BETHEL, Alaska (AP) - A new training effort is being launched in Bethel to address a severe shortage of aircraft mechanics in the Yukon-Kuskokwim region.
Yuut Elitnaurviat, the regional adult workforce development program, is opening an aircraft mechanic school to fill the gap, KYUK reported .
Some of the planes to be used were donated, according to Yuut Elitnaurviat’s executive director Mike Hoffman.
“It’s just people understanding this school and what it’s going to bring to the region,” he said.
Keith Henthorn, with regional airline Yule Commuter Service, said virtually all airlines he knows of are looking for mechanics. None of Yute’s mechanics are Bethel residents, but people who come from Anchorage or Fairbanks or outside the state.
Henthorn said he just offered a Florida resident $42 an hour to work for Yute. He said he would rather hire locals, adding that bringing in outside workers is expensive, with flights and housing among the costs.
“Our goal is to have 10 aircraft available every day,” Henthorn said. “Typically, we have eight. Now we still get most of the things flown that we need to get flown. Just makes for a little bit longer business day than is practical in most environments.”
The first round of the new school is set to begin in February and run for a year and a half.
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