Becoming an Aircraft Maintenance Technician

Aircraft maintenance is a vital part of the aviation industry. Technicians work to inspect, maintain, and repair airplanes to ensure pilots can safely bring their passengers to their destinations. That’s why aircraft maintenance technicians need to be well-trained and thoroughly prepared to complete every task required.

US Aviation wants to help prospective aircraft maintenance technicians get their certifications and reach their goals. First, you have to know what a technician does and what it takes to get there.

What is an Aircraft Maintenance Technician?

Aircraft maintenance technicians do all of the maintenance and repair on airplanes, but the work can be split into two different specialties based on the licensure you receive. The specialties are airframe mechanics and powerplant mechanics.

Airframe mechanics are licensed only to work on the body of an aircraft. This excludes them from inspecting or repairing the engine, propeller, and avionics. Powerplant mechanics are licensed only to work on the engine of an aircraft.

Despite being beyond the FAA’s requirements, technicians will typically earn certifications in both airframe and powerplant mechanics (A&P) as employers prefer mechanics that are able to perform all sets of tasks.

So how do you obtain these certifications?

Career Requirements

The initial requirements imposed by the FAA say that you must be at least 18 years old and able to read, speak, write, and understand English. Beyond that, you must have 18 months of practical experience handling procedures, practices, materials, tools, machines, and equipment utilized in manufacturing, maintaining, or repairing an airframe or powerplant. As an alternative, you can also have 30 months of experience performing the duties of both airframe and powerplant mechanics.

To meet these requirements, you can either receive academic training from an FAA-certified Aviation Maintenance Technician School (AMTS) or acquire on-the-job training.

AMTS or a “147 school” is an educational facility that has been certified by the FAA and has the approval to train prospective aircraft mechanics for A&P certifications or Avionics certifications, which focus on electronics and instrumentation.

A general course will require an estimated 400 hours of training, whereas individual Airframe and Powerplant certifications require 750 hours each. For a joint Airframe and Powerplant (A&P) license you will need 1,900 hours.

Start Your Career Today

At the US Aviation Academy, we train potential A&P mechanics to understand aircraft inside and out. With hands-on experience working with live, flight school aircraft, we can get you certified in only 12 months in our accelerated program.

Our goal is to guarantee every prospective A&P mechanic gets the chance to achieve their goals. That’s why we offer aviation maintenance financing options to help you fund your education.

Learn more about our program and start your aviation journey today!