Lockheed Martin company Sikorsky Australia has welcomed five new apprentices into their industrial aviation workforce program, now totalling 16 apprentices.
The company stated that the program, launched in 2018, forms a critical part of the growth strategy for the future workforce, and now represents nearly 20% of the technical workforce and an annual investment of over $1 million.
The new apprentices in the program will complete a four-year aircraft maintenance engineer apprenticeship where they will learn the skills of the trade required to sustain the Royal Australian Navy’s most advanced naval helicopter - MH-60R Seahawks - at Sikorsky Australia’s Maintenance and Logistics Support facility in Nowra.
“We are thrilled to onboard our new apprentices who will work side by side with our skilled technical workforce. We will step the apprentices through an intensive aviation program teaching them the core skills to inspect, service, repair, test and troubleshoot complex systems and components onboard the Seahawks and aid them to become nationally qualified aircraft maintenance engineers,” said Cliff Kyle, Sikorsky Australia’s General Manager.
“Our apprentices are the cornerstone of our talent pipeline in growing Australia’s defence industry aviation industrial base. The ability to capture regional talent and grow them in this truly specialised field that is contributing to national security is not only amazing for the individual, but incredibly rewarding for the entire team at Sikorsky Australia.
“We are honoured to be building a workforce that supports the Royal Australian Navy’s mission at sea and our highly skilled team are proud to be a part of assuring the highest level of operational readiness for the Navy’s Seahawk fleet.”
Sikorsky Australia’s apprenticeship cohort currently includes 16 apprentices at various stages in the apprenticeship program. To date, all of the apprentices who have completed their apprenticeships have gone on to take up full time roles in the company, which has resulted in eight engineers transitioning to full time roles since 2018.
Over the next five years, Sikorsky Australia aims to grow its skilled technical workforce in the region from 200 to over 300 personnel supporting the maintenance and logistics aspects of the Sikorsky operations.