Aviation Transforms Ozark

Birmingham, AL- Exciting things are happening in Ozark, Alabama. Aviation developments are creating opportunities, at least partly turning economic disaster into a pathway to a brighter future. The changes ripple beyond Ozark to other parts of the state and even to other countries. Moreover, these changes reflect a larger transformation of Alabama’s core economy.

This Ozark story has several moving parts. One is an association with Army aviation that goes back to the early 1950s, when the Army Aviation School moved to Fort Rucker. For more than 50 years, this association has created a demand for skilled, high-value workers. This demand, in turn, spawned and expanded educational structures to provide those workers. An aviation-rich, aviation-friendly environment has drawn outside businesses. These businesses’ successes have increased the demand for aviation workers. A highly competitive labor market resulted, with jobs offering high starting pay and good benefits.

The loss over the past decade of Alabama’s textile industry – an economic mainstay for over a century – created both a supply of potential aviation workers and an urgent need for new jobs that aviation education has expanded to help fill. A key element in the story has been energetic, creative people who repeatedly proved the saying, ‘One man’s trash is another man’s treasure.’
By Dr. James W. Williams. See entire article at http://www.alabamaaviator.com/content.asp?id=67669

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