Ground Support Blog

Economic realities being what they are today, FBOs are hiring more and more non-native speakers of English — Some legal, some not so legal. But this isn’t going to be a diatribe against immigrants — far from it.  I’m a big believer in the American dream, and the immigrant’s place in that dream.

But I’m also a big safety advocate and I’ve been concerned for a while that FBOs are not providing non-native speakers with the tools they need to perform their jobs. Those tools include either adequate training in reading and writing English — too expensive for most FBOs — or translations of enough technical data to ensure workers have the safety info they need.

Who’s making sure that these workers read enough English to ensure the safety of the work they perform? Too few workplaces translate key technical and safety information for their workers. And even those who may have some Spanish translations, what about all those non-Spanish speaking foreign workers? How are they getting their information?

Some data is available for free from manufacturers and oil companies. Sometimes you may need to pay. I’ve been using Continental Translation Service in Manhattan that specializes in technical translations — a family-run company in business more than 50 years. And they’ve been doing aviation translations at least that long. I recently cadged a 1949 aviation maintenance book from their library (interesting read, more to follow). But no matter what company you use, you need to make sure the company has the technical expertise to provide the quality work you need.

Everyone has an interest in making sure that their workforce reads and writes enough English to perform their jobs safely.  Sure, it’s a management issue, but everyone has a role to play. If you have a co-worker who can’t read enough English to know what to do, you have an obligation to speak up. The individual either needs better training — or more multilingual aids.

The day before the opening of Aviation Industry Expo, the ITW GSE Group (J&B Aviation, Hobart Ground Power, Trilectron Industries and Axa Power) hosted its annual ITW Golf Invitational at the Revere Golf Club in Henderson, Nevada.

About 100 members of the industry took to the green for 18 holes of a four-person scramble tournament.

The event comprised of players from the airlines, airports and equipment suppliers – “a full gammut of the industry,” according to Brian Piety of  J&B Aviation.

Now in its 11th year, the event was developed  as a way to gather the industry. “I saw it as an opportunity to bring key people in the industry together and have some fun,” Piety says.

The game was followed by an awards banquet for the day’s winners and a raffle.

There’s something very unique about the ground support industry.  Maybe it’s because people tend to stay.  They may move to another company, but they still stay in the industry.  Or maybe the industry has had its challenges for so long there’s the feeling that we’re all in this together.  Regardless of the reason, what’s unique about this industry is that it is a real community of people.  We’re about to gather for our “annual meeting,” this year in Las Vegas, and here are a few thoughts.

(1) We need to make this industry as efficient and competitive as possible.  That means we need to continue to work together.  It’s really special that GSE personnel can talk to a counterpart at a competitor.  And vendors are welcome to share how a problem was fixed at another airline.  Most industries don’t enjoy that level of communication.

(2) We need to continue to support an annual show.  It appears that this will be a good show.  I suspect attendance could be down, but all the airlines and suppliers will still be there.  There may be attendees and suppliers who think we should bring up the “every other year show” if there isn’t a lot of new stuff.  While there may not be a lot of new products and new technology, there certainly is justification in getting together as a community to maintain relationships and start new ones.

(3) And finally . . . We’re in rather tough times, but let’s be thankful for the great things about the ground support industry as a whole!

The 12th annual Aviation Industry Expo — the show focused on GSE/AS3 — will be held next week from March 10 – 12 in Las Vegas.

Ground Support Worldwide will be on hand to bring you the latest happenings from the Las Vegas Convention Center — including coverage of the seminars and show events, as well as images from the show floor.

Continue to check back for multiple updates throughout the show.

For more information on the show, including a schedule of events, please visit: www.aviationindustryexpo.com.