A&P Job Market???

[MarineGrunt]

Im thinking of getting my A&P as a backup to a flying job. What is the job market like? Is it decent pay?

Thanks in advance...

 

[avbug]

Generally speaking, you can be either a pilot, or a mechanic. But you probably won't be doing both. By that, I mean that you won't generally find employment doing both at the same time.

If you accept work as a mechanic, you'll find that your opportunities to fly become limited (with the exception of certain flying jobs that all but require a mechanic certificate: none of which are entry level jobs). If you are flying, your opportunities to turn wrenches are limited.

Just as a lot of pilots are out of work, so are aircraft mechanics.

Aircraft mechanics, in general, earn far less than auto mechanics. A lot of aircraft maintenance technicians turn to auto body or auto mechanics in favor of less liability, less headache, and better wages...and far better "job security" (whatever that means, these days).

You'll need your own tools in most cases (need is perhaps the wrong word, but it's highly favored). That's an added expense.

If you're looking for a backup in the event the bottom falls out of flying (which it seems to do every few years), remember that mechanic jobs are tied to the same safety line that pilot jobs are tied to. If an airplane is grounded, a company goes out of business, a corporate department downsizes, or the industry otherwise scales back, mechanics get cut just like pilots do.

That said, I've worked in a repair station, as a mechanic and inspector, independently, as a director of maintenance, shop flunkie, and field mechanic all while serving as a pilot. In some cases, the job wouldn't have become available without the mechanic certificate.

However, in most cases, I've found that being a mechanic while being a pilot has also been a restrictive thing: you may find that you do less flying and spend more time in the shop.

For backup purposes, keeping current on maintenance regulations, proceedures, and trends is important, and not necessarily easy. Even simple skills like riveting, electrical troublshooting (not necessarily simple), or painting slip, just like any unused skill. Shops look for experience, just like an employer of a pilot looks for experience. Some shops look for inexperience, too, in order to pay less.

The bottom line is that it's not a bad thing to have, but it's a lot of work to get, and as all things in aviation go, there are no gaurantees.