Sunday, February 2, 2014

Aviation Professionalism & Flying Cheep



A specific job I would like to end up at would be the Director of Administration of an airport.  I would like to end up at Metro Detroit Airport, I would like to end up with the Wayne County Airport Authority.

      The position listed above is essentially an individual that would oversee most of the airport operations at a major airport.  I have gathered information about the required tasks and responsibilities of an Airport Director of Administration from AAAE  This positions job duties are typically responsible for tasks like directing the work flow of different departments, dealing with internal audits, directing polices for management, being a leader business improvements, and assure compliance with the regulations and government laws.  In addition Director of Administration is also behind the implementation of policies and procedures.  This is for most levels in the organization, from dealing with goods and services to the administration of contract documents and internal and external audits.  It is also important that this manager communicate effectively with the entire department and construct a good work ethic.  This will give comfort and security to employees about the importance of safety along with the Director being seen as a leader of a successful business.                The company I currently listed above was the Wayne County Airport Authority, located in Michigan.  The Detroit Airport has seen a decent amount of growth in the past years.  According to the Wayne County Airport Authority, this has been with the operation of both aircraft operations and passenger operations.  They have completed their airport master plan in 2009 and expect to see new developments in the near future.
 
I think that there are safety and liability concerns in any organization or business.  As a manger in this position I feel there would be a lot of oversight responsibility.  There are several divisions that the Director of Administration would be supervising.  Some of the things I think that could be done or I might do would include placing emphasis on performance evaluations and insuring they are done on a regular schedule with giving feedback in a timely manner.  Also I feel the work ethic and team work would be important.  Creating an environment where one another can complete tasks and double check ones work as a system of redundancy to help in preventing an error.  With things like this it would lay a foundation for a safe environment and the business or organization could focus on safety.

Professionalism in my own words is presenting yourself in confident, respectful, well groomed, and well dressed manner.  Speaking with clarity and directness when addressed.  

Two ways in which lack of professionalism was shown in the documentary "Flying Cheep", one would have been seen by the pilots computing weight and balance.  The Captain wanted to just mark down that a few more of the passengers were children so they would be within weight limits.  Management lacked professionalism by thinking about completing the task.  In the documentary one of the guys interviewed said they were willing to fudge numbers so it looked like he was on a normal duty day when he was really over and operating illegally. 
       

2 comments:

  1. I commend you on your job choice. I don't think I could do that type of job. There's a lot of bureaucracy and paperwork involved, not to mention lots of time at a desk. I completely agree with your examples of lacking professionalism in the video. Management and the pilots clearly weren't concerned with safety issues, and just wanted to make sure they made their money. It's sad that this occurs, and even worse that there are still companies in our industry that are still doing these types of things.

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  2. I like how you mention timely performance evaluations. I agree that this is an important aspect of professionalism - one that I have often seen neglected in my previous places of employment.

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