TAME Batch 60 - 3 Eagle

I’ve been thinking, why is everything in the aviation industry so expensive? Isn’t it the same as any other transport industry? Aircraft Engineers are like automobile engineers/mechanics, Pilots are like taxi drivers, cabin crews are like erm… waitresses/bar tenders/chefs/doctors/negotiators/psychiatrist/bus conductor? Hahaha… Kidding guys! To all my respect, all of u, including me, has our own professionalism in what we’re doing.

When the son of the family is interested in joining the flying courier, parents will transform into Ultraman and show an ‘X’, continued by a single word answer ‘NO’ because it’s DANGEROUS. However, when the daughter of the family is interested in joining the nicely bunned hair, sweet looking (tight fitting) kebaya courier, parents do not transform into anything, but proudly supports the princess’ decision with a smile. WHY?! Both are in the same airplane, in the same situation, facing the same danger, it’s not like only Pilots will die and cabin crews will survive if the plane crashes? (touch wood!) haha… Isn’t it ironic?


me me me!

Finally, after 15 months of studies, I got a pic of myself in uniform. (thanx to friend's new camera phone) Mainly because we dun really bother bout snapping pics in uniform, as we’ll be spending the rest of our working life in it and seeing each other every day. Besides, none of us have a digicam, we are poor, no kidding. I realized that 95% of my mates are from average families, including me of course, and we don’t take extra pocket money from our parents anymore, but just survive on the RM450 (RM400 for year 1) that MAS is giving us monthly. Definition of surviving on my own - Exception to living at home and eating at home, everything else is on my own. With the ever increasing petrol price and the never ending toll collection in KL, savings is really tight. =( Nevertheless, we guys now know how to spell independent, and know that money doesn’t fall from the sky.


Playful boys...

Let me tell u more bout aviation, IF u are interested haha! Some people might find it boring, but it will never happen to me, I’m a hardcore aviation guy hahaha! So what do u know bout us? Very simple, we have a screwed up life. No day no night. We work odd hours, believe me. There’s a change in the working system now in KLIA, I’m not sure how it goes now, but the previous system that I know is like this: 12 hours shift, 2 shifts a day, 7am-7pm or 7pm-7am. Let me give u an example:

Monday : 7am – 7pm
Tuesday : 7am – 7pm
Wednesday : Rest
Thursday : 7pm – 7am
Friday : 7pm – 7am
Saturday : Rest
Sunday : 7am – 7pm
Monday : 7am – 7pm

For Aircraft Engineers, it’s something like this. There'll be 48 hours for u to change your day into night and vice versa. (If any1 from MAS is reading this and I’m wrong, pls correct me,i’m still an amatuer) So it doesn’t matter whether it’s Saturday or Sunday, as long as it’s your shift, then work! Same goes to CNY, Raya, Deepavali or Xmas. U gotta understand that KLIA is running 24 hours a day, so those guys who work at night are actually preparing your flight that u board early in the morning, as for night flights, the morning shift guys will be backing u up. So what do we do to prepare your flight? I’ve written some on a previous article ‘Triumph On The Ground – Aircraft Engineers’ if u wana know in detail. But basically, just some pre-flight checks, walking around the plane, visually checking for faults, ensuring all safety procedures or precautions are strictly followed and minor stuff.

For the past 3 months, if not mistaken, there were 7-8 cases of aircraft crashes in the world. It’s scary to you, but it’s worst to me. I have a heavy responsibility to hold on to, not now but when I start work. Even though I’m still studying, but those MAS people have been brainwashing us, pressuring us, telling us how great the responsibility is. We’ve watched many aircraft crashes on video, and after the video session, everyone walks out of the room quietly, emotionless.


TAME 60 - 3 Eagle

So, I’m Batch 60 of MAS’ Trainee Aircraft Maintenance Engineer. 3 Eagle means that I’m in semester 3, in the class named after an airplane manufacturer – Eagle. Since MAS was establish till today, the staff number for LAEs is around 1800-2000, meaning to say that there are only 1800-2000 LAEs who have graduated for the past 30-40 years, that’s very limited. I’m not trying to show off or being proud of myself, but just wanna let u know more bout us in the aviation industry. When I was younger, I didn’t even know who to go to to get these information and get to know more bout aviation. Now that I’m in this line, I wish to share my interest and knowledge to every1, hope it’s ok.


In a 2-seater Cessna 182


The old junk of RMAF- Skyhawk


Servicing the turbine engine on a HS125