Arizona·Installation, Maintenance, and Repair Occupations·SOC 49-3011

Best programs to become an aircraft mechanic in Arizona

4 Arizona schools offer programs that train aircraft mechanics and service technicians, graduating 361 people a year. Aircraft mechanics and service technicians in Arizona earn a median of $75,300 across about 5,670 jobs (BLS OEWS May 2025).

You do not need a college degree to become an aircraft mechanic. The fields of study that lead most directly to this job in Arizona are Airframe Mechanics and Aircraft Maintenance Technology/Technician, as well as Aircraft Powerplant Technology/Technician (IPEDS completions). BLS lists a postsecondary nondegree award (a certificate) as the typical entry-level education.

Diagnose, adjust, repair, or overhaul aircraft engines and assemblies, such as hydraulic and pneumatic.

Also calledAircraft MechanicAircraft Technician (Aircraft Tech)Airframe and Powerplant Mechanic (A and P Mechanic)Aircraft Maintenance Technician (Aircraft Maintenance Tech)EnginemanJet MechanicAircraft WorkerAirplane Rigger
Graduates / yr
361
in Arizona
Median pay · Arizona
$75,300
BLS OEWS May 2025
Jobs in state
5,670
people employed
Schools
4
with a feeder program
Avg graduation rate
43%
across those schools
Median net price
$27,877
per year, IPEDS

2 programs in Arizona that lead to this job

Ranked by graduates per year in Arizona (IPEDS completions). Graduate earnings and debt are national College Scorecard figures reported at the 4-digit CIP level, so specializations within one field share a figure. Each program also links to its own Arizona page.

Degree programs that lead to this occupation, ranked by graduates per year
#ProgramGraduates / yrShare of pipelineSchoolsGrad earnings (1 yr)Median debt
1
CIP 47.0607In Arizona →
214
59.3%
4$37,089$11,790
2
CIP 47.0608In Arizona →
147
40.7%
2$37,089$11,790

Top 4 schools in Arizona

Ranked by graduates per year into this job. Graduate earnings are reported for 2 of the 4 schools in this state.

Schools ranked by graduates per year into this occupation
#SchoolGraduates / yrTop feeder programGrad earnings (1 yr)Grad rateNet priceAcceptance
1Pima Community College
Tucson, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
194Airframe Mechanics and Aircraft Maintenance Technology/Technician$37,82628%——
2Chandler - Gilbert Community College
Chandler, AZ Public · 2 feeder programs
120Airframe Mechanics and Aircraft Maintenance Technology/Technician—30%——
3Universal Technical Institute of Arizona Inc
Avondale, AZ Private for-profit · 1 feeder program
34Airframe Mechanics and Aircraft Maintenance Technology/Technician$39,45870%$27,877—
4Western Maricopa Education Center
Glendale, AZ Public · 1 feeder program
13Airframe Mechanics and Aircraft Maintenance Technology/Technician————

All 4 schools in Arizona

Every school in Arizona with a program that feeds this job, ordered by graduates per year. Earnings are shown for the ranked schools above; open a school profile for the rest.

All schools in Arizona that feed this occupation
SchoolCityControlGraduates / yrFeeder programs
Pima Community CollegeTucsonPublic1942
Chandler - Gilbert Community CollegeChandlerPublic1202
Universal Technical Institute of Arizona IncAvondalePrivate for-profit341
Western Maricopa Education CenterGlendalePublic131

Fields of study in Arizona that lead to this job

Grouped at the 4-digit CIP level. Numbers are graduates per year in this state.

What aircraft mechanics and service technicians earn in Arizona

What people already working in this job earn (BLS OEWS May 2025). Not graduate earnings.

Median annual in Arizona
$75,300
Mean annual
$76,810
Jobs in state
5,670
What the range looks like
10th pct$48,290Median$75,30090th pct$121,480
Versus the national median
-5.7%

U.S. median $79,870. Arizona pays below the national figure.

Job concentration
1.97×

Concentrated here: Arizona employs more of this job per worker than the U.S. average.

Metro areas in Arizona

Phoenix-Mesa-Chandler, AZ
$76,610median
3,810 jobs
Yuma, AZ
$81,450median
110 jobs
Tucson, AZ
$73,340median
1,390 jobs
Flagstaff, AZ
$65,560median
40 jobs
Lake Havasu City-Kingman, AZ
$59,270median
60 jobs

Job outlook

Bureau of Labor Statistics Employment Projections, 2024 to 2034.

Projected growth 2024–34
+4.0%
About as fast as average
Openings per year
11,300
new jobs plus replacements
Employment change
5,600
139,400 → 145,000
Typical entry education
Postsecondary nondegree award

Growth and openings are national. The Bureau of Labor Statistics does not publish employment projections at state level, so these figures describe the occupation across the whole U.S., not this state alone.

How to get in

The full skills and day-to-day breakdown lives on the national Aircraft Mechanics and Service Technicians page.

How to become an aircraft mechanic

Typical entry education
Postsecondary nondegree award

The same job in other states

Where else this occupation employs the most people, and what it pays there.

Related careers in Arizona

Every major mapped to this job

The official federal mapping behind the rankings above.

All 3 majors mapped to Aircraft Mechanics and Service Technicians3 of them graduated someone in the latest IPEDS year. NCES CIP 2020 → SOC 2018 crosswalk.+
  • 01.0205Agricultural Mechanics and Equipment/Machine Technology/Technician
  • 47.0607Airframe Mechanics and Aircraft Maintenance Technology/Technician
  • 47.0608Aircraft Powerplant Technology/Technician

Common questions

Answers for people weighing aircraft mechanics and service technicians programs in Arizona.

What degree do you need to become an aircraft mechanic?+

You do not need a college degree to become an aircraft mechanic. The fields of study that lead most directly to this job in Arizona are Airframe Mechanics and Aircraft Maintenance Technology/Technician, as well as Aircraft Powerplant Technology/Technician (IPEDS completions). BLS lists a postsecondary nondegree award (a certificate) as the typical entry-level education.

Which college majors lead to becoming an aircraft mechanic?+

The fields of study that lead most directly to this job in Arizona are Airframe Mechanics and Aircraft Maintenance Technology/Technician, as well as Aircraft Powerplant Technology/Technician (IPEDS completions). In all, 2 feeder programs graduate about 361 people a year in Arizona (IPEDS completions).

How much do aircraft mechanics and service technicians earn in Arizona?+

The median is $75,300 a year (BLS OEWS May 2025). That is 5.7% below the U.S. median of $79,870. This is pay for people already working in the occupation, not the same thing as graduate earnings one year after finishing a degree.

Is demand for aircraft mechanics and service technicians growing?+

BLS projects a +4.0% change in employment between 2024 and 2034, about as fast as average, with roughly 11,300 openings a year nationally once retirements and job changes are counted.

How many schools offer programs for this career in Arizona?+

4 institutions in Arizona reported graduates from at least one of the 2 programs that feed this occupation in IPEDS 2024-25. Rankings on this page use graduates per year, because the federal data publishes no enrollment count by program.

What other job titles do aircraft mechanics and service technicians work under?+

Employers advertise this work under many names. O*NET records Aircraft Mechanic, Aircraft Technician (Aircraft Tech), Airframe and Powerplant Mechanic (A and P Mechanic), Aircraft Maintenance Technician (Aircraft Maintenance Tech) among the most commonly reported, all mapping to SOC 49-3011.

Aircraft Mechanics and Service Technicians in other statesCaliforniaFloridaTexasGeorgiaOklahomaIllinoisKansasKentucky

About the data on this page

Rankings use IPEDS completions 2024–25, degrees awarded per year. That is the closest federal measure of how many people a program puts into a career, because no federal dataset publishes enrollment by program. Wages and employment come from BLS OEWS May 2025, growth and openings from BLS Employment Projections 2024-34, and which majors lead to which jobs from the NCES CIP 2020 to SOC 2018 crosswalk. Occupation descriptions, tasks, skills and tools are O*NET 30.3 (CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor/ETA).

  • BLS Occupational Employment & Wage Statistics

    May 2025

    Wages, employment counts, location quotients and metro breakdowns.

  • BLS Employment Projections

    2024–34

    Projected growth, annual openings and typical entry-level education.

  • IPEDS Completions

    2024-25 (provisional)

    Graduates per year by program and institution — the ranking metric.

  • College Scorecard, Field of Study

    2020-21 cohorts

    Median graduate earnings one year after completion, and median debt.

  • Census Post-Secondary Employment Outcomes

    latest available

    Graduate earnings 1/5/10 years out, where the state participates.

  • NCES CIP 2020 and the CIP-to-SOC 2018 crosswalk

    CIP 2020 / SOC 2018

    Which college programs officially lead to this occupation.

  • O*NET Database 30.3

    30.3

    Tasks, skills, knowledge, tools, job zone and alternate job titles.

    Official source →CC BY 4.0, U.S. Department of Labor / ETA

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