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By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

WICHITA -- This is a shortage Wichita doesn't mind having, for now.

The city needs 1,000 new sheet metal workers for its aviation industry, officials said Thursday, another sign that the business of building airplanes is on the rebound.

''I don't look at that as a problem,'' Sedgwick County Commissioner Ben Sciortino said. ''I look at that as an opportunity to excel.''

Entry-level sheet metal workers can make $13 to $15 per hour on average, officials said, and those wanting to take part in the training need no previous experience.

Candice Doering, a military retiree who worked in the medical field, is in her second week of training at Wichita Area Technical College. She had previously tried to find a job in the aviation industry, where a number of her relatives work, but was always turned down because of a lack of experience.

''I get such gratification in building things,'' she said.

Workforce Solutions, a consortium of four job training and economic development groups, has helped to put together a training program as part of its efforts to help fill the positions. The curriculum was designed by aircraft manufacturers and the Kansas Institute for Technical Assistance.

Students can complete two classes in as little as seven weeks, and financial assistance is available to help offset the tuition of $1,096.

Graduates are not guaranteed a job, said Carl Harris, a board member for the Workforce Alliance of South Central Kansas, ''but they are guaranteed a foot in the door.''

The classes will be offered at the technical school in Wichita and at Hutchinson Community College. Butler County Community College in El Dorado and Cowley College in Arkansas City could also be added as training sites.

Brian Derreberry, president and chief executive officer of the Wichita Metro Chamber of Commerce, said the need for trained workers and a program to train them was ''a perfect equation'' for the area.

And, he said, each new aviation job creates 2.9 additional jobs in the area.

''Our goal is to make it seamless for the employers who need our help,'' he said.

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Information from: The Wichita Eagle, http://www.kansas.com