Albert Hourie: Making Dreams a Reality

Albert Hourie, intern, Cold Section Engineering Structural Analysis, beamed with a smile when he learned of an internship opening at Pratt & Whitney. The opportunity to work for the company that built the engine of his favorite aircraft, the SR-71 Blackbird, was unbeatable.

"This is my second summer interning with Pratt & Whitney, and I couldn't be happier," Hourie said. "It's great to wake up every day and know that I have the opportunity to do meaningful work on meaningful products."

Hourie discovered Pratt & Whitney internship opportunities through INROADS, a nonprofit organization that develops and places talented underserved youth in businesses and industries, and prepares them for corporate and community leadership. UTC has been participating in the INROADS program for the past 29 years, and Pratt & Whitney has been participating for 25.

Now Hourie gets to live his dream at Pratt & Whitney. He is responsible for ensuring that parts have viable real world design and properly meet specifications. He does this by conducting analysis of said parts on a daily basis.

Hourie's passion for aerospace engineering is a culmination of working on cars and attending airshows with his father. The fundamental engine concepts that he had learned by repairing car engines fueled his excitement of witnessing the furious power of plane engines.

To say that Hourie is enthusiastic about aerospace engineering would be an understatement. When he is not exploring different parts of the globe viewing various feats of engineering, he can be found spending time with his niece and two nephews.

"My nephews want to be engineers too," Hourie explained. "When I spend time with them, I like to do fun science experiments to teach them about engineering fundamentals. Recently, we built small model planes and conducted flight tests while adding various weights to the wings."

Hourie studies mechanical engineering at the University of Central Florida. He is certain that the knowledge and skills that he has gained during his internships with Pratt & Whitney will help him after graduation next year as he wants to continue working for the maker of his favorite plane's engine.