Fascination with the skies is as ancient as human civilization. It was only this century that humans first left the nest, moulting our fledgling wings and sprouting metallic ones courtesy of Orville and Wilbur Wright. Avionics Technician Richard Cox helps make human flights of fancy possible by maintaining the electronic and electrical systems and devices that keep people flying high.


Richard, 36, travels the world spending his days, and some of his nights, repairing, upgrading, and testing aviation electronic systems. Western Avionics, Rich's employer since January 1996, contracts its services out to airlines and aircraft manufacturers all over the world. When Rich is not on the ground repairing planes, he's in one, travelling to customer sites where he makes modifications to planes manufactured by the Canadair division of Bombardier Aerospace and other companies.

"Currently, the most interesting part of my job is the chance to represent the aircraft manufacturer in assisting their customers in establishing maintenance procedures and operating newly acquired aircraft," says Rich. Spending a lot of time in foreign lands - West Africa, Trinidad, Argentina, and Brazil - is a real job bonus. But wherever he goes, the workshop is familiar. Depending on the work required, Rich spends his time in airplane hangars and installation shops. Working directly with aircraft, he often spends long periods of time curled up inside the body of the plane.

Avionics focuses on three specific categories of aircraft electronic systems: navigation and communication, electrical and instrumentation, and auto-flight. "My current job requires me to be versatile in all aspects of aircraft avionics' systems," Rich says. His favourite areas include Electronic Flight Instrument Systems (EFIS), Engine Indicating and Crew Alerting Systems (EICAS), and auto-flight systems. "These systems in modern aircraft deal with computer control and utilize the latest technology for control, feedback, and display." These systems use a range of advanced computer technologies to provide pilots with the information, control, and feedback they need to reach their destinations safely.