Last year in conjunction with the 25th anniversary of Aircraft Maintenance Technology, many of our feature articles reflected back on past events and activities in our industry. We had a great time putting these articles together and hope you enjoyed them.
In this issue, the first of 2015, we’re putting the past behind us and taking a look at several trends, predictions, and technologies that may shape the future of aviation and aircraft maintenance.
Steve Justice, director of the Georgia Center of Innovation for Aerospace, provides four key predictions for 2015 in his article, “What’s Ahead for Aerospace in 2015.” Mr. Justice concludes by saying, “I firmly believe that this is an exciting time for the aerospace industry in the United States.”
Barb Zuehlke, senior editor of Aircraft Maintenance Technology, has been following how some governments and economic development agencies have collaborated with industry to provide incentives to help spur local growth. In her feature, “Break Ground for Aviation” Barb looks into a few large-scale development programs in Puerto Rico and Rockford, IL.
In the commercial and MRO segments, Jerry Chandler provides us with trends and insight that could shape the future of commercial aviation. Jerry discusses topics like quality, reliability, and technology impact on capacity, and OEM impact to maintenance.
Beginning with this issue, we have expanded on the number of columns by industry organizations in order to raise the amount of insight into our dynamic industry. In addition to our regular columnists, we’ve added insights from General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) and Aviation Technician Education Council (ATEC).
Slated for entry into service in 2016, Bell Helicopter’s 525 Relentless is the world’s first fly-by-wire commercially certified helicopter. In this issue Bell Helicopter leaders describe the company’s design philosophy toward improved maintainability and reliability, and the Bell 525 aircraft maintenance training program at the Bell Helicopter Training Academy (BTA).
Enjoy the issue, Ron
