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Northwest Dedicated Aerospace Worker and Instructor David Lindsay Retires

by Sarah Ashley Smith-Hutchinson

Senatobia, MS (06/17/2026) — Northwest Mississippi Community College's Aviation Maintenance Technology Instructor David Lindsay is retiring. Lindsay said that working in aviation was his dream and since 1985, he's been dedicated to the field.

Starting at Federal Express (FedEx) as an aviation mechanic in the 1980s, he thought his initial call from them was a prank, so he hung up. Just a few minutes later, he was called again and asked, "Are you still interested in the part-time job?" With that, he started on Dec. 12, 1985, in the Hub beginning his career surrounded by aircrafts.

While serving in that role, he began to explore aviation schools. In 1987, he applied for a position in Jefferson City, Missouri, where he would be only 38 miles from Linn Technology College in St. Louis. At night he would drive to classes and in the morning, he would go to his job. In 1989, he graduated from the program.

After graduating, he, his wife, and three children, moved from Jefferson City back to Memphis. When moving back, he got the job in the Aircraft Maintenance Training Department where he provided instruction to all FedEx employees on policy, equipment, and procedures to fueling up an aircraft.

In 1992, winds changed direction and FedEx signed a contract with Airbus for the A300-600 when he accepted the job to be an avionics instructor for the Airbus A300-600 team. He spent time preparing and undergoing hours of training at the Airbus headquarters in Toulouse, France. Then in 1994, the delivery of the first plane arrived in the U.S.

"The company's goal was to provide aircraft maintenance technicians with fault isolation and troubleshooting in the flight simulator including on-the-job training wherever the planes landed," said Lindsay. "The development of the simulator training required many hours working with a Canadian full flight simulator manufacturer, CAE to match the simulator to the aircraft to ensure 100 percent accuracy."

After 26 years at FedEx and multiple career pivots and promotions, Lindsay decided that it was time to retire and pursue other interests. He started his own business before deciding he would like to revisit the corporate world. Shortly thereafter, he found himself wanting to come back home and take the position of instructor for Northwest Mississippi Community College.

He worked at Northwest for nearly a decade before taking a short break to work for Tennessee Applied Technology, but the next year returned after his realization that high school teaching wasn't for him. He returned to Northwest as an instructor for a second time, and this time only left for retirement.

"It's now 2026, and after a life full of experience in the aviation industry, it's time to retire and see what the good Lord has left for me to do," said Lindsay.

To keep in touch with all his former students, he has decided to start a Facebook page to see what all his former students are doing. Lindsay's career impacted hundreds of aviation maintenance workers by helping them develop their skills and become professionals in the field.

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Training plane at the Northwest Olive Branch location. Photo by Sarah Ashley Smith-Hutchinson

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