Appreciation post: Noticing more open talk about mental health among crews

Over the past few months, I've seen mechanics at my local airport starting to check in on each other's stress levels. It used to be all business, but now there's real talk about balancing tough jobs with personal well-being. This small shift is making the hangar a better place to work. Honestly, it's about time we valued that as much as the technical stuff.

4 comments

4 Comments

nguyen.elizabeth1d ago

Wait, mechanics are ACTUALLY talking about feelings now? That's wild to me, it was always just planes and deadlines. Hearing about real check-ins instead of just coffee breaks is a huge change.

white.nathan3h ago

@nguyen.elizabeth Buddy systems for stress? That’s a full culture shift. Back in my day, you just buried everything under engine noise and kept your head down. The only ‘check-in’ was the foreman asking if you’d finished the job. Real talk about feelings would have gotten you laughed straight out of the hangar. This is a whole new world.

sam9121d ago

Might be thinking too much. Planes don't care about your feelings, they just need to fly.

the_mia1d ago

In our hangar, we set up a simple buddy system for stress checks. Took about a month for it to feel normal (but now no one hesitates to speak up).