Today is Saturday. Outside, the weather is now drizzling due to downpour in the evening. For the last Saturday of every month, today has been the official off-day for college's activity. What else I have been asking for? Rest day ... Yeah!! Well, my life-style here isn't much changed here, currently still doing my apprenticeship in hangar. Over the last week, I was stationed at hangar Production Line 10, a B777-200 (ETOPS) from S a ud i A ir l i ne s. This B777 is having Heavy Maintenance Visit (HMV) D Check, and now we are coming to almost completion; the restoration and functional checks stage.
Last Monday, my group and I reported to Line 10. As usual, the first day reporting at new working place,we were like strangers, wandering around aimlessly with many eyes staring at you. Sometimes, that really makes me uncomfortable as if piles of bricks are hanging over my shoulders! However, after few days passed, we will be more comfortable with other colleagues once we have adapted to the environment. In Line 10, again, I met Mr H, a Licensed Aircraft Engineer (LAE) who I had previously worked with him in Line 6 before that. He is well-known for his un-friendly-ness and kuai-lan person to most of us. He is very a disciplined LAE who has precise time concept for he will screw up anyone who does not respect the precious time in aviation. I recalled, the Lead Engineer in Line 10 told me this ... " Make sure you don't go missing when you are working with Mr H, otherwise, you will get the bombs from him! ... But, you have made the right choice to follow Mr H, hahaha ... " I wasn't surprised to hear that too, after all, this isn't my first experience with Mr H.
Okey, once settled down, Mr H called me, handing over me an APU Tail Position Light. He said, " Now take this and go and install it ... " I was like ... wow, that's very challenging. I have never done this task before. I whispered in my heart, "Can you do it, Keith?" Really puzzling and confused. Trying to show my man-ness, I took it and go to aircraft. A quick scan of the Tail Position Light, I can see it was just a normal light on aircraft, with electrical connector on one end, secured by using screws. My collegue, Ewin came along with me, and together we finally managed to install the APU Tail Position Light successfully. Mr H went into the cockpit, and pressed the switch, the result, was positive! Oh, thanks God ... Not too bad. Hehe :)
There were many memorable experience for my first week in Line 10, probably because I was working with Mr H most of the time, form early morning, 745am till 730pm in the evening. Ups and downs, happy and sad, all these will enrich my experience in the field of aviation. One thing about Mr H, is, he is a kind of person who very straight-forward. He scolds, curses f*** word and bangs you kau kau lat if you did mistakes. Fair ... You did it wrongly, you deserve the blames. Then, you must use more of brain if you wanna work with him, rule number 1, don't ask stupid questions to Mr H, otherwise you will end up intense heat in your ears. He sounded me before, " If these simple and basic thing you don't know, how are you going to work on aircraft? " Suddenly, my heart was like a glass fell onto ground, breaking into pieces with no mercy! Honestly, I hated him when he sounded me like this, but come to think about it seriously, he was on the right side. If I couldn't master my basics, how can I go deeper into more complicated systems? Instead, I shall have given my highest gratitude to Mr H to ring a bell on me for giving me a serious wake up call now. I really need to look into myself, identify my weakness and find solutions to solidy my walls. Otherwise, if this problem is prolonged, I will definitely lag behind others. Thanks you, Mr H, I promise to do my best now, I will remember all your words of wisdom. You are my role-model who inspire me to achieve my visions.
Besides that, there were also these unforgettable events that I will bring them with me for life. They may sound funny to you, but they were parts and puzzles of me. There was once I was asked to replace lamps in the Forward Main Equipment Compartment (MEC) by Mr H. By the way, Forward MEC is located in front of the nose landing gear. There were 3 lamps, all were inoperative. Sounds easy as ABC? Neh ... That's my first impression, but it was easy to said than doing it. Generally, the location of the lamps were at center, left and right, but due to limited access area and very demanding working environment in the MEC, my task was not as easy as it looked. As usual, Ewin and I did the replacement. Ewin did the first lamp, the center lamp, which was considered quite easy. Guess what he did, he couldn't stand up straight because of the height of the compartment was low, he needed to squat all the way with legs opened wide standing in between a big hole underneath of him before he could replace the lamp. Easy? Haha :) When it came to my turn, I replaced the 2 lamps at both sides. I needed to crawl deep into the compartment, again, it was very crappy and I have to squat all the ways as well. The task went on quite smoothly not until the last lamp that by the time I put the lamp into the assembly, it ... broken into two pieces. F*** up!! What the heck!! "Oh my, Mr H is going to f*** me up this time," I told myself. Some more, this lamp isn't cheap as what we use in household. Feeling depressed and reluctantly, I walked into the office to inform Mr H. To my surprise, he wasn't angry, but he smiled back at me. I apologized to him countless time, but he took it lightly and replied, " Arrrgh ... It's ok, no big deal, I will just order new spare tomorrow ... " I remained silent, very guilty deep in my heart. That day, I went home, puzzling how the hell I could break the lamp. Am I that strong? Damn!! The next morning, I was determined to fix the defect myself, even though Ewin offered to help me this time. After that, confidently, I put the last lamp securely into the housing. Ewin switched on the switch, and oooh ... The whole compartment was litted with yellow light. At that moment, I could feel the rush of adrenalin flow through my blood stream, the feeling of satisfaction wrapped me up even myself couldn't express in words. I jumped and punched in the air when I climbed out from the compartment, I was indeed more than just pleased and happy.
Oh ya, just yesterday, I came across this opportunity to replace the Continuous Flow Sensor at the aircraft waste tank in the aft cargo compartment. This sensor was found to be unserviceable by Mr H during the trouble-shooting process. So, there we went to replace the sensor. As I was about to release the clamps of the sensor, suddenly ... Oh s***!! Yes, it was the s*** waste rushed out flowing freely through the waste duct. Oh my God. Everyone nearby just couldn't bear the sharp smell of the s*** waste. Acting swiftly, the technician quickly re-engaged back the clamps to stop the flow. What the heck? The Mechanical crews had earlier told us that they had drained out all the waste, and guess what, there was still some residue inside the waste tank. With the pressure acting inside the tank due to vacuum at one end, the waste rushed out like no one can stop it. Oh s***. Really kanasai this time. This remained me of the movie ah Long where Fann Wong had to hide inside the waste pool when she was trying to escape from the gangsters. ( ... ceh chiek wo chen tak si kanasia liaw ... ) Kanasai, I had to use a quarter bottle of dettol to wash my hands in order to remove the odors. Damn!! Haha :) However, I consider it as a good experience as the technicians there told me it was a normal incident whenever servicing on waste tanks are carried out. " ... Memang sudah biasa lah ... Itu hari saya lagi teruk ooh, kena baju semua, dahlah baru masuk kerja night shift. Apa lagi, balik mandi lah ... Ini sudah kira baik loh ... "
Nevertheless, I have learned new knowledge everyday, particularly, I have the chance to carry out a few functional tests on aircraft systems; eg, Tail Strike System, Fire Extinguisher System Operational Test and Oxygen Masks Deployment Test. By this time around, I have identified a few of my weak points, highlighted by Mr H. I will improve in that area for my main vision is always to establish as a successful LAE by 2011 ...! It will never change since the first day I entered the aviation world. Lastly, to Mr H, thanks for all your guidance and patience in teaching me to be more independent and reliable on myself. I want to be as good as you one day ...
Last Monday, my group and I reported to Line 10. As usual, the first day reporting at new working place,we were like strangers, wandering around aimlessly with many eyes staring at you. Sometimes, that really makes me uncomfortable as if piles of bricks are hanging over my shoulders! However, after few days passed, we will be more comfortable with other colleagues once we have adapted to the environment. In Line 10, again, I met Mr H, a Licensed Aircraft Engineer (LAE) who I had previously worked with him in Line 6 before that. He is well-known for his un-friendly-ness and kuai-lan person to most of us. He is very a disciplined LAE who has precise time concept for he will screw up anyone who does not respect the precious time in aviation. I recalled, the Lead Engineer in Line 10 told me this ... " Make sure you don't go missing when you are working with Mr H, otherwise, you will get the bombs from him! ... But, you have made the right choice to follow Mr H, hahaha ... " I wasn't surprised to hear that too, after all, this isn't my first experience with Mr H.
Okey, once settled down, Mr H called me, handing over me an APU Tail Position Light. He said, " Now take this and go and install it ... " I was like ... wow, that's very challenging. I have never done this task before. I whispered in my heart, "Can you do it, Keith?" Really puzzling and confused. Trying to show my man-ness, I took it and go to aircraft. A quick scan of the Tail Position Light, I can see it was just a normal light on aircraft, with electrical connector on one end, secured by using screws. My collegue, Ewin came along with me, and together we finally managed to install the APU Tail Position Light successfully. Mr H went into the cockpit, and pressed the switch, the result, was positive! Oh, thanks God ... Not too bad. Hehe :)
There were many memorable experience for my first week in Line 10, probably because I was working with Mr H most of the time, form early morning, 745am till 730pm in the evening. Ups and downs, happy and sad, all these will enrich my experience in the field of aviation. One thing about Mr H, is, he is a kind of person who very straight-forward. He scolds, curses f*** word and bangs you kau kau lat if you did mistakes. Fair ... You did it wrongly, you deserve the blames. Then, you must use more of brain if you wanna work with him, rule number 1, don't ask stupid questions to Mr H, otherwise you will end up intense heat in your ears. He sounded me before, " If these simple and basic thing you don't know, how are you going to work on aircraft? " Suddenly, my heart was like a glass fell onto ground, breaking into pieces with no mercy! Honestly, I hated him when he sounded me like this, but come to think about it seriously, he was on the right side. If I couldn't master my basics, how can I go deeper into more complicated systems? Instead, I shall have given my highest gratitude to Mr H to ring a bell on me for giving me a serious wake up call now. I really need to look into myself, identify my weakness and find solutions to solidy my walls. Otherwise, if this problem is prolonged, I will definitely lag behind others. Thanks you, Mr H, I promise to do my best now, I will remember all your words of wisdom. You are my role-model who inspire me to achieve my visions.
Besides that, there were also these unforgettable events that I will bring them with me for life. They may sound funny to you, but they were parts and puzzles of me. There was once I was asked to replace lamps in the Forward Main Equipment Compartment (MEC) by Mr H. By the way, Forward MEC is located in front of the nose landing gear. There were 3 lamps, all were inoperative. Sounds easy as ABC? Neh ... That's my first impression, but it was easy to said than doing it. Generally, the location of the lamps were at center, left and right, but due to limited access area and very demanding working environment in the MEC, my task was not as easy as it looked. As usual, Ewin and I did the replacement. Ewin did the first lamp, the center lamp, which was considered quite easy. Guess what he did, he couldn't stand up straight because of the height of the compartment was low, he needed to squat all the way with legs opened wide standing in between a big hole underneath of him before he could replace the lamp. Easy? Haha :) When it came to my turn, I replaced the 2 lamps at both sides. I needed to crawl deep into the compartment, again, it was very crappy and I have to squat all the ways as well. The task went on quite smoothly not until the last lamp that by the time I put the lamp into the assembly, it ... broken into two pieces. F*** up!! What the heck!! "Oh my, Mr H is going to f*** me up this time," I told myself. Some more, this lamp isn't cheap as what we use in household. Feeling depressed and reluctantly, I walked into the office to inform Mr H. To my surprise, he wasn't angry, but he smiled back at me. I apologized to him countless time, but he took it lightly and replied, " Arrrgh ... It's ok, no big deal, I will just order new spare tomorrow ... " I remained silent, very guilty deep in my heart. That day, I went home, puzzling how the hell I could break the lamp. Am I that strong? Damn!! The next morning, I was determined to fix the defect myself, even though Ewin offered to help me this time. After that, confidently, I put the last lamp securely into the housing. Ewin switched on the switch, and oooh ... The whole compartment was litted with yellow light. At that moment, I could feel the rush of adrenalin flow through my blood stream, the feeling of satisfaction wrapped me up even myself couldn't express in words. I jumped and punched in the air when I climbed out from the compartment, I was indeed more than just pleased and happy.
Oh ya, just yesterday, I came across this opportunity to replace the Continuous Flow Sensor at the aircraft waste tank in the aft cargo compartment. This sensor was found to be unserviceable by Mr H during the trouble-shooting process. So, there we went to replace the sensor. As I was about to release the clamps of the sensor, suddenly ... Oh s***!! Yes, it was the s*** waste rushed out flowing freely through the waste duct. Oh my God. Everyone nearby just couldn't bear the sharp smell of the s*** waste. Acting swiftly, the technician quickly re-engaged back the clamps to stop the flow. What the heck? The Mechanical crews had earlier told us that they had drained out all the waste, and guess what, there was still some residue inside the waste tank. With the pressure acting inside the tank due to vacuum at one end, the waste rushed out like no one can stop it. Oh s***. Really kanasai this time. This remained me of the movie ah Long where Fann Wong had to hide inside the waste pool when she was trying to escape from the gangsters. ( ... ceh chiek wo chen tak si kanasia liaw ... ) Kanasai, I had to use a quarter bottle of dettol to wash my hands in order to remove the odors. Damn!! Haha :) However, I consider it as a good experience as the technicians there told me it was a normal incident whenever servicing on waste tanks are carried out. " ... Memang sudah biasa lah ... Itu hari saya lagi teruk ooh, kena baju semua, dahlah baru masuk kerja night shift. Apa lagi, balik mandi lah ... Ini sudah kira baik loh ... "
Nevertheless, I have learned new knowledge everyday, particularly, I have the chance to carry out a few functional tests on aircraft systems; eg, Tail Strike System, Fire Extinguisher System Operational Test and Oxygen Masks Deployment Test. By this time around, I have identified a few of my weak points, highlighted by Mr H. I will improve in that area for my main vision is always to establish as a successful LAE by 2011 ...! It will never change since the first day I entered the aviation world. Lastly, to Mr H, thanks for all your guidance and patience in teaching me to be more independent and reliable on myself. I want to be as good as you one day ...
All the best,
With love,
KeithK :)
~ Good Night! ~
With love,
KeithK :)
~ Good Night! ~
3 comments:
hi Keith,
"Well, my life-style here isn't much changed here." So I presumed you washed and polished your car again this morning?
Mr H sure sounds scary. He reminds me of one of my lecturers this semester who is also quite straightforward. Rule number 1 in her class is like Mr H's. Don't try to be funny and give stupid answers, otherwise she will "nag" you kau kau until you just wished you had remained silent in the first place. I know it cos I experienced it last Monday!!! Well, my fault for being mischievous!! Serves me right so I know what to do during the next class. But my this lecturer never raise her voice or what, but a quick and gentle remark like, ‘How are you going to improve like this?’ would make you feel so bad, you pronounce yourself guilty without trial, hence make you want to do your best. So like some of my lecturers, she too is a good lecturer in the aspect of knowledge and motivation, albeit in a different way. Just like Mr H, I guess.
have a good week ahead, pal.
hi Ka Joy,
Yeah, I did wash my car in the morning. Haha :)
Thanks for your supports and sharing. I have learned my lessons too this time around. You too, have a good week ahead.
ChEeRs! :)
Keith,
Thanks for your views to my post content. At least I'm not the only one feeling inadequate with my current level of knowledge!! See my reply.. TQ
Thanks for reminding me that studying, learning and suffering from the assignment and exam stresses are worth living when there is meaning. No doubt its tough, lengthy, and lonely but come to think about it, none of them would matter when you find that purpose to live by. Of course, the purpose is to pass with flying colours and prepare ourselves adequately for our future careers.
We have been taught by different kinds of lecturers and teachers. They are some who just replicate the textbooks by summarizing them in class. That is when we start thinking that there would be no need for lessons since we can just read and memorize notes without attending classes. But from my experience doing self-study, it's better to have a lecturer than none. At least by listening to them, we still have a rough idea the subject content.
Then there are some who does not explicitly specify what we are actually required to do. Then it would leave the paranoid sleepless. wondering whether you are actually doing it correctly or is this what is actually required?? But for me, I have learned to take comfort in knowing that I’ve done my part in delivering my learned opinion and have faith in my work. of course, prayers are followed, going by the saying "Do your best and God will do the rest".
The best of the lot would be when you are taught by those lecturers who just have the passion to share, you can actually feel their passion and love for the subject, and how much time they have spent studying it. This is when you get motivated to learn more on your part so that you wouldn't disappoint them. It's like a life calling!!!
Whatever it is, learning is a never-ending journey. No doubt we always face trials in the process of our studies trying to understand a particular concept, these resistance as temporary as long as we ask. They always serve a purpose that we may not immediately see, and will come back to us in the future. of course, don't ask mundane questions if you have my marketing strategy lecturer or probably Mr H!!!
Thanks for your encouragement, pal.
There is a long way more to go. But I’m beginning to enjoy research. It makes me believe that everyday I live will be worthwhile. I am not useless.
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