Endeavor’s maintenance base in Knoxville, Tenn. (TYS) recently opened their hangar space to welcome more than 100 aviation enthusiasts and community members for a local Experimental Aviation Association (EAA) chapter event. 

In coordination with the EAA event, TYS also invited a range of aviation groups and representatives, including SKY Program, JetRight, Civil Air Patrol, the Knoxville Airport Authority, Pellissippi State College, and a representative from TYS’s Air Traffic Control.  

“We try to host these events regularly to create and foster a sense of community,” said Jay McKinley, TYS Base Manager. “To me, it’s all about giving back. Seeing young folks come in and get around an aircraft they would normally have to look at through a fence to see is a big deal. You never know what an event like this can do to inspire a child to join the aviation industry.” 

Attendees were free to walk around the hangar to speak with Endeavor technicians, aviation groups and representatives from the airport and college and learn about what is happening in aviation in the local and surrounding areas. Endeavor technicians gave tours and in-depth explanations of the CRJ-900s along with the engine shop.  

“I always had an interest in aviation when I was a kid, so being able to share it with people and give back, you never know how it’s going to impact that individual,” said Jody Payne, a Program Engineer at TYS. “They may turn around and say, ‘I really want to do that.’ It’s rewarding to teach others about the work I do, and it reminds me of how important my role is.” 

These events are not only beneficial for the community, but they are rewarding for the technicians, too.  

“For the technician that comes in every night to change tires and complete tasks, when they get to show the task to someone who hasn’t seen it before, the technician starts to remember, ‘What I do is important and exciting’,” Jay said. “Our people are rewarded tenfold by the smiles and thanks they receive.”  

“I love seeing the faces and expressions of those that we give tours to,” Jody said. “When they smile because they see or learn something different, that’s a big reward for me.”