Diesel engine mechanic to aircraft gas turbine engine overhaul technician
A diesel engine mechanic already meets 37% of what the aircraft gas turbine engine overhaul technician role asks for. The move turns on 11 required skills not yet in the profile.
63.5/ 100
1 How much of what an aircraft gas turbine engine overhaul technician is expected to do is already part of a diesel engine mechanic’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 aircraft gas turbine engine overhaul technician role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An aircraft gas turbine engine overhaul technician role treats 9 of its required skills as things a diesel engine mechanic already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- adjust tightness of engine parts
- aircraft mechanics
- bolt engine parts
- disassemble engines
- engine components
- mechanics
What stands in the way is 11 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 12 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An aircraft gas turbine engine overhaul technician role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a diesel engine mechanic background worth leading with.
- already held adjust tightness of engine parts constructing
- already held bolt engine parts working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held repair engines working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held diagnose defective engines information skills
- already held re-assemble engines working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held evaluate engine performance information skills
All 12 carried skills, including the 9 the aircraft gas turbine engine overhaul technician role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 28 missing skills fall into 8 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 read engineering drawings required
- still to learn read standard blueprints required
- still to learn recognise signs of corrosion required
- still to learn use technical documentation required
- optional, not held write records for repairs optional
- optional, not held keep records of work progress optional
- optional, not held record test data optional
- still to learn align components required
- still to learn fasten components required
- still to learn use power tools required
- optional, not held position engine on test stand optional
- optional, not held operate handheld riveting equipment optional
- still to learn common aviation safety regulations required
- still to learn quality standards required
- still to learn troubleshoot required
- optional, not held liaise with engineers optional
- still to learn apply health and safety standards required
- optional, not held engineering processes optional
- optional, not held electromechanics optional
- optional, not held engineering principles optional
- optional, not held rivet types optional
2 further areas in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an aircraft gas turbine engine overhaul 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 align components practise this
- 03 apply health and safety standards 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 12 skills that carry over
- already held adjust tightness of engine parts skill
- already held aircraft mechanics knowledge
- already held bolt engine parts skill
- already held disassemble engines skill
- already held engine components knowledge
- already held mechanics knowledge
- already held operation of different engines knowledge
- already held re-assemble engines skill
- already held wear appropriate protective gear skill
- already held diagnose defective engines skill
- already held evaluate engine performance skill
- already held repair engines skill
The 2 learning areas not shown above
- optional, not held operate lifting equipment optional
- optional, not held operate precision measuring equipment optional
- optional, not held tend riveting machine optional
- optional, not held use testing equipment optional
- optional, not held conduct performance tests optional
- optional, not held operate soldering equipment optional
- optional, not held operate welding equipment optional
17 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held engineering processes optional
- optional, not held position engine on test stand optional
- optional, not held write records for repairs optional
- optional, not held conduct performance tests optional
- optional, not held electromechanics optional
- optional, not held engineering principles optional
- optional, not held keep records of work progress optional
- optional, not held liaise with engineers optional
- optional, not held operate handheld riveting equipment optional
- optional, not held operate lifting equipment optional
- optional, not held operate precision measuring equipment optional
- optional, not held operate soldering equipment optional
- optional, not held operate welding equipment optional
- optional, not held record test data optional
- optional, not held rivet types optional
- optional, not held tend riveting machine optional
- optional, not held use testing equipment optional
30 held skills the aircraft gas turbine engine overhaul technician role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role automotive diagnostic equipment knowledge
- not needed by the target role check train engines skill
- not needed by the target role clean vehicle engine skill
- not needed by the target role comply with factory specifications in engine repair skill
- not needed by the target role comply with legal regulations skill
- not needed by the target role create solutions to problems skill
- not needed by the target role execute working instructions skill
- not needed by the target role health and safety measures in transportation knowledge
- not needed by the target role hydraulics knowledge
- not needed by the target role identify customer's needs skill
- not needed by the target role install transport equipment engines skill
- not needed by the target role issue sales invoices skill
- not needed by the target role lubricate engines skill
- not needed by the target role maintain electrical engines skill
- not needed by the target role maintain vessel engine room skill
- not needed by the target role maintain work area cleanliness skill
- 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 trolley buses knowledge
- not needed by the target role mechanics of vessels knowledge
- not needed by the target role perform maintenance on locomotives skill
- not needed by the target role perform manual work autonomously skill
- not needed by the target role perform routine maintenance on railway engines skill
- not needed by the target role physics knowledge
- not needed by the target role principles of combustion engines knowledge
- not needed by the target role principles of mechanical engineering knowledge
- not needed by the target role provide customer information related to repairs skill
- not needed by the target role rail infrastructure knowledge
- not needed by the target role use automotive diagnostic equipment skill
- not needed by the target role use traditional toolbox tools skill
6 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
- still to learn quality standards required
- optional, not held engineering processes optional
- optional, not held electromechanics optional
- optional, not held engineering principles optional
- optional, not held rivet types optional
Other moves recorded from diesel engine mechanic
Common questions about this move
Can a diesel engine mechanic become an aircraft gas turbine engine overhaul technician?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A diesel engine mechanic already covers 37% of what an aircraft gas turbine engine overhaul technician is expected to do: 12 skills carry over, 9 of which the aircraft gas turbine engine overhaul technician role treats as required.
What skills does a diesel engine mechanic need to become an aircraft gas turbine engine overhaul technician?
11 required skills are missing, plus 17 optional ones. They fall into 8 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by information skills. The single most important is common aviation safety regulations.
How hard is the move from diesel engine mechanic to aircraft gas turbine engine overhaul technician?
Its learning distance is 63.5 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.