Cancelled for Maintenance

It's been an amazing journey and we can't thank you enough! Today, we celebrate another major milestone, reaching 25,000 downloads.  We take a look back on some of the successes and challenges we had with the show and answer some listener questions which we've received through our various social media outlets. Do you like this episode? Follow us on Facebook- @cancelledformaintenance, Instagram- @c...

In our previous episodes, we've discussed toxic environments and less than capable leadership.  Sometimes however, the problem is the individual employee.  What's the difference between a difficult employee and a toxic one? What should you do about a toxic employee? Do you like this episode? Follow us on Facebook- @cancelledformaintenance, Instagram- @canxformaintenancepodcast. Twitter- @cxmxpodca...

There is a large emphasis on aircrew (i.e. pilots, flight attendants, and so forth) performance, error, and medication use.  For aircraft mechanics and ground technicians however, these lines are blurred, almost flagrantly ignored for the sake of continuous operations.  When is it ok to self-medicate, what are some alternatives, and when would it pose a problem? Do you like this episode? Follow us...

Visiting family for the holidays is a major planning event we all look forward to (or don’t) all year.  It’s needless to say, the pandemic has severely crippled our travel plans last year, but with every industry facing its own share of challenges since the pandemic, what sort of challenges do we (the travelers) face as we gear up for our trips?  What are some things we can do to help prepare?  **...

We’ve all, at multiple points in time, have suffered from burn out and non-recognition for our work.  What could be worse is having recognition be so impersonal or so common it loses its value.  On this episode, we explore key factors of what should go into awarding someone for their work and recognize a few groups and individuals who have earned their successes.  ** Do you know or have someone wh...

To say the pandemic has affected us and industries across the world would be an understatement. We’ve all been in one way, shape, or form been disrupted by COVID-19.  Some industries had to shut down, some had to shut down for good, and some were lucky enough to operate but at a limited capacity.  As industries slowly start to recover, aviation especially has some key challenges that it will need...

In December of 2020, the National Commission on Military Aviation Safety published a report citing root causes to the thousands of military aviation mishaps.  The five-year study of this report recounts some of the leading causes which include inadequately trained aircrew and maintainers, aggressive operations tempo, overworked maintainers, and unpredictable budgets. Although this article focuses...

Tales of haunted forts, ghost planes, and visitations from the beyond are all a part of the season of Halloween.  We bring you our third ever collab episode with Cristina and MJ, the hosts of the Espooky Tales podcast! We will tell tales of haunted places from Latin origins to believe it or not ghost stories of current tales happening right now in the United States! Do you believe in ghosts? Have...

The need for speed is what makes us continue to push the limits of machines and science.  Supersonic flight has its own share of challenges from materials, fuel economy, environmental impacts, and high maintenance costs.  Let's not forget to mention the current and standing ban of flying supersonic over land. Why is this so, and will new innovations currently in the works be our solution to these...

We as humans tend to not focus on the “losers” and “failures” in life.  Much, if not all of our focus is on “winners”, “against all odds” stories, things we can see, and things that make us feel good.  This distorted view seeing only successes is called “survivorship bias”.  Today we explore yet another article about what goes into survivorship bias and how it affects every aspect of our life. Wou...

There are 5 core competencies that every leader and aspiring leader need to be familiar with and constantly practice.  It's sometimes a big pill to swallow to recognize your faults and weaknesses but realizing what they are is the stepping stone to improvement.  Some however, see no fault in themselves, or they force cohesion/collaboration to the point of submission.  Today, we look into Indiana U...

Cannibalizations are a widely used aviation practice to bridge the supply gap to fulfill operation requirements.  For today's episode, we review a report filed by the General Accounting Office (GAO) about how cannibalizations can adversely affect aviation personnel AND maintenance.  We've all, at one point, have done CANNs to make a plane flyable, some at the expense of another aircraft because of...

We've all heard it before, we are human and humans make mistakes.  Human factors play such a critical role, especially in aviation, to the success and failure of the aviation industry.  There are so many classes, certifications, and components that go in to mitigating human induced errors, that it's viewed mostly as a chore than it is as a form of mitigating risk.  We look into some instances as c...

We take a quick break from some of our usual antics and share some forecasts on the future of our industry.  We cite some snippits of history about aviation, how the trade became popular, and share an article from CASA, our Australian counterpart to the FAA. COVID-19 has put a serious pause on most industries, some harder than others. The forecast for aviation, trades in general, is looking very p...

To excel in a trade, you will need to attain certain certifications, licenses, and qualifications.  Getting these certs (and so forth) is a long road, some could take you upwards of 16 years depending on where and what trade you are in.  This is assuming you have ready access to the training or schooling required to get them.  Some certification requirements have limited training seats, some have...

We've made it to our 50th episode and our 1-year podcast anniversary! We seriously couldn't have done any of it without you, our listeners, supporters, and Patrons!  When we began this podcast, it was an abstract idea and a wild shot in the dark at best.  We've said it time and time again, but we really can't stress it enough, we started this podcast to highlight some of the gross underbelly of th...

We’ve all at one point or another criticized our leadership.  A fair amount of those times was during a stressful situation and their decisions weren’t meeting the demand.  Attitudes and mindsets change when you’re the one placed in the “hot seat” however.  Being the person in charge, or better yet, the “acting” person in charge can be very tense, where vital decisions need to be made fast with li...

Some of us, across all industries, have been unfortunately without work due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of us have had to adapt to both work and personnel shortages. As things however start ramping back up and returning to a semi-normal pace, industries are feeling the backlash of doing more with less. Some organizations have been able to adjust, while others are grinding gears to build momentu...

Almost anything aviation related has its share of noise hazards.  Some occupations have nothing but noise hazards.  These occupations would most assuredly have signs, posters, and other forms of media that advise you to preserve your sense of hearing and wear appropriate protective equipment. Do we actually use them? Every shop has those individuals who scoff at the notion due to their already lac...

We all work hard to earn our time off, often at the expense of ourselves.  "Work hard, play hard" is the typical saying when referring to activities outside of our day-to-day grind.  Vacations are the go-to cure for work burnout, or at least be the relief for it, but have you ever had vacations where it felt like it was just as much work if not more than your regular job? How about being wrapped u...

When there’s work to be done, the job can consume you. Sometimes however, we find ourselves rushing to the stop sign. When these uncommon but inevitable moments occur, the demand for superfluous tasks begin to rise. In times of too much "white space", you would think some refresher training or practical applications would be ideal.  That may be the case on some occasions, however more often than y...

What's your go-to ritual or practice before a major event? Pre-game puke? Nice cup of coffee? How about a good stretch and jamming out to your favorite tunes (or podcast)? Whatever form it takes, we have those habits that help ready us for the oncoming venture.  Some habits are positive and empower us to brave the storm, giving us some sense of courage and invulnerability.  Other habits are negati...

They go by many names; maintenance controller, pro super, production controller, operations/project planner, maintenance coordinator, production planner; but one title they all share is "cat herder".  Maintenance control is widely considered the operations and information hub of the aviation world.  This hub acts as the brain of an aviation organization which includes such functions as gathering a...

At some point in your career, you will find reasons to be unfulfilled or unsatisfied.  This can come in many forms such as commute time is no longer feasible, family time is becoming too scarce, an abundance of burnout days, and so forth.  The thought of moving on to something else or something better becomes stronger as the moments pass by.  We sometimes accept these feelings as overthinking or o...

Do you like this episode? Follow us on Facebook- @cancelledformaintenance, Instagram- @canxformaintenancepodcast. Twitter- @cxmxpodcast Visit our website and check out our merch at www.cancelledformaintenance.com. Have ideas or stories for show? Send us a line at our contact us section of our website! Check out Rockwell Time for awesome outdoor merch and apparel. Use code-CX4MX and save 10%! Tell...