Is MMS Aviation a School?

Short Answer

No.

Twitter-length Answer

MMS is a real maintenance shop that repairs real missionary airplanes, and mentors new mechanics so they can be more effective long-term.

Encyclopedic Answer

Preparing People and Planes for Worldwide Missionary Service

MMS Aviation’s mission statement is pretty simple. At it’s core, the organization exists to spread the Gospel. MMS is a technical ministry, meaning that we do missionary support work (as opposed to preaching or translating the Bible). We provide excellent maintenance for airplanes, and people who are well-equipped to go service them.

There is one gigantic factor in making someone an airplane mechanic: government. You can’t just hang out your shingle as an airplane mechanic the way you might start a small engine repair shop. That is why MMS’s mission of preparing people is so important. To be a missionary mechanic, you have to meet the government’s requirements, and it’s not as simple as walking in and taking a test. The FAA defines two ways an individual can obtain a mechanic’s certificate:

1. Attend an approved school that uses an approved curriculum. Being an approved school takes a lot of paperwork, and you must follow a rigid schedule of subject matters and spend a lot of time in the classroom.
2. Work as an apprentice under a certified mechanic for 30 months. There still some specific time requirements that must be met, but generally the regulations are a lot more flexible.

MMS Aviation takes the second approach. The main reason is that we can be working on real airplanes, instead of studying system mock-ups, disassembling (for the 34th time) that Cessna that hasn’t flown in 15 years, or overhauling (again) the engine that only has 8 hours (on a test stand) since the last “overhaul”. Working on real airplanes is more productive both for the student and for the mission aviation community.

When we begin at MMS Aviation, I will be working on airplanes from the first week. Real airplanes. Airplanes that, when we are finished, will head back to the mission field to carry preachers, new Bibles, and sick people, with the love of Jesus in every flight.

If you know us very well, you might be saying, “Wait. FAA Certification? I thought you already had a mechanic certificate!” I do, and that’s exactly why we joined MMS Aviation. Keep your eyes open for the next post.