Welp.....I have one more day of being CarbonFiberJockie...and then starting next monday.....I'll be Airjockie once again.
With a raise
Since Feb 10th, 2003-----to today....I was in the Bladeshop. First doing parts layup, then working first bonds, and I was in the Gerber room since July 1st of 2003.....Basically, I sat on my ass all night, drinking coffee, going outside for smake breaks, post whoreing everywhere...chatting all night to everyone...blah blah blah.... the work i did was put out a roll of prepreg Carbonfiber, kevlar, wire mesh, peel ply...etc.....put them on a roller, and pulled out 46 ft of material, pull out a plastic sheet, sit at one computer, load a program, pust 5 buttons, and the machine cuts for an hour. hence the other computer to chat on, with 5 computers in the room, and a/c...I was happy. Then when the table was done cutting, I picked up all the little ply's of material, throw them in a bag, seal it, tag it, and throw it in a freezer....Easiest job I had.
And I'm leaving it.
I'm heading back to the Hanger Monday night, with a pay raise, and more OT. I get to get dirty again. Do stuff like bring the Helicopter from final assymboly, take it apart, clean it, inspect it, put it together, take it to the fuel dump, calibrate the fuel system, test it, then bring it back into the hanger, put the heli in a huge shower, and watch for leaks, and spend a day sealing them up....then start installing vibration reading gear. Have a pilot test fly it, while we take the readings for the vibes, and bring it back in the hanger. Take the whole aircraft apart again, and see what shook loose. Clean it again, inspect it, put it back together, fix or repair any parts that are leaking, or broke, then go fly it for 20 hours, then take it apart again, retorque all the bolts, seal them, mark them, make the heli pretty, and call the Govn to come and inspect it. If they like it, then it rolls out the door and heads on to the customer.
And actually...I can't wait....sitting on my ass for the last year has put a beergut on me the size that I'm even ashamed of. Plus it's a fun job, everyone fucks around with everyone, and it's an actual team that plugs away on the work all night.
And what does that mean to you....nothing...unless you apply for the job. I'll be the guy that does all the inspecting, so if you mess up, I'll tell you and I can come and give you hints on how to install the wires.
And also since I am leaving the blade shop, along with 30 other people, the bladeshop is going to be in need of new people. And with the new contracts for helicopters that Sik just got, and the Army need to keep good blades on the heli's in Iraq, that means that the blade shop is also ramping up to meet the needs of the customer. So that means that there will be more jobs posted in the super near future to fill the jobs that we are leaving behind....hint...hint...