A Career Built on Electronics

My career in electronics began when I left school and joined EMI as an apprentice. My training followed a block-release scheme: one week at Southall College of Technology, followed by three weeks at EMI’s Apprentice Training School on the third floor of the record factory in Hayes, Middlesex.

This combination of classroom learning and practical experience gave me a strong foundation for a career that would span several decades in electronics.

As my apprenticeship progressed, I moved to EMI Electronics at Victoria Road, Feltham, where I joined the Experimental and Development Laboratory and began specialising in airborne telemetry.

In the laboratory, I built and tested prototype circuit boards, including multiplexers made with integrated circuits. I constructed the boards from designs prepared by other technicians, then tested the circuits before they moved into production. This work was connected with missile and rocket telemetry, giving me valuable experience in precision electronics and fault-finding.

That early experience in advanced telemetry shaped the next stages of my career, which would take me from laboratory development into domestic radio and television repairs and, eventually, to the specialist servicing of aviation headsets and flying helmets.

From EMI to Domestic Electronics

After leaving EMI, I decided to pursue a career in domestic electronics, specialising in the repair and servicing of radios and televisions.

I joined Radio Services Harrow Ltd, which traded under the name Homevision. The company operated shops in Harrow, Pinner and Northwood, and I spent more than 17 years working there.

During this time, I gained extensive practical experience in diagnosing faults, repairing electronic equipment and keeping up with the continuing changes in consumer technology.

Establishing Flackwell Electronics

After more than 17 years with Homevision, I decided to become self-employed and established Flackwell Electronics in Flackwell Heath, Buckinghamshire.

As the workload grew, I soon needed more space, so I moved the business to a larger workshop in Aston Abbotts, near Aylesbury. This gave me the room I needed to develop the business and accommodate the increasing volume of repair work.

Initially, my work continued to focus on domestic electronics. Over the years, the equipment I repaired evolved from radios and televisions to video recorders, hi-fi systems, plasma screens and LCD displays.

The electronics industry was changing rapidly, and I adapted my skills to keep pace with new technologies.

A New Direction into Aviation

Eventually, television repairs became increasingly uneconomical as equipment prices fell and technology changed. Rather than abandon the electronics trade, I looked for a specialist area where my technical background and repair experience could continue to be put to good use.

I diversified into aviation electronics, concentrating on pilot headsets and flying helmets. This allowed me to apply the fault-finding skills and practical experience I had developed throughout my career to specialist equipment used by pilots.

Why Clear Communication Matters

I understand that an aviation headset is far more than just a piece of electronic equipment. When the weather turns bad or a pilot experiences technical difficulties, clear and reliable communication with an air traffic controller on the ground can be vital to their safety and, in some circumstances, can save their life.

A pilot needs to be able to hear instructions clearly and communicate effectively, particularly when conditions become challenging. That is why I believe dependable aviation communications equipment is so important.

With my many years of experience in electronics repair, I take pride in the specialist work carried out by Aviation Headsets Flackwell Electronics. For me, it is about more than fixing a fault; it is about helping pilots maintain the clear communications they rely upon in the air.

Aviation Headsets Flackwell Electronics Today

As the aviation side of the business developed, I renamed it Aviation Headsets Flackwell Electronics.

The business represents the culmination of a career that began with my apprenticeship at EMI, continued through many years of domestic electronics servicing, and developed into a specialist aviation repair service.

I am proud that the business is still trading today, drawing on decades of hands-on experience in electronics and repair work.

My aim remains straightforward: to put my experience to good use, provide a personal and specialist repair service, and help pilots keep their aviation communications equipment working as reliably as possible.