Precision Toolmaker Who is Also a Passionate Pilot

16/07/2024

The Sky's the Limit for Precision Toolmaker

Meet Andy Dennies: skilled toolmaker during the week, passionate flight instructor at weekends.

While most people unwind after a long week at work by kicking back and relaxing, Andy finds solace in the skies.

As a qualified pilot, Andy has been flying aeroplanes for 18 years.

“I get a real buzz out of flying,” Andy reveals. “There’s no feeling quite like it. I do a lot of things outside of my work as a toolmaker with RP Technologies, including cycling, scuba diving, cooking, and paddleboarding. But nothing quite comes close to being up there in the sky on a clear summer’s day.

You just feel such a sense of freedom. It really is quite liberating.”

From Toolmaking to Piloting

Andy’s love for aviation began when he was a child. As a boy, he and his friends used to make aeroplanes out of old pieces of wood.

As he grew into a man, his fascination with aeroplanes became even stronger. A friend of Andy’s became a qualified pilot, and this provided Andy with the necessary motivation to proactively pursue his dream of flying.

Andy earned his pilot’s licence in 2007, becoming a highly skilled pilot of single-engine aircraft.

But Andy’s passion for aviation didn’t stop there. He soon realised that he had a natural talent for teaching others to fly. In his spare time, he began studying to become a qualified flight instructor.

“I felt I had the right skills to become an effective instructor”, Andy says. “In my work as a toolmaker at RP Technologies, I have helped to develop several apprentice toolmakers over the years. I enjoy helping others, and I thought I could do the same in the cockpit.

I was keen to spend my time in the skies, tutoring people who are novices so that they could become proficient pilots. I just needed to study hard so that I could qualify as an instructor first.”

In 2013, Andy passed his exams and became a qualified instructor.

Making the Change from Pilot to Instructor

With his qualifications secure, Andy took to the skies with great gusto.

Andy was keen to impart his skills to those who shared his passion for flying. His patience, knowledge, and expertise have earned him a loyal base of students, all of whom have benefited greatly from his guidance.

Andy has taught 10 people to fly over the years. On average, Andy gives about 70 lessons per year.

Andy can proudly lay claim to several success stories in his time as a flight instructor. “I taught a young man called Andy Moores. Andy had never been in a cockpit before he met me. He is now a commercial pilot for Ryanair. Seeing him develop his career in this way and become a successful pilot is immensely satisfying.”

For Andy, the pleasure of seeing someone without any flying skills learn to become a pilot under his tutelage is almost as great as the pleasure he gets from flying himself.

“I particularly enjoy seeing my students go from complete novices to confident, expert pilots.

It’s satisfying to know that I have taught them a skill which is fairly exceptional. After all, you don’t meet too many pilots!”

Not too long ago, Andy started teaching Kieran Wellings. Kieran began his lessons with Andy when he was only 14 years old. Kieran, like Andy Moores before him, has ambitions to become a commercial pilot. Now 18, Kieran has passed his flying exams and is currently working in the Control Tower at the airport where Andy taught him to fly.

“I remember standing in the Control Tower with Kieran’s mother and Andy’s father,” Andy recalls, “when they both went up on their maiden solo flights. The parents of newly qualified pilots are obviously very proud of them in these moments, and so am I.

For me as the instructor, though, I’m always too scared to enjoy the moment completely! But they both acquitted themselves very well indeed.”

Teaching the Next Generation of Commercial Pilots

Andy Moores now earns his living by utilising the skills that Andy has taught him.

Andy M is full of praise for Andy’s teachings, and he can’t recommend him highly enough:

“I started learning to fly with Andy Dennies in 2016. His contagious enthusiasm for flying and flight training meant I caught the aviation bug right from the very beginning.

Andy is a first-class flight instructor and always helped me to get the most out of my lessons. This meant I progressed quickly. He is extremely professional, considerate, funny, and is a brilliant teacher.

Flight Instructor with Student and Aeroplane

It was noticeable how he really did take the time and effort to explain things in such a way that I would understand them first time.

Thank you, Andy, for helping me through my PPL. I have learnt skills that I will carry with me throughout the rest of my career.”

Without Andy’s teachings, Andy M would not have the opportunities he has today – flying passengers around the world on commercial flights for Ryanair.

Balancing Life as a Toolmaker with Flying

Andy has been with RP Technologies for just over a decade now. He joined the company back in August 2023. During this time, he has been a committed toolmaker who has contributed to a variety of very important toolmaking projects for RP’s customers.

Toolmaking and flying may seem like an unlikely combination, but for Andy, they’re not all that different. He takes the same meticulous approach to his work in the toolroom and his time in the cockpit, ensuring that every detail is carefully accounted for.

“There are similarities to both roles,” Andy explains. “They may appear completely different, but both occupations rely on precision, attention to detail, and fine margins.”

Despite his demanding job as a toolmaker, Andy always manages to find time for flying and instructing. He is currently busy preparing a local scientist for his flying exam.

Andy’s Role at The Flying School

Andy is a Senior Flying Instructor and Examiner at The Flying School. The Flying School is located at Halfpenny Green Airport in Bobbington, which is just outside Wolverhampton. Andy has been based at Halfpenny in Bobbington for 11 years.

Andy’s dedication has made him a valued and well-respected figure in the local aviation community.

His flying qualifications include:

Commercial pilot’s licence
Multi-engine instrument rating
Frozen airline transport licence
Flight instructor
Qualified to teach single engine piston, night rating, and IR/R
Flight examiner

In the summer of 2024, Andy added to this impressive list of qualifications by passing his latest flying exam. He can now teach would-be flyers to pilot multi engine rating aircraft.

Andy’s Other Activities

With his toolmaking in the week and his flying at weekends, it’s a wonder Andy has any time to do anything else. But Andy is seldom found standing still for very long. He is always filling his free hours with one leisure pursuit after another.

“I swim three mornings a week before work. That’s in addition to all the other physical pursuits I do. I like to keep active, and I’m interested in many different things.”

And now that he’s conquered the air, Andy has his sights firmly set on the seas:

“My next ambition,” Andy reveals, “is to sail a 30 ft. yacht. It’s something I’ve wanted to do for a while, if only to see if the sea is as good for the soul as the skies are!”