Hawker Beechcraft celebrates apprentice success

                          
Hawker Beechcraft Corporation has recruited nine young apprentices following the successful completion of their engineering apprenticeship programmes.

The apprenticeship scheme combines academic training through Deeside College along with vocational experience at the Hawker Beechcraft’s service centre at Hawarden Airport in Broughton.

All nine qualified in their respective areas and have been offered full-time positions at Hawker Beechcraft with five becoming airframe technicians, two quality engineers, one a design engineer and one an interiors technician. Since launching its apprenticeship programme in 2003, Hawker Beechcraft has employed 21 full-time apprentices.

Clive Prentice, vice president and general manager, Europe Middle East and Africa Operations, Global Customer Support, Hawker Beechcraft Corporation, said “We are thrilled to have had so many excellent apprentices this year who have achieved a very high standard of achievement and we are delighted to be able to offer them all jobs.”

This year applications to the apprenticeship scheme were up 20% compared to last year.

“The experience we have all gained on Hawker Beechcraft’s programme has been incredible,” said apprentice Rhys Edwards. “We all know the importance of developing skills for our long term careers, and we couldn’t have received a better hands-on education than we have received here. Now we’re looking forward to the next steps as we specialise in specific areas.”

“Apprentices are absolutely crucial to the success of our business,” Prentice continued. “The scheme enables us to equip people with the high-level skills, experience and knowledge required to ensure our business remains competitive and at the forefront of engineering excellence. More generally, engineering and manufacturing are seen as key to rebalancing the UK’s economy and for driving future growth. These apprenticeship schemes are vital not only to us but to industry in the North West and beyond.”