers such as Air Canada, British Airways, Spirit, Jet Blue and Thomas Cook now do their base line maintenance in Jamaica because of the frequency with which they transit Jamaica, overnight here or have long haul operations that include the island. So Jamaica has an enormous opportunity to attract more repair stations to the country and make it a viable business.
Recent trends in the industry support our view. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) reports a demand for airlines, AMEs and pilots over the next 25 years. Boeing estimates that the world needs 597,000 maintenance technicians between 2012 and 2029 to meet the projected 3.3% growth in commercial aircraft fleets.
After visiting some of Singapore’s more than 60 AMOs and related businesses, a significant growth industry for that Asian country, we at the Caribbean Aerospace College believe Jamaica can seize the opportunities in this sub-sector. In the Netherlands, as an example, the aerospace industry has a turnover of 16€ billion, 80% of which comes from foreign carriers.
There is work to be done, of course. Jamaica's success will depend on close collaboration of education, infrastructure and industry. Some legislation will be required, and, most importantly, we have to summon the confidence that Jamaica can succeed when we put our minds to it.
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