How To Become An Aircraft Machinist: What It Is and Career Path

What is an aircraft machinist and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

2 min read

There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being an aircraft machinist. For example, did you know that they make an average of $19.88 an hour? That's $41,358 a year! Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 1% and produce 3,900 job opportunities across the U.S.

ScoreAircraft MachinistUS Average

Salary

3.2

Avg. Salary $41,358

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

5.8

Growth rate 1%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

4.2

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.53%

Asian 6.70%

Black or African American 4.46%

Hispanic or Latino 13.03%

Unknown 3.75%

White 71.53%

Gender

female 4.71%

male 95.29%

Age - 49

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 49

Stress level

5.8

Stress level is manageable

7.1 - high

Complexity level

6.3

Complexity level is intermediate

7 - challenging

Work life balance

6.7

Work life balance is good

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become an aircraft machinist

Explore aircraft machinist education requirements

Most common aircraft machinist degrees

Bachelor's

37.9 %

Associate

34.5 %

High School Diploma

20.7 %

Start to develop specific aircraft machinist skills

Skills	Percentages
CNC	28.57%
Hand Tools	24.86%
Grinders	21.40%
Machine Tools	15.10%
Conventional Machines	7.97%

Complete relevant aircraft machinist training and internships

Accountants spend an average of 3-6 months on post-employment, on-the-job training. New aircraft machinists learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as an aircraft machinist based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real aircraft machinist resumes.

Research aircraft machinist duties and responsibilities

Manage output according to company quality standards and corresponding ISO certification.
Work as an NC2 machinist, setting up and running 3 and 4 axis CNC machines.
Work closely with management and engineering staff to ensure efficient and safe methods are utilized in producing high quality aerospace components.
Manufacture and install repair parts in P3 machine shop.

Prepare your aircraft machinist resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your aircraft machinist resume.

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