Aircraft Mechanic
Skilled Trades
Inspect, maintain, and repair aircraft to keep them flying safely.
Why it matters here: BWI, Dulles, and National airports anchor regional demand.
Labor Market — DMV Region
Sourced from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics OEWS releases (DMV metro and nationwide) plus MD, VA, and D.C. workforce agencies.
Local cost of living is why DMV pay often differs from the national median.
- DMV & state figures: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics — OEWS wage & employment estimates and Employment Projections, with OEWS area pay relatives for the Washington–Arlington–Alexandria metro, Maryland, D.C., and Northern Virginia · View source
- Occupation profiles & skills: O*NET OnLine (U.S. Department of Labor) · onetonline.org
All salary figures are published estimates for groups of workers, not offers or guarantees for any individual role.
Education & Career Pathways
Multiple ways to get here — pick the one that fits your life.
Career Progression
How you can grow — with expected salary at each step.
- Entry-level Aircraft MechanicLearning the role, supervised work, building core skills.$63,220
- Aircraft Mechanic (experienced)Independent work, mentoring newer team members.$81,770
- Senior / Lead Aircraft MechanicOwning projects, specialization, higher responsibility.$109,000
- Manager or specialist trackSupervising a team or moving into a high-demand specialty.$130,800
Skills Required
What you'll actually do — and how you'll be judged.
Hangars and flight lines, shift work, documentation-heavy
Where you work
A maintenance hangar or an open flight line at Dulles, BWI or Reagan National, in noise and weather.
Hours and schedule
Around-the-clock shifts, because heavy maintenance happens overnight when aircraft aren't flying.
Pace and pressure
Deliberate and procedure-bound, with real pressure to return aircraft to service on time.
Who you work with
Crews working to a task card, with inspectors signing off on critical work.
Physical demands
Climbing, confined spaces inside airframes, overhead work, heavy tools, jet noise.
What people wear
Uniform, hearing protection, safety glasses, steel toes, no loose items near aircraft.
Remote reality
None.
Workplace culture: what's normal here
- Every action is signed in the logbook — an unsigned task effectively didn't happen.
- Foreign object debris control is obsessive because a dropped tool can destroy an engine.
- Admitting a mistake immediately is protected culture; hiding one is disqualifying.
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Outlook Handbook — Work Environment, with regional detail for the DMV.
Official data behind this career
Federal statistics for DMV Region, translated into plain language.
Washington–Arlington–Alexandria, DC–VA–MD–WV metro area
Source: U.S. Census Bureau — ACS 2019–2023 5-year estimates (tables DP03, DP02, DP05)
- The DMV functions as one labor market: workers routinely cross state lines to get to work.
- The largest employment destinations are D.C., Fairfax County and Montgomery County.
Top places these workers go to work
Source: U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — BEA regional GDP and personal income, most recent published year
Private-sector payroll data from ADP. It is a supplemental near-real-time indicator and does not replace BLS government employment statistics.
Source: ADP National Employment Report — Most recent monthly ADP National Employment Report
- 1U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (OOH, OEWS, Employment Projections, CES) — Primary source for occupation wages, outlook, projected openings, education and training.
- 2U.S. Census Bureau — American Community Survey — Primary source for income, educational attainment, labor force and demographic context by place.
- 3Census LEHD (LODES / OnTheMap) — Primary source for where workers live versus where they work, and local workforce flows.
- 4U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis — Primary source for regional GDP, industry contribution, compensation and personal income.
- 5ADP National Employment Report — Supplemental near-real-time private-sector employment and pay indicator. Not a replacement for BLS.
Figures describe groups of workers, not any one person. Where an official figure is not published for a category, this page says “Data unavailable for this category.” rather than estimating.
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