Aerospace technician vs flight data technician

The differences between aerospace technicians and flight data technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 1-2 years to become both an aerospace technician and a flight data technician. Additionally, a flight data technician has an average salary of $55,827, which is higher than the $38,579 average annual salary of an aerospace technician.

The top three skills for an aerospace technician include safety procedures, calipers and hand tools. The most important skills for a flight data technician are flight data, R, and data products.

Aerospace technician vs flight data technician overview

	Aerospace Technician	Flight Data Technician
Yearly salary	$38,579	$55,827
Hourly rate	$18.55	$26.84
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	25,348	80,619
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 34%	Bachelor's Degree, 38%
Average age	45	45
Years of experience	2	2

Aerospace technician vs flight data technician salary

Aerospace technicians and flight data technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Aerospace Technician	Flight Data Technician
Average salary	$38,579	$55,827
Salary range	Between $27,000 And $54,000	Between $36,000 And $86,000
Highest paying City	-	-
Highest paying state	-	-
Best paying company	-	-
Best paying industry	-	-

Differences between aerospace technician and flight data technician education

There are a few differences between an aerospace technician and a flight data technician in terms of educational background:

	Aerospace Technician	Flight Data Technician
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 34%	Bachelor's Degree, 38%
Most common major	Aviation	Education
Most common college	Purdue University	Purdue University

Aerospace technician vs flight data technician demographics

Here are the differences between aerospace technicians' and flight data technicians' demographics:

	Aerospace Technician	Flight Data Technician
Average age	45	45
Gender ratio	Male, 84.9% Female, 15.1%	Male, 75.0% Female, 25.0%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.6% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.9% Asian, 7.5% White, 60.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 6.9% Unknown, 4.6% Hispanic or Latino, 11.7% Asian, 8.2% White, 67.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%
LGBT Percentage	6%	6%

Differences between aerospace technician and flight data technician duties and responsibilities

Aerospace technician example responsibilities.

Lead troubleshooting team for radar system degradation, identify and replace system components to allow aircraft to perform assignment.
Use technical specifications, sketches, manuals, drawings, engineering notices, and FAA forms and publications to accomplish work.
Install DDC controls for HVAC systems and boilers
Repair and maintain aircraft navigation systems such as VOR-DME, TACAN, and GPS.
Update software and replace circuit cards with in the 128D GPS module.
Perform in-flight and grind maintenance instruction; training and qualify hundreds of personnel.

Flight data technician example responsibilities.

Manage and distribute cad standards to contributing design consultants and assist with any design issues as necessary.
Perform in-flight avionics/communication systems operation.
Perform in-flight avionics/communication systems operation.

Aerospace technician vs flight data technician skills

Common aerospace technician skills

Safety Procedures, 11%
Calipers, 10%
Hand Tools, 8%
Ladders, 7%
Ground Support Equipment, 4%
NASA, 4%

Common flight data technician skills

Flight Data, 61%
R, 27%
Data Products, 12%

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Aerospace Technician vs Flight Data Technician

Updated January 8, 2025

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