Aircraft Maintenance Technician

Aircraft Maintenance Technician (AMT), refers to a licensed qualification for carrying out aircraft maintenance. Aircraft Maintenance Technicians (AMTs) inspect and perform or supervise maintenance, preventive maintenance, and alteration of aircraft and aircraft systems.

In the USA, for a person who holds a mechanic certificate issued by the Federal Aviation Administration; the rules for certification, and for certificate-holders, are detailed in Subpart D of Part 65 of the Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs), which are part of Title 14 of the Code of Federal Regulations. The US licensed qualification is sometimes referred to by the FAA as the Aviation Maintenance Technician and is commonly referred to as the Airframe and Powerplant (A&P).

In many countries the equivalent license to an AMT is the Aircraft Maintenance Engineer (AME).

The general requirements for eligibility for a mechanic certificate include the following:

The required tests include, first, a set of knowledge tests; these are followed by a practical test, which includes an oral examination component, and which is administered by a Designated Mechanic Examiner (DME).

A person who fulfills the necessary requirements is issued a mechanic certificate with either an airframe or powerplant rating, or both. It is these ratings which together account for the common practice of referring to mechanics as "A&Ps." Until 1952, instead of the Powerplant rating, an Engine rating was issued, so the abbreviation "A&E" may appear in older documents.

Eligibility for the mechanic tests depends on the applicant's ability to document their knowledge of required subject matter and ability to perform maintenance tasks. The FAA recognizes two ways of demonstrating the needed knowledge and skills: Practical experience or completion of a training program at a school certificated under Part 147 of the FARs.

The AMTSociety presents the Maintenance Skills Competition annually, which recognizes top AMT teams across all aviation including commercial and military.

Applicants for a Mechanic certificate with a single rating—either airframe or powerplant—and who base their application on practical experience must demonstrate 18 months of work experience applicable to the chosen rating. Those applying for both ratings must show a total of 30 months of applicable experience. Many military-trained aircraft mechanics are eligible to use their work experience as the basis for an application for a civilian mechanic certificate.

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