Meet Aurelia

What is your role at Airbus?

I work at the Toulouse paintshop, painting the A330 and A350. I have been working here for two years, including my apprenticeship as part of my diploma in aeronautical painting, which I took at the Lycée Airbus, our vocational college in Toulouse. My role is to prepare the aircraft surface and the paint, apply any decorative masks, then help paint the entire aircraft, adding decals, touching up the paint job if necessary before finally approving the quality of our work. 

Given the size of the aircraft we paint, we work in pairs from a cherry-picker, where we are attached to a harness when working at height. Today, for example, we are going to prepare and mask up the upper and lower surfaces of an A350 wingset. There are six cherry-pickers in this paintshop, for 13 painters. This set-up means we can paint an A350 in around two weeks, compared to six days for an A320.

What attracted you to life in the  paintshop?

My studies first took me to the A320 final assembly line. Then I had the opportunity to take a three-day “Live my Life” course at the paintshop, designed to learn about other trades within Airbus. I liked it! So when former Lycée Airbus students told me about the painting specialisation on offer as part of my diploma, I jumped at the chance! 

I never get bored here, it’s very varied. Each aircraft is different and painting techniques vary  depending on airline liveries and the areas where we work. And then I appreciate the “speak-up” culture in our workplace. Everyone is free to express themselves and when a problem arises, everyone gets involved to find solutions.

What is the best advice you have received so far?

I was lucky to have a caring and patient tutor who helped me improve my skills. I didn't know much about  painting aircraft when I arrived. I remember my tutor  telling me that, "there is no point in rushing, take your time and do things properly." This advice helped me to refine my painting technique, to be more conscientious and precise. Today, I try to do things right the first time, so as not to have to correct mistakes later, and I find that it is a mark of respect towards my colleagues who take over when we are done. 

Quality is a source of satisfaction in my daily work.

Which Airbus values do you feel close to?

All of Airbus’ values ​​are important to me and guide us to better serve our customers. If I had to choose two, I would choose respect first, because it is fundamental to good working relationships. And respect is for all generations! I think that the younger and older generations must respect each other, because we each have something to learn from each other. 

Then, teamwork is also very important to me since in our paintshop there are three shifts, working back to back, days, nights and weekends. We must be united and trust each other.

What is your favorite aircraft?

The A350! It’s the first Airbus aircraft I worked on here, and I really like the cabin and crew rest area. It’s a roomy aircraft, designed for comfort.