Pilot Census
← All certificates

Mechanics

Airframe and powerplant mechanics. Aircraft do not fly without them, and their replacement rate is the least-watched number in aviation.

Active in 2025
348,426
Change vs 2024
+10,571
Since 2015
+2%

History

2015: 342,5282016: 279,4352017: 286,2682018: 292,0022019: 301,0872020: 306,3012021: 313,0932022: 320,0422023: 329,1562024: 337,8552025: 348,426
2025 348,426
2015 · 342,5282025 · 348,426

Last month

61 mechanics appeared in the August 2026 releasable file that were not in July 2026. That file covers 47% of active pilots, and newly opted-in airmen look identical to newly certificated ones, so this is an upper bound on issuance rather than a count of it.

Other certificates