career advice?

so its about time i go learn me some skills and get the home i always wanted(one that looks like a junkyard in front,and i back for that matter) so i was wondering about some things. i was looking into wrenching on airplanes, seems fun enough. plus schools not that far away. any whys why nots you guys can think of? i was thinking about this because its what i want to learn, as opposed to going to another college and having to learn things im not interested in. i dunno, just wondering if anyone here has been employed as one or knows somethings about this stuff. thanks, alex.

An A & P license is a good thing - a long time ago that was the career plan until life intervened. However, in these days of economic downturn airlines are shrinking, not expanding, and there is less and less demand for those really good gigs, sadly.

Wrenching on aircraft can be fun. But, the higher paying jobs are in the big cities at service/repair sites and mech's are the first to go in cutbacks. Working at a factory pays well but again they are located around big cities and only have work when there are build contracts. Again cutbacks and assembly line work unless you work into flight test. The pay for smaller aircraft isn't as good as you would believe. The higher paying, more stable positions involve travel (probably overseas) and long hours. Sometimes these can lead to a stable job at the home location.

I have an A&P and Instructors certificate. Used it when I retired from the military. Now work as a civilian for the military doing logistics and tech verification, pays adequate and stable position. Still travel some but mostly short trips. If I wanted to make more $ I could travel more and spend most of my time overseas but I've been there, done that and enjoy what I do now.

Good luck in your decision!!!

Simple answer... find something else. If you're independently wealthy and just want something to do, then OK.

If you get into an airline be prepared to work 3rd shift for a long, long time and you'll be working holidays too. If you're within 50 miles of a school for aircraft mechanics your wages will be sig lower. You will also be exposed to some of the nastiest chemicals and environments.

I WANT a 3rd shift job and I loathe the holidays.

I wonder what school would cost.

I'll agree what everybody else has already said. I'm on my 24 year working on the big jets in Hotlanta. Not too many complaints. It's helped pay for a house and is currently helping my kids try to make it through college. We've traveled all over the globe and enjoyed several airports waiting for a standby seat to open up. Currently, I'm nervous and stressed out. I've looked into other jobs, mostly railroad related.

Schools. Depends, I spent only $3K for all my school and books at a community college in Utah. I know several people who've spent over $30K from rip off schools (Embry Riddel).

Embry-Riddle - good school for pilots and management. IMO, find someplace else for wrench bending. I taught A&P for a little while at a small trade school in TN. Enjoyed the job but just didn't pay enough for me to support my family. There are other schools with great programs. But in all honesty, the railroad thing mentioned above might be a better deal. Aircraft maintenance would be a good hobby. I did that for a time while I worked fulltime going logistics and went to school at night to finish my degree. just didn't have the time to keep up on it and when I got my degree I started in this car hobby (still cheaper than aviation as a hobby, flight time is expensive )

Why don't find a couple of people you wrench on planes and talk to them. You may find out that it is exactly what you want. You may learn something that will turn you off from it. I had a friend in college who was getting an engineering degree after spending 8 years as a mechanic and machinest. I ask him why the change. He told me he had a recurring nightmare that he forgot to get his torque wrench calibrated and he was facing $50,000 in fines from the FAA for bolts that he had tightened with it.