Nick Foster is a senior test engineer for Messier-Dowty, the world leader in the designing, testing and manufacturing of aircraft landing gear. He joined the company six years ago as a graduate trainee engineer
Nick Foster
How did you get involved in the industry?
I studied for a degree in automotive engineering at Oxford Brookes University with a view to working in motorsport. When I came to look for a job, however, it seemed the UK automotive industry was in decline, so I looked at graduate positions in the aerospace sector.
Messier-Dowty was one of the first companies to get back to me and, after an interview, offered me a job. I was delighted and took it straight away. When I joined I got to spend 18 months moving around different engineering disciplines, including the testing and processing departments, as well as working at the company’s HQ in Vélizy, France. After that I chose to work in the testing department.
Why the testing department and what does the job involve?
In the test department we get to physically work on the gears and look at how they function and operate in the field. I spend half of my time in the office, reviewing test requirements provided by the engineering department, setting up test programmes on our test control systems and setting up data acquisition systems. I also work within the test rigs setting up the landing gears for various tests, mostly strength and fatigue.
What are the benefits and challenges of the job?
This is a great company with a varied workload. I get to work on projects with various companies all over the world, looking at many types of different aircraft. For example, I have worked with the Germans on the Eurofighter, the Koreans on the KAI T-50, and am workingwith Boeing on the 787. This is a really exciting part of the job. The only downside is time constraints. We have to be very efficient in the way we test the gears because of tight deadlines. We’re always working on reducing the testing time scales.
What advice would you give to those wanting to become a test engineer?
If you don’t have a degree, it may take several years to work your way through the ranks to get where you want to be. It may be easier to study for an engineering degree as it is often a minimum requirement. Besides having the theoretical knowledge it is well worth getting some practical experience in engineering.
Team skills are also an important factor, as a lot of the work involves building relationships with people and working in teams to get the job done. I would recommend those who are applying for jobs to be persistent and to have confidence in their ability.
Research the companies you are applying to and always have a clear idea of where you want your career to go.
-flight.workingweek@rbi.co.uk
Source: Flight International
