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The differences between aircraft technicians and certified medical technicians can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 2-4 years to become an aircraft technician, becoming a certified medical technician takes usually requires 6-12 months. Additionally, an aircraft technician has an average salary of $50,212, which is higher than the $38,859 average annual salary of a certified medical technician.
The top three skills for an aircraft technician include FAA, airframe and aircraft components. The most important skills for a certified medical technician are patients, vital signs, and CPR.
| Aircraft Technician | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Yearly salary | $50,212 | $38,859 |
| Hourly rate | $24.14 | $18.68 |
| Growth rate | 6% | 5% |
| Number of jobs | 28,265 | 164,424 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 39% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Years of experience | 4 | 12 |
An Aircraft Technician inspects, maintains, and addresses any issues that arise with an aircraft. Their primary duties include diagnosing electrical issues, replacing defective parts, and maintaining aircraft standards.
Certified Medical Technicians are specialists in medical diagnoses by performing laboratory testing and analysis for hospitals and physicians. Their duties include lab sanitization to prepare for testing and collection, recording medical samples for testing, specimen preparation, blood drawing for donation and testing, and assisting physicians with sample collection as well as equipment handling in surgical rooms. They must also understand how to use complex and sensitive testing equipment such as cell counters, analyzers, microscopes, and centrifuges.
Aircraft technicians and certified medical technicians have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Aircraft Technician | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average salary | $50,212 | $38,859 |
| Salary range | Between $36,000 And $69,000 | Between $28,000 And $53,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Denton, TX |
| Highest paying state | Nevada | Alaska |
| Best paying company | Aviation Technology Group | Favorite Healthcare Staffing |
| Best paying industry | Manufacturing | Health Care |
There are a few differences between an aircraft technician and a certified medical technician in terms of educational background:
| Aircraft Technician | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Most common degree | Associate Degree, 39% | Bachelor's Degree, 28% |
| Most common major | Aviation | Nursing |
| Most common college | SUNY Farmingdale | University of Connecticut |
Here are the differences between aircraft technicians' and certified medical technicians' demographics:
| Aircraft Technician | Certified Medical Technician | |
| Average age | 40 | 44 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 94.1% Female, 5.9% | Male, 20.4% Female, 79.6% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 5.1% Hispanic or Latino, 23.4% Asian, 6.8% White, 54.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.6% | Black or African American, 15.9% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 14.6% Asian, 10.0% White, 53.8% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.8% |
| LGBT Percentage | 2% | 8% |