What are the job prospects for A&P mechanics in the US for the next 5 years?

Scott,

You want to explore this website. Wage links are at the bottom of the screen. A lot will depend on experience level, type of aircraft, willingness to relocate, etc. Many of the A&P folks I worked with would move from place to place. Some even live in RVs. I don't know if employers help with travel expenses.

https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/49-3011.00

Also look at Indeed. Enter the occupation, but leave the location blank. This will let you see all 250 job postings throughout the country. I am seeing salaries of $18-$30/hr. This link may work: https://www.indeed.com/jobs?q=a%26p+mechanic&l=

I believe the government jobs pay more.

One suggestion: if you are just getting into this: when you go for job interviews, you will want to ask what measures they have in place to prevent tool theft. You will have your own tools, they will cost several thousand dollars. Some hangars have a locked tool cage you can leave your tool box in. When I was an Airport PD officer, we had a problem with people walking into hangars and rolling out entire toolboxes! Some of these employers did not seem to care, as it was not their loss. Others were more concerned.

Aircraft work is interesting! I used to watch the mechanics at night when things were slow. Best of luck to you!

Hello Scott,

The job prospects for A&P technicians are really good right now, and getting better. Just Google "shortage of aircraft technicians", and you will have plenty of reading material dealing with this subject. Boeing , predicts a huge shortage of technicians in the next few years. For the first time, we are seeing Congress and various Aviation Administrations actually taking steps towards addressing this shortage.

I know the industry has been talking a lot about the shortage of qualified pilots and technicians. However, now we are actually starting to feel the effects of it. As a hiring manager for an aircraft repair station, its getting harder to find candidates for openings. All too often I have 1 opening, and only one applicant. We started going back to schools and hiring technicians with no experience. As long as you have an A&P license and can read and write English, you are in demand. Pay scales are going up as well, trying to keep up with demand.

An FAA Airframe and Powerplant (A&P) license in the US, allows you to work in both, Commercial and General Aviation. I have many technicians that work here on private and corporate jets, and then part time with an Airline.

Good luck with your quest.