Teagan Arndt not only fixes airplanes, she jumps out of them.
A junior in the Western Michigan University College of Aviation majoring in aviation technical operations, she is involved with Skydive Broncos, the university's sky-diving team. One could say that she is aviation-ready from the ground floor up.
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Arndt hails from the small village of Ortonville, Mich., located about 40 miles north of metropolitan Detroit in northern Oakland County.
Her interests in the mechanical aspects of transportation began at Brandon High School as she wondered what made cars tick. Even beyond the innards of a set of wheels, Arndt took part in a program that taught collision repair and the skills needed to restore cars to what they looked like the day they came off the assembly line. It seemed possible that those kinds of talents could be transferred to the field of aviation.
Before enrolling at Western, Arndt sampled the industry by working as a customer-service representative at Oakland Air, a three-decades-old enterprise that provides fixed-base services, aircraft and jet maintenance, and sales at the Oakland County International Airport.
"Working there gave me exposure in the field of aviation and fueled my love of planes," she said. Even before being on the Oakland Air payroll, she kind of interned there in high school, assisting one of the firm's Federal Aviation Administration-licensed A&P (airframe and power plant) mechanics perform basic maintenance tasks.
Teagan Arndt representing the WMU SkyDive Broncos at Bronco Bash
Sensing that this kind of enterprise was right down her flight path, Arndt pointed her career radar westward. "I chose WMU because of its outstanding aviation program," she says, "and it was close (less than three hours) to home. I was looking for a new experience and Western had a lot more to offer than a traditional two-year program at a trade school."
The "lot more to offer" evolved into her connection with the Skydive Broncos, which is part of Skydive Allegan and based in Allegan County just northwest of WMU's home campus in Kalamazoo. The mission is to foster amateur skydiving by offering affordable competitions for WMU students who are "willing to go outside their comfort zone." Arndt has been the membership officer for the organization, a role designed to help new and prospective teammates enter that "comfort zone."
"I wanted to start skydiving," Arndt says, "because I never really pushed myself out of my comfort zone and I thought college was the perfect place to try new things. Skydiving is so enjoyable because of the thrill. The adrenalin you get before a jump and in the ride up is like nothing I've ever experienced."
Etched in her memory bank is that first solo leap. "I had the normal nerves," she says, "but they went away the minute I stepped out of the plane. When I was free-falling, everything happened so fast. After I pulled the ripcord, I realized -- man, I was going super slow. My parachute was larger than I needed for my size, so I came down in slow motion. I just floated for a long, long time."
There's more to the Skydive Broncos than that long drift downward to terra firma. Just as important to Arndt is the team bonding. "Whether it's volunteer events, trips or just hanging out," she says, "we always are making memories."
Real world experience as an intern at Pentastar Aviation
Like taking control of her parachute on that inaugural jump -- of course under supervision. "Being able to steer," Arndt recalls, "gave me a sense of control. It gave me more confidence in my abilities. It was such a cool experience." (Those who would like to enter this "comfort zone" for a "cool experience" can reach the Skydive Broncos at (269) 330-0161 or skydivingbronco@gmail.com).
Following her freshman year at the College of Aviation, Arndt qualified for a "real" internship with Pentastar Aviation, which is also based at the Oakland County airport where it provides fixed-base-operator services, aircraft management and maintenance, and avionics services.
"I was a customer-services representative there as well," she says. "I assisted getting the pilots everything they needed to have a great experience, including catering, rental cars, hotels, the works. In that capacity, I was able to meet the owner of Pentastar, Edsel B. Ford II and his family."
Arndt has been around enough to realize that she made the right post-secondary choice. "Coming to WMU without knowing anyone" didn't matter, she says, because "I was welcomed with open arms by fellow students who were in the same situation as I was. The friends I made in my freshman year are still some of my best friends."
With still some college time to change her mind, her favorite class so far has been the second-level course in aircraft structures taught by faculty specialist Dr. Gail Rouscher, who served in the U. S. Navy and spends her non-teaching hours supporting Western's athletic teams. The course is an advanced study of aircraft structures, and features substantial lab work that focuses on the inspection, testing and repair of welded, fiberglass, composite, plastic and laminated structural components.
The SkyDive Broncos hanging out at the WMU College of Aviation
"I liked Gail's class," Arndt says, "because of the hands-on learning that encompassed the ability to create something of my own. It can be challenging planning, riveting, bending and painting, but the outcome of the projects makes it all worth it."
In her free time, when not parachuting out of a plane with Skydive Bronco teammates, Arndt is kept company by her rescue cat Patches (who doesn't know she is also binge-watching a Netflix series). The cat also doesn't mind when her master looks after the plants, nor when Arndt heads outside to her currently favored spot, the 400-acre Van Buren State Park on the Lake Michigan shoreline south of South Haven.
When her Western days are done, Arndt hopes to take her A&P license and land a post in private or corporate aviation. "Ideally," she says, "I would like to locate at a small airport in a new community to gain new experiences. Being able to personally know my employer and help with daily business needs is one of my main goals."
And maybe jump out of a plane once or twice.