I was wondering how you like being an A&P? Do people make a career out of the regionals or does everyone want to go to the majors? Is pay better then a pilot to start?
The civilian guys that work in my hanger on our UH60's make upwards of $20 an hour and I think they regularly get overtime. They don't have A&P's either. Most of them just have former military experience.
If you want to make good money as a mechaninc look into working on heavy trucks. But stay far away from aviation.
There was a guy in my class at A&P school who had been makeing 18-20/hr as a desiel engine mechanic. He seemed to expect to make more than that when he started working on airplanes. I wished him luck.
Pay for mechanics tops out at 19/hr at the company I work for.
Did I mention that I only plan on working here untill my wife graduates Medical School and is a doctor?
Skywest starting pay for an A&P mechanic is $13.XX/hr. Dollar raise every year to ten. $24.35 @ 10 years, non-union. Top-out @ $28.45/hr with 19 years.
Majors will typically start around $18-20/hr. Top out around $28-30/hr in a time period of 5-7 years.
Heres the big 6:
United - $28.89/hr Northwest - $36.39/hr
Continental - $32.21/hr American - $31.57/hr Delta - $31.46/hr (Non-union) US Airways - $25.28/hr
At the rate the wages are dropping, most majors will be using US Airways as models for rates. I also wouldn't be surprised to see pay at the regionals dropping...
Honestly if you love aviation I would do one thing first and that is get a college degree. If you have the aptitude get one in aeronautical engineer or electrical engineering. If you can't handle the math and science then just get a degree. Once you have the degree then pursue a career in aviation. You can always get a job while you are going to school at a local airport, where you can hang out with the old mechanics and pilots. And by hanging out with these guys you will get a feel for the jobs and see if it is what you want. The bottom line is…life is so much easier with a degree.
If pay is your primary motivation, I agree with the others here that some other mechanic job would be better. You can, however make a decent living as an A&P. I've always gotten a lot of satisfaction out of seeing the A/C I inspect/repair out flying around.
A bunch of guys I went to school went towards the GA side and started out at about $20/hr and were making closer to $25/hr a year later. Personally, I love where I'm at and would probably tell the mainlines "thanks but no thanks". Perhaps in a few years when aviation gets back on it's feet and layoffs become a thing of the past. I guess that's the tradeoff, go to the majors and make pretty good $$ but sweat your job every time the price oil goes up, or go to the regionals where you won't get rich but will have a sense of job security.
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