AJ Rowland
Aviation Mechanic
Rowland Dusters
Raymondville, TX USA
“All of us were put here for certain reasons. Everybody just needs to find their place.”
Videos
By Roadtrip NationAJ Rowland
Milestones
My road in life has been direct.
My family has deep roots in the crop dusting industry—I’m the fourth generation in my family to join the industry.
Through high school, I was pushed to go to college and get a four-year degree.
I quickly learned that traditional college wasn’t for me, so I decided to move back home and lean into my family’s agricultural side instead.
I went to a technical college and earned my mechanics license, which I put towards the family business—instead of outsourcing maintenance, I wanted to be able to do that in-house.
I currently work as the lead mechanic for my family’s business.
I’m also working on getting my pilot’s license and becoming a fourth generation agricultural pilot.
Education
High School
Certification/License
Mechanics License
Texas State Technical College
Mechanics License
Texas State Technical College
Career
Aviation Mechanic
I perform maintenance on agriculture planes for my family's crop dusting business.
Career Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Engineering
Technology
Problem Solving
Day to Day
I start the day by pulling all of the airplanes up to get them loaded and ready to go. My brother and I will get the maps ready for the pilots and make sure everything is organized. I'll proceed through the day making sure everything is in order. If something goes wrong with one of the planes, I work on it. For example, the air conditioning went out in one of the planes. I'm able to fix that so the pilot can be comfortable. At the end of the day, we prepare maps and schedules for the next day.
Hurdles
The Noise I Shed
From Teachers:
"You need to go to college. You need a four-year degree. You won't be able to do anything without a degree."
