In 2001, I watched the movie Behind Enemy Lines, with Owen Wilson. I will forever remember the scene where he has to eject from the aircraft, and the scene depicts an egress sequence that seems to take a full 30 seconds, with many micro explosions and rivets popping out. Even as a teenager I was fascinated with the scene, and everything about the ejection sequence intrigued me. In 2011, I enlisted in the navy as an AME, or Structural Mechanic Egress / Safety. To this day it’s been almost 10 years of joyful seat maintenance and knowledge. I began training with MK5 and MK7 seats, specifically the GRU-7 and GRUEA-7, and then transitioned to SJU-17 in 2015. As the Egress program manager, I’m responsible for ensuring more than 450 personnel are trained and familiar with Egress systems, and safety procedures surrounding anything yellow and black. I have loved my career as a seat maintainer, and look forward to continuing my mastery of one of the most spectacular engineering marvels in aviation!
Jake Nickle
AME1, VAQ-129 Seat Shop
