William Villanueva has always loved watching jets in the sky. He lived next to an outlying airfield where the Navy would practice their touch and go. He joined the Marine Corps to be an aircraft mechanic. "The love for working on and with aircraft always stuck with me even after I got out of the Marines."
He received his aviation training from the Aviation Institute of Maintenance in Chesapeake, VA. One of his mentors is Jerry Lee, a maintenance instructor. "His teaching style kept you attentive and eager to learn. When I went from student to peer he helped me to become a good instructor and whenever I needed help again he was always there to lend a hand."
While in the Marines, he was a shift supervisor and shop inspector, quality assurance inspector, in flight trouble shooter, aviation gas free engineer, joint oil analysis technician, and shop supervisor. Currently he is an AMT instructor at Aviation Institute of Maintenance in Chesapeake, VA.
Nominated by Timothy Murray, Program Coordinator, Aviation Institute of Maintenance, and 2017 AMT Next Gen Award Winner: William Villanueva is the kind of person who not only has a talent for aviation maintenance, but also has the ability to inspire others within the field. William came to the Aviation Institute of Maintenance in order to pursue his love for aviation maintenance in the private sector. His ability to breakdown complex systems, and to simplistically convey the science behind aviation maintenance technology proved a valuable asset to his fellow students. Today, Will is a teacher at the very same school he once attended. His creativity coupled with his talent for inspiring others has made him very popular among the student body. Will employs competitive games, visual ques and props, and a blend of Marine Corps discipline and humor to teach future mechanics in the field of aviation maintenance. His students applaud his methods to make class fun, including using a homemade flag that he throws to denote incorrect answers, in much the same way a referee uses a flag in a game of football. The skies are safer today because William Villanueva has taken on the responsibility of making sure future mechanics are just as capable as he is."
He gives back to the industry by instructing future aviation mechanics.
