This Delta plane mechanic at MSP hates delays as much as passengers do

A coin flip would tell Joe Tedesco how he should change his life: heads, be a pilot and fly airplanes for a living. Tails, be the mechanic who fixes them.

The latter won, and that quarter helped the now 35-year-old chart a new course after a trail of ultimately unsatisfactory career paths. As an example, he had most recently worked in Hollywood as a camera operator.

“Sometimes you have to leave it to fate, right?” Tedesco said of his decision about a decade ago to study aviation maintenance.

The Bloomington native’s fascination with flight traces back to childhood. Tedesco’s uncle was an Air Force mechanic at Edwards Air Force Base, a test hub for advanced and cutting-edge military aircraft. Tedesco still recalls his uncle’s cool stories, like being among the first to see up close the ultra-secret B-2 military plane, known as the Stealth Bomber.

His career started as an aviation mechanic in Arizona, fixing helicopters used for tours. Delta Air Lines hired him as an aviation maintenance technician three years ago, stationing him at the airline’s sprawling technical operations base at Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport (MSP), the carrier’s second-largest U.S. hub after its Atlanta headquarters.

Aviation maintenance technicians, or AMTs, split across two major sectors, working out of hangars with airplanes needing long- or short-term repairs. The operations base is home to advanced technical equipment, including a state-of-the-art jet engine test cell, plus the highly skilled employees who ensure Delta’s airplanes are safe to fly.

Tedesco usually works on “the line,” the nickname for the hangar area where crewmembers perform quicker-turn repairs. The line runs 24/7, and every day brings a unique problem to solve.

That coin flip gave Tedesco the best scenario: be around planes all day and still go home every evening, unlike pilots. Plus, the travel benefits with Delta allow him to visit far-flung vacation destinations.

In an interview edited for clarity and length, Tedesco shared what it’s like to be in his shoes.

I love watching things fly. I’ve always loved birds and aircraft. The art of flight has always appealed to me. Actually, in my free time, I’m a falconer. There’s nothing quite like an airplane or a bird, when it looks fast standing still. Kind of takes the breath away. And I like working with my hands. Keeps you busy. I did a desk job along the way, and I was so bored.

Attention to detail, perhaps. Infinite patience. There are days when you will be tested on the job, and you’re going to need a world of patience. Because there are times an ‘easy job,’ a 30-minute job, could take four hours. Sometimes parts don’t want to cooperate. Sometimes you’re sweating so much you can’t hold anything. Or it’s negative-50 degrees on the line, and you literally can’t feel your hands.

I don’t really believe a lot is challenging, if we’re being honest, because I think it’s all about mindset and attitude. My dad always said, “With the right attitude, 90 percent of people could do any job.” And I believe that. I’ve always preferred to be the optimist, because you can have a really uncomfortable job that you don’t want to do, but if you have fun with it, and if you’re working with a good team, you can still have fun and get the job done. Let me tell you, when it’s negative-50, and you’re doing a brake change, you’re all miserable together.

However, I won’t release an unsafe aircraft, and neither will any tech I work with. We take a lot of pride in that. The mechanics creed: Treat it like your parents are flying on it. And quite often they are, because all of our parents fly for free.

I’m a divemaster, 400 and something logged dives. Cousins of mine found Bonaire, I think, 17 years ago, and it’s this hidden gem down in the Caribbean, part of the ABC islands. I think it’s like 60-ish miles off the coast of Venezuela. It’s known as the shore-diving capital of the world. And every 400 or 600 yards, there’s a yellow-painted rock with black lettering, and it’s a different dive site. I rent a truck, throw 25 tanks in the back, and I go dive anywhere I want. It’s a lot of fun. And a lot of freedom.

It’s a safe airplane. It’s not just the Delta creed that safety is our No. 1 priority. In my time in aviation, I have seen some unsafe things. And it’s terrifying. Nobody wants to get on an aircraft that isn’t 100 percent confident in that aircraft’s airworthiness. We’ve all been in a car that’s broken down, and it’s a nightmare. But you can’t pull over in the sky.

Honestly, that was always my biggest thing. And even when I started looking into the airlines, I did Google “highest happiness rating” and “safest major U.S. airline” and Delta was No. 1. And the fact that they’re not willing to compromise on safety, and I know I can go to my management with any safety concern, and it will be addressed — I take a lot of pride in that.