Aircraft Mechanic Jobs: Where the Work Is and Who Hires

There were 138,090 aircraft mechanic jobs in the United States in May 2025, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). Projections Central expects about 11,300 openings a year from 2024 to 2034. Most of those aircraft mechanic jobs sit with repair stations, airlines, aircraft manufacturers and the federal government.

How Many Aircraft Mechanic Jobs Are There?

BLS counted 138,090 jobs for aircraft mechanics and service technicians (occupation code 49-3011) in its May 2025 survey. O*NET lists aircraft maintenance technician, airframe and powerplant mechanic, and aviation mechanic among the job titles in that code, so aircraft maintenance technician jobs are counted here too. Avionics technicians have their own code and add another 18,830 jobs, which the avionics technician career guide covers.

You'll also see a much bigger number quoted: the FAA's 348,426 active mechanic certificates at the end of 2025. That's not a job count. A mechanic certificate doesn't expire, so it stays on the books whether its holder works on aircraft, moved into management or left the field.

The bottom 10% earned under $48,780 and the top 10% over $128,890. The aircraft mechanic salary guide breaks pay down by state and metro.

Job Openings and Growth Through 2034

Projections Central puts aircraft mechanic employment at 139,400 in 2024 and 145,000 in 2034, a gain of 5,600 jobs, or 4%. It expects 11,300 openings a year over that stretch.

Here's the math on where those openings come from. Growth adds 5,600 jobs over ten years, or 560 a year. That's about 5% of the 11,300 yearly openings. The rest replace mechanics who retire or move to other work, since O*NET defines projected openings as openings from growth plus replacement.

Avionics technicians are projected to grow faster, 7.9% over the same decade, with 1,800 openings a year. On the supply side, the FAA issued 11,103 original mechanic certificates in 2025, up from 5,205 in 2020.

State projections start from a different 2024 base than the BLS wage survey, so the counts won't match the next section exactly.

States With the Most Aircraft Mechanic Jobs

Aircraft mechanic jobs are concentrated. Texas, Florida, California, Oklahoma and Georgia together hold 59,560 of the 138,090 jobs. That's 59,560 divided by 138,090, or 43.1%. Oklahoma stands out: it has the fourth-most jobs of any state, ahead of Georgia, North Carolina and Washington.

To train close to these markets, start with the school lists for aviation maintenance schools in Texas, Florida, California, Oklahoma and Georgia.

Top Metro Areas for Aviation Mechanic Jobs

The ten metro areas with the most aviation mechanic jobs hold 45,660 of them, or 33.1% of the national total. Big airline hubs lead, but two Oklahoma cities make the list too: Tulsa, home to American Airlines' Tech Ops base, and Oklahoma City, home to Tinker Air Force Base.

Pay varies a lot between these markets. New York City's median was $127,140 in May 2025, against $68,140 in Oklahoma City.

Where Aircraft Mechanic Jobs Are Most Concentrated

Raw job counts favor big cities. The location quotient shows how concentrated the work is: a metro's share of jobs in aircraft maintenance divided by the national share. A quotient of 1 matches the national rate. In Warner Robins, Georgia, the quotient is 12.56, and in Tulsa it's 11.1, so the work makes up more than ten times its usual share of local jobs.

Each of these metros has a large aviation maintenance employer. Tulsa is home to American Airlines' Tech Ops base, where the airline says more than 2,300 licensed aviation maintenance technicians work. Oklahoma City and Warner Robins host Air Force depots at Tinker and Robins Air Force Bases. Mobile has an Airbus final assembly line, and Memphis is the FedEx Express World Hub.

Who Hires Aircraft Mechanics

BLS reports aircraft mechanic jobs by industry, and four industries hold 109,210 of the 138,090 jobs, or 79.1%. The chart shows the largest industry rows. The employer examples below come from our metro research, each tied to its source.

Repair Stations and MROs

The biggest industry row for aircraft mechanic jobs is support activities for air transportation: 42,580 jobs, or 30.8% of the total, at a $72,910 median. Independent MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) shops are the employers you'll hear about most here. Examples include Boeing's military MRO complex at Kelly Field in San Antonio, Aviation Technical Services' 250,000-square-foot hangar at Paine Field near Seattle.

Airlines

Scheduled airlines hold 29,480 aircraft mechanic jobs (21.3%) and pay the highest median of the large industries, $98,300. Big carriers run their own maintenance bases: American Airlines' Tech Ops base in Tulsa and Delta TechOps at Hartsfield-Jackson in Atlanta. The airline mechanic salary guide covers airline pay.

Aircraft and Parts Manufacturers

Aerospace product and parts manufacturing accounts for 24,910 aircraft mechanic jobs (18%) at a $82,720 median. Large plants include Boeing's Everett factory, Boeing South Carolina's 787 campus in North Charleston, and Airbus's final assembly lines in Mobile, where mechanics and technicians complete aircraft before customer delivery.

The Federal Government

The federal executive branch employs 12,240 aircraft mechanics (8.9%) at a $76,210 median. Federal sites include the Warner Robins Air Logistics Complex and the Oklahoma City Air Logistics Complex at Tinker, where planned maintenance facilities are projected to add more than 1,000 positions over two decades.

Federal civilian aircraft mechanic jobs fall under Wage Grade series 8852, and engine work under series 8602. Uniformed maintainers are a separate route, covered in the military aircraft mechanic guide.

Cargo Carriers and Charter Operators

BLS counts 3,980 aircraft mechanic jobs in couriers and express delivery services, at a $90,190 median. The cargo hubs are big maintenance sites: UPS built a 275,000-square-foot hangar at its Worldport hub in Louisville, and FedEx maintains aircraft at its Memphis hub. Nonscheduled air transportation, which includes charter flying, adds 6,420 jobs at a $80,180 median.

Business aviation work also runs through manufacturer service centers. Textron Aviation's Wichita Service Center, the largest of its 20, has nearly 600 employees.

Do You Need an A&P Certificate to Get Hired?

It depends on the employer. The A&P is the FAA mechanic certificate with Airframe and Powerplant ratings. FAA figures cited in the 2025 Pipeline Report show certificated mechanics make up 86% of the general aviation maintenance workforce, 61% of air operator maintenance staff, and 22% of the repair station workforce. So repair stations hire many technicians who don't hold the certificate yet.

The certificate matters because of what it lets you sign for. Under 14 CFR Part 65, an airframe or powerplant mechanic can approve work for return to service within the rating's limits. Experience as an uncertificated technician at a repair station counts toward the certificate. And without school, you'll need 30 months of practical experience to test for both ratings. The mechanic license guide covers every requirement.

How to Find Aircraft Mechanic Jobs

Aircraft mechanic jobs are posted by the employers themselves and on job boards, and federal civilian jobs are posted on USAJOBS, the government's official employment site. The data above tells you where to look.

Training near a big market puts you close to those employers while you're in school. These are FAA-approved schools near the five largest job markets, with distance from each metro's center:

• Dallas College, 10 miles from Dallas-Fort Worth
• George T. Baker Aviation Technical College, 4 miles from Miami-Fort Lauderdale
• Vaughn College of Aeronautics and Technology, 8 miles from New York City
• West Los Angeles College, 2 miles from Los Angeles
• Spartan College of Aeronautics and Technology, Tulsa Campus, 4 miles from Tulsa

The aircraft mechanic apprenticeship guide covers earning while you train, and is aircraft mechanic a good career weighs the trade-offs.