If you began your life as a military aircraft mechanic, when you left the military and entered the civilian world, did you have any "military equivalency" (if that's the proper term) that allowed you to get an FAA license based on your military experience without lots of school and testing ?
Question for Former Military Aircraft Mechanics
- Thread starter bafanguy
- Start date
Minuteman
Moⅾerator
Your FSDO can review documentation of your activity in the military (with documentation) and sign-off as meeting the practical experience requirement to sit for testing.
Ref AC65-30B, section 11.6 and Appendix A.
Ref AC65-30B, section 11.6 and Appendix A.
Wardogg
Meat Popsicle
20 years of military aircraft maint here. When I got out I went to the FAA and they throughly went through my records. I showed enough training and competence that I was given an approval to go take the written and practical tests without further instruction. And that’s as far as the FAA will just “give” you as far as sign offs.
What I didn’t know and what the examiner didn’t tell me was all that knowledge I brought wasn’t going to get me through those exams. Unless you are working on airplanes that need magnetos timed or cloth wings repaired you’re going to be as lost in the sauce as I was.
That said there are crash courses that get you through the tests in a few days but pick up a written test exam practice book and find out how much you may or may not know. But you will need that sign off to take those tests.
flyinggreasemnky
Well-Known Member
I wasn't in the military but I did go to A&P school with quite a few. Many of the Air Force guys were qualified to take the tests for one of the licenses but not the other (just the Airframe or Powerplant). A lot of Air Force mechanics are so specialized that you won't get the crossover experience to qualify for both. My lab partner was a Pneudraulics tech so only qualified for the Airframe. He wanted to be more prepared so he used the GI Bill to take the full course (19 months) with me.
ERAU has classes that you can take while still in so that you can separate with your full A&P in hand. The majority of civilian places will want you to have both the A&P unless you work under a repair station license.
ERAU has classes that you can take while still in so that you can separate with your full A&P in hand. The majority of civilian places will want you to have both the A&P unless you work under a repair station license.