Aeronautical vocational education

EADS’s commitment to nurturing scientific culture through education and protecting the heritage of aeronautics are in the center of the creation of new aviation maintenance vocational baccalaureate course from the French Aristide Briand High School, located in the socially disadvantaged area of Blanc-Mesnil near Paris.

The heart of this project is the restoration of an helicopter and an aircraft by the students.

These students spend their school year dismantling the helicopter, sand-blasting and cleaning the blades, turbine and cockpit, and painting it with Eurocopter engineers and technicians, Association Les Alouettes and AMPE (link) volunteers.

"This course is the first one in its category in this academic district. Teaming up with the leaders in the aeronautical industry and enabling our young students to work side by side with professionals is a real advantage for our small school. We had the same views as the EADS Foundation on sharing expertise and paving the way for these young students’ future, because they are the future of aeronautics,” said the school’s Head Teacher Patrick Berthelot.

This project, in particular, provided an opportunity to build a bridge between two generations from different background and, maybe, to foster vocations.

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