MOBILE, Alabama — Flight Works Alabama — an institution set up to stimulate interest in aviation careers among young people — is delivering on its mission as its education and workforce development programs generate international attention.

The facility in Mobile, created as a partnership between the State of Alabama and Airbus back in 2017, is serving as a valuable workforce pipeline for the aircraft maker through FlightPath9, a pre-employment training program for high school seniors that covers skills and certifications for an aviation career.

Meanwhile, Flight Works Alabama’s educational programs for middle school and elementary school students have already been adopted by instructors in numerous U.S. states and have debuted in the U.K., reaching over 50,000 students.

Alabama’s workforce guru, AIDT Director Ed Castile, said Flight Works Alabama has been an instant success — and packs the potential to serve as a workforce pipeline model for other industries.

“Flight Works Alabama is truly remarkable in its impact on people’s lives in Alabama along the Gulf Coast,” Castile said. “An initiative born within Airbus now has many corporate and governmental partners as they work collaboratively to develop an aviation industry workforce.

“We are in awe of their success, especially within a few short years,” he added. “Flight Works Alabama is how we solve our workforce issues across all business sectors.”

Angela Till, Deputy Secretary of the Alabama Department of Commerce, said Flight Works Alabama illustrates the kind of highly innovative approaches that the state implements in workforce development, a key issue for many industries today.

“The ingenuity exemplified by Flight Works Alabama is precisely why international companies in aerospace and aviation have our state on their location lists,” said Till, who is leading a small working team from Commerce on a business recruiting mission at this week’s Farnborough International Airshow.

Airbus pipeline

Flight Works Alabama opened in 2020, amid the disruptions triggered by the COVID-19 pandemic. Today, the 15,000-square-foot aerospace education center, which hosts field trips and other tours, is home to more than 40 exhibits while also directing programs such as FlightPath9, or FP9, for short.

All students who successfully complete Flight Works Alabama’s FP9 program begin as full-time apprentices at the nearby Airbus manufacturing facility, which produces A220 and A320 Family aircraft. 

Already, some 200 students have participated and graduated from the high school and early career FP9 program. The first group of FP9 students began their careers at Airbus in 2021.

“Flight Works Alabama is pioneering transformative educational opportunities for the next generation of aerospace professionals,” said Daryl Taylor, Airbus SVP of Commercial Aircraft Operations in the U.S. “These programs have been a game changer for our workforce development pipeline.

“Their positive influence extends beyond Alabama into states across the nation, and into other countries around the world,” he added.

The White House Historically Black Colleges and Universities initiative highlighted FP9 as a program that can be replicated in any community with any industry, according to Michelle Hurdle, director of workforce and economic development at Airbus Americas Inc. and president of Flight Works Alabama.

STEAM outcomes

Meanwhile, Flight Works’ STEAM curriculum programs — “We Build It Better” (WBIB) and “We WILL Build It Better” (WWBIB) — are seeing widespread adoption.

WBIB provides classroom kits to teachers to instruct middle school students in 21st Century work skills including product design, electrical wiring, fiber optics and coding. WWBIB is designed for elementary school students.

Together, the programs are currently being taught in 20 U.S. states, and both have been launched in the U.K. They will launch in France this fall.

Hurdle said the programs have been highly successful, while also delivering some unexpected benefits.

“While we expected the children to learn about and how to use hand tools, 3D-print and code, because these skills are directly in the curriculum, we are also receiving positive feedback on the social and behavioral impact these programs have had on the students,” she said.

Since both WBIB and WWBIB are data-driven programs, teacher and student efficacy are measured to ensure goals are being met. Results have shown that the students’ social emotional learning competencies have exceeded all expectations.   

To cite a few examples, 95% of the students have indicated they feel they can respect the differences of their classmates, while a similar percentage said they believe being a good team member is important. In addition, 89% of the students indicated they feel they can make changes when things do not go as planned, and 87% of students said they feel they can encourage others to do their best.

In addition to these results, STEAM work skills are also measured and have indicated significantly positive outcomes, Hurdle said.

These programs also reflect the collaborative nature that animates Flight Works Alabama’s approach. They were developed with a wide range of partners, including Airbus, AWS, the Alabama Power Co. Foundation, the State of Alabama, Mott MacDonald, Thompson Engineering and Snap-on Tools.

“I believe Flight Works Alabama is a really great example of a home-grown success story that is spreading its benefits across the country — even internationally — and it has the education community buzzing because of its potential,” Hurdle said.

“The center’s educational programs are helping young people get onto a rewarding career path so they can realize their dreams in life.”