Sikorsky Australia has welcomed five new apprentices to its Nowra workforce amid plans to expand its Shoalhaven workforce.
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The apprentices have joined Sikorsky's industrial aviation workforce program, which has grown to 16 apprentices.
The company launched the program in 2018, forming a critical part of its growth strategy for the future workforce.
It represents nearly 20 per cent of the technical workforce and an annual investment of more than $1 million.
The new apprentices in the program will complete a four-year aircraft maintenance engineer apprenticeship where they will learn the skills of the trade required to sustain the Royal Australian Navy's most advanced naval helicopter - MH-60R Seahawks - at Sikorsky's maintenance and logistics support facility in Nowra.
"We are thrilled to onboard our new apprentices who will work side by side with our skilled technical workforce," said Sikorsky Australia's General Manager, Cliff Kyle.
"We will step the apprentices through an intensive aviation program teaching them the core skills to inspect, service, repair, test and troubleshoot complex systems and components onboard the Seahawks and aid them to become nationally qualified aircraft maintenance engineers.
"Our apprentices are the cornerstone of our talent pipeline in growing Australia's defence industry aviation industrial base," Mr Kyle said.
"The ability to capture regional talent and grow them in this truly specialised field that is contributing to national security is not only amazing for the individual, but incredibly rewarding for the entire team at Sikorsky Australia.
"We are honoured to be building a workforce that supports the Royal Australian Navy's mission at sea and our highly skilled team are proud to be a part of assuring the highest level of operational readiness for the Navy's Seahawk fleet," he said.
To date, all Sikorsky's apprentices who have completed their qualifications have remained the company, resulting in eight engineers transitioning to full time roles since 2018.
Mr Kyles said Sikorsky Australia aimed to grow its skilled technical workforce in the region from 200 to over 300 personnel over the next five years, supporting the company's maintenance and logistics operations.
