Aerodynamics engineer to aerospace engineering technician
An aerodynamics engineer already meets 49% of what the aerospace engineering technician role asks for. The move turns on 4 required skills not yet in the profile.
56.1/ 100
1 How much of what an aerospace engineering technician is expected to do is already part of an aerodynamics engineer’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the aerospace engineering technician role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An aerospace engineering technician role treats 14 of its required skills as things an aerodynamics engineer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- CAE software
- ICT software specifications
- adjust engineering designs
- aircraft mechanics
- engineering principles
- engineering processes
What stands in the way is 4 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 15 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An aerospace engineering technician role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of an aerodynamics engineer background worth leading with.
- already held analyse stress resistance of products information skills
- already held aircraft mechanics engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held material mechanics engineering, manufacturing and construction
- already held multimedia systems arts and humanities
- already held ICT software specifications information and communication technologies (icts)
- already held CAE software information and communication technologies (icts)
All 15 carried skills, including the 14 the aerospace engineering technician role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 35 missing skills fall into 13 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn ensure aircraft compliance with regulation required
- still to learn follow industry codes of practice for aviation safety required
- optional, not held guarantee customer satisfaction optional
- optional, not held manage health and safety standards optional
- optional, not held oversee quality control optional
- still to learn troubleshoot required
- optional, not held order supplies optional
- optional, not held write inspection reports optional
- optional, not held write stress-strain analysis reports optional
- still to learn common aviation safety regulations required
- optional, not held disassemble engines optional
- optional, not held re-assemble engines optional
- optional, not held calibrate electronic instruments optional
- optional, not held disassemble equipment optional
- optional, not held operate precision measuring equipment optional
- optional, not held use testing equipment optional
- optional, not held analyse production processes for improvement optional
- optional, not held assess operating cost optional
- optional, not held inspect data optional
- optional, not held perform physical stress tests on models optional
- optional, not held record test data optional
- optional, not held ensure equipment availability optional
- optional, not held follow production schedule optional
- optional, not held manage supplies optional
- optional, not held plan manufacturing processes optional
7 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an aerospace engineering technician role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 common aviation safety regulations study this
- 02 ensure aircraft compliance with regulation practise this
- 03 follow industry codes of practice for aviation safety practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 15 skills that carry over
- already held CAE software knowledge
- already held ICT software specifications knowledge
- already held adjust engineering designs skill
- already held aircraft mechanics knowledge
- already held engineering principles knowledge
- already held engineering processes knowledge
- already held execute analytical mathematical calculations skill
- already held liaise with engineers skill
- already held material mechanics knowledge
- already held mathematics knowledge
- already held mechanics knowledge
- already held multimedia systems knowledge
- already held physics knowledge
- already held read engineering drawings skill
- already held analyse stress resistance of products skill
The 7 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held guidance, navigation and control optional
- optional, not held unmanned air systems optional
- optional, not held fluid mechanics optional
- optional, not held defense system optional
- optional, not held stealth technology optional
- optional, not held perform test run optional
- optional, not held position engine on test stand optional
- optional, not held CAD software optional
- optional, not held synthetic natural environment optional
- optional, not held use CAD software optional
31 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held defense system optional
- optional, not held disassemble engines optional
- optional, not held guarantee customer satisfaction optional
- optional, not held guidance, navigation and control optional
- optional, not held position engine on test stand optional
- optional, not held re-assemble engines optional
- optional, not held stealth technology optional
- optional, not held synthetic natural environment optional
- optional, not held unmanned air systems optional
- optional, not held CAD software optional
- optional, not held analyse production processes for improvement optional
- optional, not held assess operating cost optional
- optional, not held calibrate electronic instruments optional
- optional, not held disassemble equipment optional
- optional, not held ensure equipment availability optional
- optional, not held fluid mechanics optional
- optional, not held follow production schedule optional
- optional, not held inspect data optional
- optional, not held manage health and safety standards optional
- optional, not held manage supplies optional
- optional, not held operate precision measuring equipment optional
- optional, not held order supplies optional
- optional, not held oversee quality control optional
- optional, not held perform physical stress tests on models optional
- optional, not held perform test run optional
- optional, not held plan manufacturing processes optional
- optional, not held record test data optional
- optional, not held use CAD software optional
- optional, not held use testing equipment optional
- optional, not held write inspection reports optional
- optional, not held write stress-strain analysis reports optional
20 held skills the aerospace engineering technician role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role aerodynamics knowledge
- not needed by the target role approve engineering design skill
- not needed by the target role bicycle mechanics knowledge
- not needed by the target role computer simulation knowledge
- not needed by the target role conduct performance tests skill
- not needed by the target role determine production feasibility skill
- not needed by the target role engine components knowledge
- not needed by the target role evaluate engine performance skill
- not needed by the target role examine engineering principles skill
- not needed by the target role mechanical engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role mechanics of motor vehicles knowledge
- not needed by the target role mechanics of trains knowledge
- not needed by the target role mechanics of vessels knowledge
- not needed by the target role operation of different engines knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform scientific research skill
- not needed by the target role scientific research methodology knowledge
- not needed by the target role technical drawings knowledge
- not needed by the target role thermodynamics knowledge
- not needed by the target role use technical documentation skill
- not needed by the target role use technical drawing software skill
8 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn common aviation safety regulations required
- optional, not held defense system optional
- optional, not held guidance, navigation and control optional
- optional, not held stealth technology optional
- optional, not held synthetic natural environment optional
- optional, not held unmanned air systems optional
- optional, not held CAD software optional
- optional, not held fluid mechanics optional
Common questions about this move
Can an aerodynamics engineer become an aerospace engineering technician?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. An aerodynamics engineer already covers 49% of what an aerospace engineering technician is expected to do: 15 skills carry over, 14 of which the aerospace engineering technician role treats as required.
What skills does an aerodynamics engineer need to become an aerospace engineering technician?
4 required skills are missing, plus 31 optional ones. They fall into 13 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by assisting and caring. The single most important is common aviation safety regulations.
How hard is the move from aerodynamics engineer to aerospace engineering technician?
Its learning distance is 56.1 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.