An international aircraft-maintenance company plans to add more than 250 jobs at its major operation at Tucson International Airport over the next three years to help support a global fleet of regional jets.
Montreal-based MHI RJ Aviation Group, a maintenance, repair and overhaul services provider to airline fleets globally, says it plans to add 100 jobs this year, on top of about 400 currently at TIA, to meet demand for service to the CRJ Series of regional jets formerly made by Bombardier.
MHIRJ, which is part of Japan-based Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, plans to host a job fair Feb. 28 at its airport facility.
And the company is promoting its hiring spree with a marketing effort highlighting Tucson’s charms, while also offering new scholarships to students of Pima Community College’s highly regarded aviation-tech program.
MHIRJ, which acquired the maintenance operation for Bombardier’s CRJ line of regional jets in 2020, is adding to service lines at the facility adjacent to Bombardier’s remaining business-jet maintenance operation at TIA.
The new jobs include airframe and power plant technicians, avionics technicians, structures technicians, machinists and welders, crew chiefs, and technicians in non-destructive testing.
The median hourly wage for aircraft mechanics and techs was $33.66 in 2022, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
“We are committed to growing our facility to meet the demand coming from the market, and we need people who have the drive and determination to join us in Tucson”, said Ross Mitchell, vice president of strategy, business development, marketing, communications and business operations at MHIRJ.
Mitchell said the company is setting up new maintenance lines at TIA to meet strong demand for maintenance of the CRJ series jetliners, which seat from 50 to about 100 passengers and are used by regional air route operators.
Bombardier began producing CRJs, which originally stood for Canadair Regional Jet, in 1991 and made about 2,000 of the jets, delivering its final CRJ to SkyWest Airlines in February 2021.
“There is nothing on the horizon, nothing being developed today that will replace the CRJ, so what the airlines tell us and what we know is the CRJs will stay in service,” said Mitchell. “They just require somebody to be there to support the airplane, and that’s us. So the actual picture of the market today is very good for our business, which is maintaining an existing fleet and keeping them flying.”
MHIRJ’s expansion was hailed by local officials including Joe Snell, president and CEO of the local economic-development agency Sun Corridor Inc.
“This expansion demonstrates the confidence MHIRJ has in the value proposition of Tucson as a leader in the aerospace and aviation industry,” Snell said, citing PCC’s recently expanded Aviation Technology Center at TIA among other workforce development and training efforts.
Tucson Mayor Regina Romero, Pima County Supervisor Rex Scott and Sandra Watson, president and CEO of Arizona Commerce Authority, also celebrated MHIJR’s expansion plans.
The career fair, mainly for airframe and structural techs, will be held from 4:30 to 6 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 28, at MHIRJ’s operation at 1555 E. Aero Park Blvd., where job candidates can tour the facility and get interviews and possibly job offers on the spot.
Appointments can be made on Eventbrite at tucne.ws/mhirj.
To support its Tucson expansion plan, MHIRJ has launched a talent attraction initiative called “Live Your Best Life in Tucson,” focusing a national campaign on the benefits of living and working at MHIRJ in Tucson and Southern Arizona.
MHIRJ also is supporting the Pima Community College Foundation by providing six annual scholarships of $1,000 for the next six years to help aviation-tech students and help raise awareness among Tucson’s young people about aviation career opportunities.
