Mil CIV Tips for the transitioning military helicopter pilot
Combating the pilot and mechanic shortage is on the forefront of the agenda for most helicopter companies today. Finding a solution to this shortage, with qualified candidates, seems to be evading even the most prestigious helicopter companies.
There is, however, a rich resource of highly qualified aviation employees that has been overlooked and underrepresented for too long. This vast resource of aviation experts can be found within the SkillBridge program founded by the U.S. Department of Defense.
The DOD SkillBridge program was developed to help active duty military members, with 180 days until their exit date, make a successful transition into the civilian workforce. According to its website, the DOD SkillBridge program allows transitioning service members to “gain valuable civilian work experience through specific industry training by matching civilian opportunities to a service member’s job training and work experience.” The program “aims to serve as a bridge between military service and civilian employment, with the Department of Defense overseeing the placement of service members in a variety of employment fields.” (
https://www.dol.gov/agencies/ofccp/opinion- letters/dod-skillbridge) This program develops partnerships that agree to
with bring
participating in
transitioning,
companies active
duty military members to work for them in an internship capacity at no cost to the company. The SkillBridge Program is unique in that it allows these active duty military members to continue to draw their full salary and benefits while they work in intern capacities at these participating partner companies. After 180 days have transpired, the companies have the
opportunity to hire these individuals
KNOW THESE VALUABLE RESOURCES 2
By Heidi McBride
as permanent employees. Conversely, the service members are under no obligation to remain at the participating companies if they choose to explore additional opportunities elsewhere. However, by choosing to bring in highly qualified candidates from the military into your company as specialized interns, you have the ability to not only mentor and guide these military members through a successful transition into the civilian aviation workforce, but also to assist in shaping them into highly skilled candidates for future employment. If you are interested in applying to become an approved DOD SkillBridge partner, you can find the application on the DOD SkillBridge website at (
https://skillbridge.osd.mil/industry- employers.htm).
While just about any company can apply to become an authorized partner with the DOD SkillBridge Program, the obstacle encountered for aviation-specific companies is finding candidates who meet the necessary flight and maintenance qualifications. Unfortunately, just being an authorized partner within the DOD SkillBridge program does not ensure that only fully qualified individuals are applying to work at your company.
In order to provide a comprehensive solution to this obstacle, a group of aviation veterans have joined forces to create SkyBridge LLC (https://
skybridgevets.com/?page_id=14). SkyBridge is a veteran-owned-and-operated company that works in conjunction with the DOD SkillBridge program to help place transitioning active
duty military aviators with civilian
helicopter industry partners. Since SkyBridge is already an approved DOD SkillBridge partner, it is able to act as an intermediary between the transitioning active duty military
helicopter pilots or A&P mechanics and the SkyBridge company partners who are looking to hire these qualified candidates. SkyBridge has modeled its third-party talent acquisition methods after companies like Amazon, John Deere, Masonite, and Lowes, and it is the only aviation-focused, third-party provider of DOD SkillBridge applicants.
SkyBridge ensures its corporate partners are getting the right candidates by verifying the applicants meet all the necessary requirements for the positions and reflect the type of character desired by each company culture. Consequently, corporate partners will have the opportunity to put these internship candidates through their entire hiring process, including the necessary skills tests and evaluating interviews, prior to accepting the applicants into the internship program. If you are interested in becoming a SkyBridge company partner, you can reach its team directly at
ops@skybridgevets.com.
Our goal at the Helicopter Association International (HAI) Heli Expo Mil2Civ workshop is to use every resource we have to ensure our active duty military members make a successful transition into the civilian helicopter industry. While we believe that SkyBridge is an excellent resource in finding and employing highly qualified candidates through the DOD SkillBridge program, your helicopter company can apply to be an approved DOD SkillBridge partner on its own. The DOD is always looking to expand its list of authorized partners. If your company would like to develop its own human resource department to accept and process applicants, here is the link to become a SkillBridge partner. (https://skillbridge.osd. mil/
industry-employers.htm).
About the author: Heidi McBride was a helicopter crew chief in the U.S. Coast Guard and is now a multi-engine IFR helicopter pilot working in the oil and gas industry.
18 July/Aug 2022
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