Direct Path to Maintenance Careers with UAL

United Airlines, the Chicago-based U.S. legacy air-carrier, has launched the Calibrate Technician Pathway Program, an initiative by which the airline sets out to provide U.S. Army reservists and students enrolled in a number of prominent aviation maintenance schools direct pathways to lucrative careers as UAL aircraft technicians.

During the program’s initial phase, United will establish partnerships with the U.S. Army Reserve’s Aviation Command Unit, the National Aviation Academy, the Aviation Institute of Maintenance, and the Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics. By dint of the aforementioned partnerships, the airline will intake up to three-hundred eligible students annually.

The Calibrate Technician Pathway program supports the airline's United Next growth plan, under which the airline expects to take delivery of eight-hundred new aircraft between 2023 and 2032. Over the last 18-months, United hired upwards of 3,200 technicians. What’s more, for purpose of supporting the new aircraft bound for its fleet, the airline intends to hire thousands more by 2026.

United Airlines managing director of Calibrate Simone Drakes stated: "Investments in new aircraft and facilities require that we also increase our pipeline of maintenance technicians that will ensure our expansive fleet, facilities and equipment are safely and efficiently maintained. Launching this new program alongside highly regarded institutions whose high-quality training and aviation education will help us to reach our United Next and maintenance technician hiring goals."                     

Once accepted into the Calibrate Technician Pathway Program, students must maintain high GPAs and solid attendance records. Failure to do so will see them ousted from the airline’s hiring pool. United will host interviews, open houses and career fairs at each of the schools. With the U.S. Army Reserve, United will host career fairs within the Aviation Command Unit's local communities and provide guidance on Airframe and Powerplant (A&P) certification programs to reservists. Recruiting through the U.S. Army Reserve will also help support United's hiring goals for ground service equipment and facilities technicians.

In partnership with United's talent acquisition team, reservists and students, after completing all necessary certifications, will be invited to apply and interview at the airline's Tech Ops Recruiting Center in Houston. Participants will have priority screening consideration and benefits the likes of access to mentorship opportunities with seasoned maintenance technicians throughout the airline’s 42 domestic Technical Operations stations.

In the future, the airline plans to expand the program to include its United Express carriers and Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) partners.

FMI: www.united.com