Aerodynamicist vs flight test engineer

The differences between aerodynamicists and flight test engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 2-4 years to become both an aerodynamicist and a flight test engineer. Additionally, a flight test engineer has an average salary of $90,538, which is higher than the $79,081 average annual salary of an aerodynamicist.

The top three skills for an aerodynamicist include CAD, computational fluid dynamics and analysis tools. The most important skills for a flight test engineer are control room, data analysis, and test procedures.

Aerodynamicist vs flight test engineer overview

	Aerodynamicist	Flight Test Engineer
Yearly salary	$79,081	$90,538
Hourly rate	$38.02	$43.53
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	1,320	26,384
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Average age	44	44
Years of experience	4	4

Aerodynamicist vs flight test engineer salary

Aerodynamicists and flight test engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Aerodynamicist	Flight Test Engineer
Average salary	$79,081	$90,538
Salary range	Between $43,000 And $145,000	Between $66,000 And $123,000
Highest paying City	-	Palo Alto, CA
Highest paying state	-	Illinois
Best paying company	-	Amazon
Best paying industry	-	Transportation

Differences between aerodynamicist and flight test engineer education

There are a few differences between an aerodynamicist and a flight test engineer in terms of educational background:

	Aerodynamicist	Flight Test Engineer
Most common degree	Bachelor's Degree, 75%	Bachelor's Degree, 74%
Most common major	Aerospace Engineering	Aerospace Engineering
Most common college	Georgia Institute of Technology	Georgia Institute of Technology

Aerodynamicist vs flight test engineer demographics

Here are the differences between aerodynamicists' and flight test engineers' demographics:

	Aerodynamicist	Flight Test Engineer
Average age	44	44
Gender ratio	Male, 93.9% Female, 6.1%	Male, 89.6% Female, 10.4%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 3.6% Unknown, 4.2% Hispanic or Latino, 7.6% Asian, 12.1% White, 72.3% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%	Black or African American, 4.2% Unknown, 4.5% Hispanic or Latino, 11.4% Asian, 10.9% White, 68.7% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	8%	8%

Differences between aerodynamicist and flight test engineer duties and responsibilities

Aerodynamicist example responsibilities.

Visualize results via Tecplot, to confirm data with other sub-teams and achieve maximum performance.
Manage hardware and software development, integration, and support of the HIL simulation laboratory.
Fabricate parts for test pod using Haas CNC machines.
Provide design system development and maintenance services for a turbine OEM.
Develop a moisture loss model for use in an OEM's turbine design system.
Conduct simulations and evaluations of complex, multiphase, compressible flows in the design of turbomachinery.

Flight test engineer example responsibilities.

Track and manage team budget, schedule, risks, change information, BOMs, labor and materials costs.
Manage Terraform and refactore from monolithic to application specific components.
Create complex flight test plans to meet DoD and FAA requirements.
Test facility engineer (TFE) responsible for design and development of test rigs, test stands, and fixtures.
Maintain a DOD secret security clearance.
Support both STC approval and design qualification.

Aerodynamicist vs flight test engineer skills

Common aerodynamicist skills

CAD, 34%
Computational Fluid Dynamics, 21%
Analysis Tools, 12%
Aided Design, 12%
Tecplot, 7%
Ansa, 4%

Common flight test engineer skills

Control Room, 7%
Data Analysis, 6%
Test Procedures, 6%
Avionics, 6%
DOD, 5%
Test Execution, 4%