Flight technician vs flight engineer

The differences between flight technicians and flight engineers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a flight technician, becoming a flight engineer takes usually requires 2-4 years. Additionally, a flight engineer has an average salary of $85,035, which is higher than the $42,931 average annual salary of a flight technician.

The top three skills for a flight technician include troubleshoot, FAA and preventive maintenance. The most important skills for a flight engineer are FAA, flight operations, and simulator.

Flight technician vs flight engineer overview

	Flight Technician	Flight Engineer
Yearly salary	$42,931	$85,035
Hourly rate	$20.64	$40.88
Growth rate	6%	6%
Number of jobs	27,302	2,042
Job satisfaction	-	-
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 41%	Associate Degree, 41%
Average age	45	44
Years of experience	2	4

Flight technician vs flight engineer salary

Flight technicians and flight engineers have different pay scales, as shown below.

	Flight Technician	Flight Engineer
Average salary	$42,931	$85,035
Salary range	Between $31,000 And $58,000	Between $55,000 And $129,000
Highest paying City	-	Gilbert, AZ
Highest paying state	-	Arizona
Best paying company	-	Learjet
Best paying industry	-	Technology

Differences between flight technician and flight engineer education

There are a few differences between a flight technician and a flight engineer in terms of educational background:

	Flight Technician	Flight Engineer
Most common degree	Associate Degree, 41%	Associate Degree, 41%
Most common major	Electrical Engineering	Aviation
Most common college	Purdue University	University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Flight technician vs flight engineer demographics

Here are the differences between flight technicians' and flight engineers' demographics:

	Flight Technician	Flight Engineer
Average age	45	44
Gender ratio	Male, 90.1% Female, 9.9%	Male, 94.7% Female, 5.3%
Race ratio	Black or African American, 9.4% Unknown, 4.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.6% Asian, 7.5% White, 60.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7%	Black or African American, 2.7% Unknown, 5.5% Hispanic or Latino, 6.9% Asian, 2.7% White, 81.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.3%
LGBT Percentage	6%	9%

Differences between flight technician and flight engineer duties and responsibilities

Flight technician example responsibilities.

Recognize for enhancing EDP operations to boost productivity and meet schedules.
Resolve discrepancies report by training crews, the FAA, and support staff.
Perform require tasks to inspect, install, troubleshoot, maintain, repair, modify, and operate training devices.
Read schematics to troubleshoot and repair digital and analog electronics.
Perform in-flight avionics/communication systems operation.
Print and cut stripcharts on plotters.

Flight engineer example responsibilities.

Manage and execute all aircraft grind servicing as well as security for USAF assets abroad.
Lead several Russian inspectors during a highly-visible reentry vehicle inspection on-site inspection - commend for superb leadership
Perform operational checks on helicopter systems and subsystems to isolate and facilitate troubleshooting of malfunctions.
Modify airframe for customer options.
Work are performed in compliance with applicable U.S. Government and DoD regulations, guidance, policies and procedures.
Develop flight dynamics math models in FORTRAN for the simulators of FAA approve business class aircraft using flight test data.

Flight technician vs flight engineer skills

Common flight technician skills

Troubleshoot, 15%
FAA, 11%
Preventive Maintenance, 7%
In-Flight, 7%
Aircraft Systems, 6%
Aircraft Maintenance, 5%

Common flight engineer skills

FAA, 10%
Flight Operations, 9%
Simulator, 8%
DOD, 7%
Combat, 5%
Technical Problems, 5%