From the moment he looked under the hood of his first car at age 16, Matt was hooked. His fascination with engines started with smaller setups and quickly evolved to learning everything he could about all types of engines. Fixing anything—including airplanes—was his M.O. The rest is history.
As a kid, I spent hours throwing foam and balsa airplanes in my backyard, running to pick them up, repairing and tweaking them for a better flight, and then doing it all over again. When I got into high school and started thinking about a long-term career, I realized that I didn’t want to sit at a desk all day, but I did want to get paid a lot for my job. I wanted to do something mechanical that is hands-on, challenging, rewarding, and important. Once I visited a family friend at the airport to see how they maintained the governor’s King Air, I was hooked.
Watching a student transition from having absolutely no mechanical knowledge whatsoever, into a fully developed, autonomous technician who can troubleshoot and repair complex aircraft systems is the most rewarding part of my job. It is so rewarding to see students come into the program with absolutely no aircraft knowledge or experience and leave with a whole new arsenal of knowledge and confidence that I helped cultivate along the way.
No matter where you go in life, adjustments and adaptations will be needed. It’s best to learn how to adjust and adapt under safe conditions that aren’t just simulations of the real world challenges that you’ll face but are actual, hands-on examples of what you’ll be doing in real life. When your professional decisions change lives on a daily basis, you’ll be glad that you pushed yourself to acquire the Penn College level of confidence that only real, hands-on experiences can provide. Visit other schools and tour their facilities before touring our Lumley Aviation Center. You’ll see why our facilities and faculty are among the best.
Many technicians who have been trained by videos, books, and lectures lack the confidence to do real work on live aircraft when it comes time to do so. Penn College graduates are highly prized in industry because their hands-on experience with such a wide range of aircraft and materials makes them much more confident and self-directed when it comes time to perform tasks on real aircraft. There is no equivalent substitute for installing a turbine engine than actually installing a turbine engine.
An A&P technician is like an aircraft heart surgeon in this way. Think of it like this. If you could pay only $50 for open heart surgery from a surgeon who has read the procedure 100 times in a book, or pay $50,000 to a heart surgeon who has performed the procedure 100 times on live patients, which would you choose?
When the recent pandemic paused tours, Matt, along with Associate Professor Tom Inman, stepped up and created their very own virtual tour. Join them for a whirlwind walk-through of the Kathryn Wentzel Lumley Aviation Center. See the lab spaces where students learn what it takes to earn their Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Airframe and Powerplant Mechanic Certificate. Fly through labs where students tear down and repair engines. And get a glimpse of the hangar where they put their skills to the test.
Reliving his favorite childhood activity, Matthew shared his love of building toy airplanes with a booth full of spectators at the Pennsylvania Farm Show.
Get a glimpse of Basic Electricity II, one of the required courses for the bachelor's program. Matt kicks the day off with one hour of theory, followed by nearly six hours of hands-on training in advanced labs using real operational aircraft and specialty tooling.
With three degree options to choose from, access to specialized learning labs, and expert faculty leading the way, Penn College is the place to set your future in motion.
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