Happy fifth, D.O.M.!
It was exactly five years ago this July/August issue that the first issue of D.O.M. magazine was published. We recognized the need for a magazine targeted at maintenance managers and launched D.O.M. magazine.
We had recognized for some time that most maintenance managers were promoted off the floor because they were really good at fixing airplanes. The problem with that scenario is that the skills it takes to fix an airplane are often quite different than the skills needed to manage a maintenance facility. We knew many mechanics who, in the course of one day, had department budgets, personnel issues, sales quotas, budgets, facilities maintenance and more all dropped into their lap — with no training.
Our mission with the launch of D.O.M. would be to help these individuals learn the management side of the maintenance business. We have made a dent in the educational process, but we also know that there is still lots of work to do, and that education is a life-long commitment.
A little-known fact that I tell some of my clients is how we weren’t quite sure about the name D.O.M. when we started. It was obvious to us, being on the inside, that the term DOM or director of maintenance was a commonly-used term meaning the maintenance manager or person in charge of maintenance, but it is not commonly known from a legal perspective. DOM is only a term used in Part 121 or 135 operations. In Part 145 repair stations, the term accountable manager is the legal term, and there is no term at all in a Part 91 operation.
Yet, we held fast that the term DOM was relevant to the people that mattered — our readers. We were also told on more than one occasion that D.O.M. magazine could be thought as is DOM Pérignon — a prestigious, high-quality product at the top of its category.
We are humbled and pleased with how the industry has received D.O.M. magazine. Our success would not have been possible without the support our readers and advertisers have given us, and for that we thank you.
On another note — as this issue is being published, the staff of D.O.M. is registering for our annual trek to EAA AirVenture in Oshkosh, WI.
For those of you that haven’t had the opportunity to experience this one-of-a-kind gathering and air show, I would like to encourage you to add this to your bucket list. It’s something that you must do at least once in your life, particularly since you are in the aviation business.
It’s appropriately called AirVenture because every year is an adventure. More than 500,000 people gather in Oshkosh for this event. Wittman Regional Airport becomes the busiest airport in the world during that week.
What I consider essential about the show, however, is the fact that it has the effect of reinvigorating those of us that may be slightly burnt out on aviation. Let’s face it — we work in the industry each and every day, so why would we want to see another airplane? AirVenture is more than just a bunch of airplanes. These are some of the fastest, most powerful, largest and smallest aircraft in the world, all in one place. It calls some of the bravest pilots and skilled mechanics. It’s daring young men and women in their gyrocopters and flying machines, and inventors of spacecraft and race craft and every type and form of powered flight you can imagine.
I encourage you to go because it’s a way to recharge your aviation batteries, and remind you why you got into this business in the first place.
I hope to see you there.