Airplane Mechanic Overview
Working as an Airplane Mechanic
There is more than meets the eye when it comes to being an airplane mechanic. For example, did you know that they make an average of $24.7 an hour? That's $51,373 a year!
Between 2018 and 2028, the career is expected to grow 3% and produce 4,700 job opportunities across the U.S.
What Does an Airplane Mechanic Do
There are certain skills that many airplane mechanics have in order to accomplish their responsibilities. By taking a look through resumes, we were able to narrow down the most common skills for a person in this position. We discovered that a lot of resumes listed dexterity, strength and mechanical skills.
When it comes to the most important skills required to be an airplane mechanic, we found that a lot of resumes listed 22.8% of airplane mechanics included aircraft parts, while 11.9% of resumes included aircraft systems, and 9.4% of resumes included faa. Hard skills like these are helpful to have when it comes to performing essential job responsibilities.
When it comes to searching for a job, many search for a key term or phrase. Instead, it might be more helpful to search by industry, as you might be missing jobs that you never thought about in industries that you didn't even think offered positions related to the airplane mechanic job title. But what industry to start with? Most airplane mechanics actually find jobs in the technology and finance industries.
How To Become an Airplane Mechanic
If you're interested in becoming an airplane mechanic, one of the first things to consider is how much education you need. We've determined that 23.1% of airplane mechanics have a bachelor's degree. In terms of higher education levels, we found that 1.5% of airplane mechanics have master's degrees. Even though some airplane mechanics have a college degree, it's possible to become one with only a high school degree or GED.
Choosing the right major is always an important step when researching how to become an airplane mechanic. When we researched the most common majors for an airplane mechanic, we found that they most commonly earn high school diploma degrees or associate degree degrees. Other degrees that we often see on airplane mechanic resumes include bachelor's degree degrees or diploma degrees.
You may find that experience in other jobs will help you become an airplane mechanic. In fact, many airplane mechanic jobs require experience in a role such as helicopter mechanic. Meanwhile, many airplane mechanics also have previous career experience in roles such as mechanic or technician.
What is the right job for my career path?
Tell us your goals and we'll match you with the right jobs to get there.
Airplane Mechanic Jobs
Airplane Mechanic Career Paths
As you move along in your career, you may start taking on more responsibilities or notice that you've taken on a leadership role. Using our career map, an airplane mechanic can determine their career goals through the career progression. For example, they could start out with a role such as technician, progress to a title such as team leader and then eventually end up with the title service manager.
What is the right job for my career path?
Tell us your goals and we'll match you with the rights job to get there.
Top Colleges for Airplane Mechanics
1. Stanford University
Stanford, CA
2. SUNY Farmingdale
Farmingdale, NY
3. SUNY College of Agriculture and Technology at Cobleskill
Cobleskill, NY
4. SUNY College of Agriculture & Technology at Morrisville
Morrisville, NY
5. Purdue University
West Lafayette, IN
6. University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, PA
7. Brigham Young University - Idaho
Rexburg, ID
8. Northwestern University
Evanston, IL
9. Pennsylvania State University
University Park, PA
10. SUNY College of Technology at Alfred
Alfred, NY
Entry Level Jobs For Becoming An Airplane Mechanic
Top Skills For an Airplane Mechanic
The skills section on your resume can be almost as important as the experience section, so you want it to be an accurate portrayal of what you can do. Luckily, we've found all of the skills you'll need so even if you don't have these skills yet, you know what you need to work on. Out of all the resumes we looked through, 22.8% of airplane mechanics listed aircraft parts on their resume, but soft skills such as dexterity and strength are important as well.
- Aircraft Parts, 42.4%
- FAA, 13.9%
- Airframe, 10.3%
- Maintenance Tasks, 7.6%
- QA, 6.0%
- Other Skills, 19.8% See All Airplane Mechanic Skills