Aircraft Mechanic Salary in 2026: Pay by State, Metro, and Industry

How Much Does an Aircraft Mechanic Make?

The typical aircraft mechanic in the United States earns $79,870 a year, or $38.40 an hour, according to the May 2025 Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) release from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Half of the 138,090 people in the occupation earned more than that and half earned less. The mean, pulled up by higher earners, was $84,740.

BLS does not publish a separate wage for mechanics who hold the FAA mechanic certificate with Airframe and Powerplant ratings, known as the A&P. Airframe and powerplant mechanics and aviation maintenance technicians are counted within occupation 49-3011, so the figures on this page answer all of those searches at once.

Across states, the gap between the highest and lowest median is $59,900, which makes location and employer type the two biggest variables you can see in the data.

Aircraft Mechanic Pay Range by Percentile

OEWS reports five points on the pay curve for each occupation. For aircraft mechanics the spread is wide: a mechanic at the 90th percentile earns about 2.6 times what one at the 10th percentile earns. BLS does not break that spread down by experience, certificate, or employer size, so the percentiles describe the range rather than the reasons for it.

The mean of $84,740 sits $4,870 above the median, a sign that a smaller group of high earners pulls the average up. When a salary site quotes an "average" aircraft mechanic salary, check whether it means the mean or the median. The median is the better guide to what a typical mechanic earns.

BLS does not publish a starting salary. The closest reference points are the 10th percentile ($48,780) and the 25th percentile ($62,630), the levels below which the lowest-paid tenth and quarter of the workforce fall.

Aircraft Mechanic Salary by State

New Jersey has the highest state median for aircraft mechanics at $105,370, followed by New York ($102,800), Maryland ($100,500), Washington ($98,980), and Connecticut ($96,830). West Virginia has the lowest at $45,470. In all, nine states have medians of $90,000 or more.

Pay and job counts do not line up. Texas, Florida, California, and Oklahoma together employ 38.3% of the nation's aircraft mechanics, and their median-pay ranks are 11th, 28th, 10th, and 36th of 50. If you plan to train in one state and work in another, compare both the median and the number of jobs.

Each state name links to a page with that state's full percentile range, metro areas, and projections. To compare training options in the same state, start from the FAA-approved aviation maintenance school directory.

Aircraft Mechanic Salary by Metro Area

BLS publishes metro-level estimates where its sample supports them. The table lists the 25 metro areas with the most aircraft mechanics among the 102 metros covered on this site. Dallas-Fort Worth leads with 8,000 jobs and a median of $94,920, and New York City has the highest median in the group at $127,140.

The location quotient compares how concentrated aircraft mechanic jobs are in a metro with the national average. A value of 1.00 matches the nation. Tulsa's 11.10 means these jobs make up about 11 times the national share of local employment.

The top of the pay curve also differs by metro. In Memphis, the 90th percentile reaches $169,740, the highest among these 25 metros and $40,850 above the national 90th percentile. Each metro name links to its school and pay page.

Aviation Maintenance Technician Salary by Industry

Industry is the clearest pay driver in the BLS data. Mechanics at scheduled airlines earned a median of $98,300, which is $18,430 more than the all-industry median. Mechanics in support activities for air transportation, the BLS category that covers independent repair stations and airport service companies, earned $72,910.

Support activities employ the most aircraft mechanics (42,580, or 30.8% of the occupation), followed by scheduled airlines (29,480) and aerospace product and parts manufacturing (24,910, median $82,720). The federal executive branch employs 12,240 at a median of $76,210.

Cargo is worth a look. Couriers and express delivery services employ 3,980 aircraft mechanics at a median of $90,190, the second-highest median among the industries in this table that employ at least 1,000 mechanics. At the other end, mechanics placed through staffing agencies (employment services) earned a median of $57,840.

BLS reports these figures by industry code, not by company. For a closer look at carrier pay, see the airline mechanic salary breakdown.

Does an A&P Certificate Raise Your Pay?

BLS does not split wages by certificate, so federal data cannot show a dollar premium for holding one. What the certificate changes is what you are allowed to sign for. Under 14 CFR Part 65, a mechanic with an Airframe or Powerplant rating may approve work within that rating for return to service and may perform the 100-hour inspection required under Part 91.

FAA figures cited in the 2025 ATEC Pipeline Report show that certificated mechanics make up 61% of the maintenance workforce at air operators, 22% at repair stations, and 86% in general aviation. Airlines, the highest-paying industry in the BLS table, are also a major employer of certificated mechanics. The two sources measure different things, so the comparison shows where certificated mechanics work, not a price for the certificate.

The certificate does not expire. It stays valid until it is surrendered, suspended, or revoked, although you must have used it, or been found able to do the work, within the preceding 24 months to exercise its privileges. The FAA counted 348,426 active mechanic certificates at the end of 2025, a different measure from the 138,090 people BLS counts in the occupation: one counts certificates held, the other counts jobs.

For the full requirements, see the mechanic license guide and how to become an aircraft mechanic.

How to Earn More as an Aircraft Mechanic

The BLS data point to four levers you control. None of them guarantees a raise. Each is tied below to the figure on this page that supports it.

Work for an Airline or Cargo Carrier

The scheduled airline median of $98,300 is $25,390 above the support-activities median of $72,910, and the courier median is $90,190. Airline jobs cluster at hub and maintenance-base airports, so this lever often overlaps with location.

Choose a Higher-Paying State or Metro

Nine states have medians of $90,000 or more, and the New York City metro median is $127,140. Moving from the median in West Virginia ($45,470) to the median in New Jersey ($105,370) is a $59,900 difference before living costs, which BLS wage data do not account for.

Earn the Inspection Authorization

The Inspection Authorization (IA) lets a certificated mechanic approve aircraft for return to service after a major repair or alteration and perform annual inspections. To apply, you need both ratings in effect for at least 3 years and 2 years of active maintenance work. BLS does not track IA holders separately, so no published pay figure exists for the credential. Read the IA requirements.

Add Avionics Skills

Avionics technicians earned a median of $82,280, $2,410 above aircraft mechanics. The FAA issues no separate avionics certificate, and airframe-rated mechanics may work on avionics. The FCC General Radiotelephone Operator License requires written Elements 1 and 3. See the avionics technician salary data.

Aircraft Mechanic Job Outlook, 2024 to 2034

Projections Central expects aircraft mechanic employment to grow from 139,400 in 2024 to 145,000 in 2034, an increase of 5,600 jobs, or 4%. It projects about 11,300 openings a year. Growth accounts for only about 560 of those each year; the rest replace workers who leave the occupation.

Growth is uneven. Among states with at least 1,000 aircraft mechanics in 2024, the fastest projected growth is in Colorado (21.3%), Arizona (19.6%), and Nevada (15.2%). Avionics technician employment is projected to grow 7.9% over the same decade.

The supply of new mechanics is rising too. The FAA issued 11,103 original mechanic certificates in 2025, up from 9,013 in 2024. ATEC's 2025 Pipeline Report projected that commercial air transport demand would leave a 10% shortage of certificated mechanics in 2025, narrowing to 7% by 2035. Boeing's 2025 outlook projects North America will need 123,000 new aviation maintenance technicians from 2025 to 2044, a forecast limited to commercial aviation.

Where those jobs are, by state and metro, is covered in our aircraft mechanic jobs guide.

Aircraft Mechanic vs. Avionics Technician and Related Jobs

Four nearby occupations share tools, hangars, or career paths with aircraft mechanics. Transportation inspectors, the BLS group that includes aviation inspectors, have the highest median of the five at $92,100. Aircraft structure assemblers, who build aircraft rather than maintain them, have the lowest at $65,380.

Avionics technicians out-earn aircraft mechanics at the median ($82,280 vs. $79,870) but not at the top: their 90th percentile is $113,680, compared with $128,890 for aircraft mechanics. Aerospace engineering and operations technologists and technicians earn a median of $82,890, with 11,280 employed nationally.