There are number of exceptional organizations that support aviation and aerospace manufacturers. Many come to mind quickly, the Aerospace Industries Association, the General Aviation Manufacturers Association, and the Society of Manufacturing Engineers are but a few. There are regional and local ones as well, including the public-private Manufacturing Extension Partnership. All of these organizations are generally well know. However, there is one that is a gem of a national resource for aviation and aerospace that [...]

The more we practice, the more critical thinking becomes part of our natural thinking process. This is important, because we are normally wired to take shortcuts in an effort to conserve our energy, to survive, or just to move on. If our thought processes are normally intellectually lazy, can we expect to be able to turn on the critical and creative juices in a crunch?

To improve our Secondary Education dismal diploma graduation rates, we have to change the STEM paradigm. Why does science have to be physical science? Why can’t science be Economics, Finance, or Accounting? Why does technology have to be computer based? Why does engineering have to be design, why can’t engineering include Leadership, Purchasing, Managing Teams, Logistics, and Project Management?

It is clear that the past decade has been a challenge for most of the U.S. aviation and aerospace industry. 9/11, the financial crisis, the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the global recession and current geopolitical situation have created an environment that makes it difficult to plan and execute traditional business strategies. Commercial aviation has struggled, general aviation has been devastated, the space program is in turmoil, and the future of military aviation is unclear. [...]