Piasecki’s Bud Leonard was Awarded the Charles Taylor Master Mechanic Award by representatives of the FAA on January 10th at a dinner at the Corinthian Yacht Club. To be eligible for this award a person must meet these criteria:
· Have 50 years in aviation maintenance as an accredited mechanic or repairman.
· Be an FAA-certified mechanic or repairman for a minimum of 30 years.
Mr. Leonard was presented the award by Mr. Joseph Kain from the FAA. Piasecki Aircraft Corporation’s Board Chairman and Chief Technology Officer, Fred Piasecki spoke at a January 10, 2020 dinner at the Corinthian Yacht Club in Essington, recalling Mr. Leonard’s nearly 40 years with Piasecki Aircraft.
He is the first Piasecki Aircraft employee to earn this honor.
Mr. Leonard received significant recognition for this award, including a cover story in D.O.M. (Director of Maintenance) magazine (www.DOMmagazine.com). (Piasecki Aircraft has been given permission by D.O.M. to reprint this story and is very grateful to them and their editor Joe Escobar. Thank you very much!)
“On behalf of Piasecki Aircraft Corporation we were very pleased that Bud Leonard was awarded the Charles Taylor Master Mechanic Award in mid-January from the FAA. This was quite appropriate in our view. Bud received this award celebrating his “over 50 years of violation free work in aircraft maintenance,” said Fred Piasecki.
“We know Bud is proud to join many others in gaining this prestigious recognition. At Piasecki, Bud is both an institution and an inspiration. He is always one of the hardest working, but most determined employees we have. He has been the mentor for me and the 30 or so other young engineers and mechanics we have working on aviation systems. He makes every encounter a lesson and enjoys teaching the art of aviation safety. In the developmental and research arenas not all publications are available.”
“Hence he makes the young use their god-given intellect in order to guide their work with a drive to identify the potential of “what could go wrong with an eye on elimination of risk. He also sets an example showing how to work with his company teammates. We are proud that Bud has been here for over 40 years as we have benefited from his knowledge and willingness to work cooperatively and openly with all,” added Piasecki.
“This Bud’s for us!”
Bud Leonard is indeed an institution at PiAC where he has worked both in part-time and full-time capacities since 1981. His career as an aviation mechanic began with a four-year tour in the Marine Corps from 1964-68; then onto Keystone Helicopters (a Delaware Valley operator) and then moving to Erickson Air-Crane Company, operator of the world’s Skycrane heavy-lift fleet (SH-64s), which are among the largest helicopters in the western world. He also was a Delaware public school teacher in DelCastle, suburban Wilmington, where he trained over 350 high school students to become aviation mechanics. Bud is known for mentoring and growing the next generation of aviation mechanics. Two of his graduates are currently employed at PiAC. Mark Valencik is an R&D mechanic, who is currently supporting ARES and Scan Eagle programs, part of PiAC’s UAS family of aircraft. Ronnie Rittler is a machinist who supports all PiAC projects. Over the years Bud estimates 50+ graduates who trained with him have worked for the company.
Charles Taylor Master Mechanic Award
The Charles Taylor Master Mechanic Award is an honor presented by the United States Federal Aviation Administration in honor of Charles Taylor, the first aviation mechanic in powered flight. This award recognizes lifetime accomplishments of senior aviation mechanics.
Mr. Taylor served as the Wright brothers’ mechanic and is credited with designing and building the engine for their first successful aircraft.
Q&As with Bud Leonard
The Piasecki Aircraft website had the great pleasure of sitting down with Bud Leonardo the company’s first Charles Taylor award winner as a master mechanic.
Bud is a wonderful fellow who makes all in the room feel his presence and it is great to get his take on things. This Q&A was a collaboration between Bud, his wife Christine and Bob Torgerson of PIAC PR.
1) You were recently the recipient of one of the most prestigious awards in maintenance, the Charles Taylor award for maintenance. What does this mean to you?
A) Alot!! It’s as high as you can get in the aircraft maintenance world. Think!! There’s only about 2820 recipients and to be one of them is really an honor!!
2) In a way are you like Charles Taylor—you say you learn as you go along, whether or not you see something explained in a book?
A) In a way—I even worked on bicycles. I like to think that I’m a problem solver when it comes to maintenance. It comes in handy here at PiAC when you are testing components on a fabricated test assembly.
3) You have had quite the career at Piasecki— it has been nearly 40 years in rotorcraft R&D. However, if you go back further with the USMC in Vietnam and then in the commercial helicopter business with Keystone and Erickson it has been well over 50 years. What a legacy!
A) My story started November 17, 1964 with the USMC. With PiAC I started July 3, 1981 to July, 1986 with the Helistat and then from August 1986 to 2002—off and on again procuring parts until it picked up with maintenance beginning January 2003.
4) So what are a couple of your key memories and what are a couple of things that happened that you find hard to believe?
A) All of my key memories start with the great people I met in the Marine Corps and the helicopter world. These friends are the best. When you can get 135 people to come to a yacht club in the dead of winter for you is beyond great!
5) You were a teacher—a public school teacher who believed in mentoring. What has that meant to you?
A) The best answer for you is to see young people establishing a career in aviation. I try to follow their path in an industry that have been very good to me.
6) Are the students of today, like the students of the 1980s—only the era is different?
A) It’s hard for me to say, I haven’t had direct contract with a class of students since 2002.
7) In total, how many students have you mentored that have become licensed mechanics?
A) Over 100.
8) Is it better to get you’re A&P license from a school or from experiences in the military? What are benefits and drawbacks of both?
A) A certified FAA 147 school is the best way to go in my view. I went to the “Spartan School of Aeronautics in Tulsa, OK, and approximately ten graduates attended there after me. However, times have changed. The FAA now recognizes time in the military has really changed. You can document a lot of time compared to when I got out of the corps. A big drawback is things are missed when working OJT (On the Job Training). If you’re working with a very experienced old timer who teaches you what he knows that is both good and bad. But if you are sharp enough you can sort the bad and learn from it.
9) The more things change, the more they stay the same. What is the same about the helicopter industry of today compared with 50 years ago?
A) Hardly nothing!! Ole timers are biting the dust. With technology today you have parts changers not “Let’s figure it out mechanics.”
10) If you had the chance, what would you do all over again?
A) Probably nothing!! I have a lot of good friends. If I wasn’t so damn old, the door could possibly still be open.
11) Any shoutouts you want to make to people and why?
A) This is a very hard request!! If you want a very long list I’ll work on it. The main one though is CHRISTINE A. LEONARD—she has my back 24-7. What more could I ask for?
Thank you! This has been great.
Piasecki Aircraft was given permission by D.O.M. magazine to feature the cover and their article on Bud Leonard, recent Charles Taylor Master Mechanic Award Winner. We appreciate their willingness to share and are quite thankful to them for their graciousness.
Article reprinted with permission from D.O.M. (Director of Maintenance) magazine (www.DOMmagazine.com).