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Celebrating Aviation Maintenance Technicians 

May 24, 2023

May 24 is Aviation Maintenance Technician (AMT) Day — a day to recognize mechanics who work day in and day out to make every aspect of aviation work smoothly and safely. When you fly, you may not think of AMTs (also called mechanics) because they are behind the scenes most of the time, but simply put, our planes would not fly without them!  Safety is always the top priority of AMTs at every turn!

Aviation Maintenance Technician Day is celebrated on May 24^th because that is the birthdate of Charles E. Taylor, who was an engine builder and served as mechanic to the Wright brothers. Taylor was born 155 years ago, but now we honor his legacy and the profession that originated with his work.

Today, AMTs are responsible for maintaining and repairing aircraft. Duties range from conducting scheduled inspections to troubleshooting, repair and general maintenance of these increasingly high-tech, complicated machines. AMTs are in high-demand and must complete highly specialized training and obtain FAA certification to ensure they possess the knowledge and skill to keep airplanes safely flying.

Each year, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) presents the Charles E. Taylor “Master Mechanic” Award, which recognizes the lifetime accomplishments of senior mechanics who have 50 or more years of civil and military aviation maintenance experience. Recent honorees include the following AMTs from our member airlines:

With their partner professionals, AMTs assure that the U.S. airlines work to provide the safest mode of transportation in the world, transporting more than 2 million passengers and 65,000 tons of cargo to worldwide destinations every day.

To learn more about how to become an FAA-certificated AMT, click here for more general information, testing and other requirements necessary to chart this career path.

Also, learn more about how U.S. airlines’ efforts to hire AMTs at https://airlines.org/jobs