(HARLINGEN, Texas) – Two Cessna 172 aircraft will give Texas State Technical College’s aviation maintenance students at the Harlingen campus new opportunities to train on actual aircraft through a partnership between TSTC and Harlingen-based Gulf Aviation.
The aircraft were donated by TSTC’s Aircraft Pilot Training program in Waco and flown to Harlingen by program instructors Jake Miediem and Logan Vocks. Gulf Aviation helped transport the aircraft to TSTC’s aviation maintenance hangar in Harlingen.
“Gulf Aviation was honored to play a key role in transporting the donated Cessna 172 aircraft to TSTC, helping ensure the aircraft arrived safely so it could begin its next chapter as a hands-on educational resource for aviation maintenance students,” said Arlene Garza, president of Gulf Aviation.
Carlos Rodriguez, the program’s team lead, said receiving the two aircraft will provide several benefits to the program.
“It will allow us to increase the number of students per cohort, provide more hands-on projects and help more students prepare to test for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) Aircraft Airframe certificate,” he said. “The airplanes will provide additional hands-on experience to our students to help develop their skills in aircraft inspection, maintenance and repair.”
The transfer of aircraft also highlighted the connection between TSTC’s aviation programs. The aircraft will now support another group of aviation students.
Vocks said helping to deliver an aircraft that he learned to fly made the experience rewarding.
“Jake and I had a smooth transfer of the aircraft after landing,” he said. “This was due to the friendly Gulf Aviation personnel, who allowed for an easy exchange.”
The partnership between TSTC and Gulf Aviation demonstrates how the college can connect its program with an industry partner to create a stronger pipeline of aviation professionals.
According to onetonline.org, aircraft mechanics and service technicians in Texas earn an average salary of $84,440 a year. The website projected there will be an 8% increase in the number of such jobs in the state from 2024 to 2034.
TSTC offers associate degrees and certificates of completion in Aircraft Airframe and Aircraft Powerplant at the Abilene, Harlingen and Waco campuses.
Registration for the fall semester is underway at TSTC. For more information, visit TSTC.edu.