Shelley Gardner, Supervisor Aviation and Facilities Management at BHP

What is your Job?

I work at BHP Carrapateena mine site managing the airport.

The majority of our mining work force is Fly In Fly Out so our airport staff ensure that the teams can get to and from work safely.

What does a normal day look like for you?

Early starts and 12 hr days!

We begin with a pre-start meeting and discuss the days flight schedule. Each day we have a different number of flights. My teams conduct daily inspections to ensure that the runway and airside areas are safe and operational. We do all the check-in, baggage and airfreight handling. We maintain the terminal and grounds of the aerodrome.

Other than the flights I manage the compliance of the airport to ensure we meet the required regulations and make sure our teams are current in their training requirements.

Our airport teams work an 8/6 Roster – which means we work 8 days on and then have 6 days off.

Crazy story from work?

I was working at Alice Springs Airport a few years ago and had just finished for the day. I got a couple of hundred metres down the road when I got a call that we had an international diversion flight landing soon. The A330 was enroute Melbourne to Kuala Lumpur had an engine fire while flying near Broome. The aircraft was too big to land there so it headed towards Darwin – which had a cyclone!

So, it was diverted to Alice Springs. I was liaising with Customs and Biosecurity to get authorisation for it to land and the passengers to stay overnight. We managed to get the aircraft landed safely and the airline managed to find accommodation in town for the 156 passengers and 12 crew. I had to manage all the passengers and liaise with the airline, the engineers to discuss the engine issue and even had to find accommodation for a dog that was also travelling onboard! Busy day but very rewarding to be able to help.

What is your favourite part of the job?

I love both the regularity and the variety of the work. We have a set schedule of flights and most of the compliance has strict timings of when the work needs to be completed. However no two days are ever the same, flight problems, delays, passenger dramas, Royal Flying Doctor visits. We never know what the day is going to bring. There is always a new challenge.

How did you get to where you are today?

I fell into working in airports – I was working as a bus driver on a mine site, and they needed someone to work as an Aerodrome Reporting Officer (ARO). I had no idea what that was other than I was told it involved “doing inspections and stuff” I was flown office to attend an ARO training course and then did ground handler training with the airline and refueller training.

I worked at various mine site airports around WA and then at Alice Springs Airport. After I moved back to WA I eventually wound up doing my Cert IV in Training and Assessing and teaching the ARO course!

I was then offered a role with my current company and am now managing a remote mine site airport.

What character qualities do you think suit this position?

Patience – there is a lot of hurry up and wait situations in aviation, and the ability to roll with whatever the day brings. The day could be smooth or completely crazy. You need to be able to deal with people, when we have issues a lot of passengers can get very upset and we need to manage them safely.

What is involved in the training for your job or for the qualification you gained to get your job?

I started working in ground operations and competed an Aerodrome Reporting Officer course. It’s a four-day course and then you spend some time working on the ground at an aerodrome to get fully signed off. So, lots of on-the-job training.

Beyond that I have completed courses in Aviation Security, Safety and Lead Auditor, Drug and Alcohol Management, Aviation Safety and stay engaged with the various industry bodies.

If you could go back and give your younger self some advice, what would it be?

Consider Aviation as a career! It was my brother who always wanted to work in this field not me. I danced professionally for many years but after that era was over, I was lucky to fall into this field. I enjoy the day to day challenges and routine of the job.

What advice would you give younger girls wanting to start a career in Aviation?

As Nike says Just Do It! It can take you further than you ever imagined.