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Avionics Technicians

Install, inspect, test, adjust, or repair avionics equipment, such as radar, radio, navigation, and missile control systems in aircraft or space vehicles.
  • Summary

  • Details

  • Work Activities

    • Operate computer-aided drafting and design applications to design avionics system modifications.
    • Adjust, repair, or replace malfunctioning components or assemblies, using hand tools or soldering irons.
    • Install electrical and electronic components, assemblies, and systems in aircraft, using hand tools, power tools, or soldering irons.
    • Coordinate work with that of engineers, technicians, and other aircraft maintenance personnel.
    • Connect components to assemblies such as radio systems, instruments, magnetos, inverters, and in-flight refueling systems, using hand tools and soldering irons.
    • Interpret flight test data to diagnose malfunctions and systemic performance problems.
    • Adjust, repair, or replace malfunctioning components or assemblies, using hand tools or soldering irons.
    • Set up and operate ground support and test equipment to perform functional flight tests of electrical and electronic systems.
    • Lay out installation of aircraft assemblies and systems, following documentation such as blueprints, manuals, and wiring diagrams.
    • Keep records of maintenance and repair work.
    • Test and troubleshoot instruments, components, and assemblies, using circuit testers, oscilloscopes, or voltmeters.
    • Adjust, repair, or replace malfunctioning components or assemblies, using hand tools or soldering irons.
    • Test and troubleshoot instruments, components, and assemblies, using circuit testers, oscilloscopes, or voltmeters.
    • Assemble components such as switches, electrical controls, and junction boxes, using hand tools or soldering irons.
    • Fabricate parts and test aids as required.
    • Assemble prototypes or models of circuits, instruments, and systems for use in testing.

    Skills

    • Persuasion
      • Talking people into changing their minds or their behavior.
    • Negotiation
      • Bringing people together to solve differences.
    • Quality Control Analysis
      • Testing how well a product or service works.
    • Technology Design
      • Making equipment and technology useful for customers.
    • Operation and Control
      • Using equipment or systems.
    • Time Management
      • Managing your time and the time of other people.
    • Management of Financial Resources
      • Making spending decisions and keeping track of what is spent.
    • Coordination
      • Changing what is done based on other people's actions.
    • Reading Comprehension
      • Reading work-related information.
    • Active Listening
      • Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions.
    • Writing
      • Writing things for co-workers or customers.
    • Speaking
      • Talking to others.
    • Instructing
      • Teaching people how to do something.
    • Installation
      • Installing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs.
    • Social Perceptiveness
      • Understanding people's reactions.
    • Active Learning
      • Figuring out how to use new ideas or things.
    • Operations Monitoring
      • Watching gauges, dials, or display screens to make sure a machine is working.
    • Judgment and Decision Making
      • Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one.
    • Repairing
      • Repairing machines or systems using the right tools.
    • Equipment Maintenance
      • Planning and doing the basic maintenance on equipment.
    • Monitoring
      • Keeping track of how well people and/or groups are doing in order to make improvements.
    • Complex Problem Solving
      • Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it.
    • Programming
      • Writing computer programs.
    • Mathematics
      • Using math to solve problems.
    • Operations Analysis
      • Figuring out what a product or service needs to be able to do.
    • Systems Evaluation
      • Measuring how well a system is working and how to improve it.
    • Science
      • Using scientific rules and strategies to solve problems.
    • Management of Personnel Resources
      • Selecting and managing the best workers for a job.
    • Learning Strategies
      • Using the best training or teaching strategies for learning new things.
    • Service Orientation
      • Looking for ways to help people.
    • Equipment Selection
      • Deciding what kind of tools and equipment are needed to do a job.
    • Troubleshooting
      • Figuring out what is causing equipment, machines, wiring, or computer programs to not work.
    • Management of Material Resources
      • Managing equipment and materials.
    • Critical Thinking
      • Thinking about the pros and cons of different ways to solve a problem.
    • Systems Analysis
      • Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it.

    Abilities

    • Oral Expression
      • Communicating by speaking.
    • Response Orientation
      • Quickly deciding if you should move your hand, foot, or other body part.
    • Glare Sensitivity
      • Seeing something even if there is a glare or very bright light.
    • Dynamic Strength
      • Exercising for a long time without your muscles getting tired.
    • Night Vision
      • Seeing at night or under low light.
    • Peripheral Vision
      • Seeing something to your side when your are looking ahead.
    • Dynamic Flexibility
      • Quickly and repeatedly bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching out with your body, arms, and/or legs.
    • Visual Color Discrimination
      • Noticing the difference between colors, including shades and brightness.
    • Hearing Sensitivity
      • Telling the difference between sounds.
    • Problem Sensitivity
      • Noticing when problems happen.
    • Inductive Reasoning
      • Making general rules or coming up with answers from lots of detailed information.
    • Category Flexibility
      • Grouping things in different ways.
    • Number Facility
      • Adding, subtracting, multiplying, or dividing.
    • Memorization
      • Remembering words, numbers, pictures, or steps.
    • Multilimb Coordination
      • Using your arms and/or legs together while sitting, standing, or lying down.
    • Stamina
      • Exercising for a long time without getting out of breath.
    • Depth Perception
      • Deciding which thing is closer or farther away from you, or deciding how far away it is from you.
    • Flexibility of Closure
      • Seeing hidden patterns.
    • Oral Comprehension
      • Listening and understanding what people say.
    • Information Ordering
      • Ordering or arranging things.
    • Fluency of Ideas
      • Coming up with lots of ideas.
    • Spatial Orientation
      • Knowing where things are around you.
    • Static Strength
      • Lifting, pushing, pulling, or carrying.
    • Speech Clarity
      • Speaking clearly.
    • Speed of Limb Movement
      • Quickly moving your arms and legs.
    • Near Vision
      • Seeing details up close.
    • Speech Recognition
      • Recognizing spoken words.
    • Explosive Strength
      • Jumping, sprinting, or throwing something.
    • Perceptual Speed
      • Quickly comparing groups of letters, numbers, pictures, or other things.
    • Auditory Attention
      • Paying attention to one sound while there are other distracting sounds.
    • Control Precision
      • Quickly changing the controls of a machine, car, truck or boat.
    • Wrist-Finger Speed
      • Making fast, simple, repeated movements of your fingers, hands, and wrists.
    • Trunk Strength
      • Using your lower back and stomach.
    • Written Expression
      • Communicating by writing.
    • Speed of Closure
      • Quickly knowing what you are looking at.
    • Deductive Reasoning
      • Using rules to solve problems.
    • Mathematical Reasoning
      • Choosing the right type of math to solve a problem.
    • Visualization
      • Imagining how something will look after it is moved around or changed.
    • Arm-Hand Steadiness
      • Keeping your arm or hand steady.
    • Extent Flexibility
      • Bending, stretching, twisting, or reaching with your body, arms, and/or legs.
    • Far Vision
      • Seeing details that are far away.
    • Selective Attention
      • Paying attention to something without being distracted.
    • Gross Body Equilibrium
      • Keeping your balance or staying upright.
    • Sound Localization
      • Noticing the direction that a sound came from.
    • Rate Control
      • Changing when and how fast you move based on how something else is moving.
    • Written Comprehension
      • Reading and understanding what is written.
    • Originality
      • Creating new and original ideas.
    • Finger Dexterity
      • Putting together small parts with your fingers.
    • Reaction Time
      • Quickly moving your hand, finger, or foot based on a sound, light, picture or other command.
    • Gross Body Coordination
      • Moving your arms, legs, and mid-section together while your whole body is moving.
    • Time Sharing
      • Doing two or more things at the same time.
    • Manual Dexterity
      • Holding or moving items with your hands.

    Knowledge

    • Computers and Electronics
      • Knowledge of circuit boards, processors, chips, electronic equipment, and computer hardware and software, including applications and programming.
    • Economics and Accounting
      • Knowledge of economic and accounting principles and practices, the financial markets, banking, and the analysis and reporting of financial data.
    • Engineering and Technology
      • Knowledge of the practical application of engineering science and technology. This includes applying principles, techniques, procedures, and equipment to the design and production of various goods and services.
    • Sociology and Anthropology
      • Knowledge of group behavior and dynamics, societal trends and influences, human migrations, ethnicity, cultures, and their history and origins.
    • Geography
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for describing the features of land, sea, and air masses, including their physical characteristics, locations, interrelationships, and distribution of plant, animal, and human life.
    • Education and Training
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
    • Fine Arts
      • Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
    • Administrative
      • Knowledge of administrative and office procedures and systems such as word processing, managing files and records, stenography and transcription, designing forms, and workplace terminology.
    • Biology
      • Knowledge of plant and animal organisms, their tissues, cells, functions, interdependencies, and interactions with each other and the environment.
    • Mathematics
      • Knowledge of arithmetic, algebra, geometry, calculus, statistics, and their applications.
    • Transportation
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for moving people or goods by air, rail, sea, or road, including the relative costs and benefits.
    • Medicine and Dentistry
      • Knowledge of the information and techniques needed to diagnose and treat human injuries, diseases, and deformities. This includes symptoms, treatment alternatives, drug properties and interactions, and preventive health-care measures.
    • Philosophy and Theology
      • Knowledge of different philosophical systems and religions. This includes their basic principles, values, ethics, ways of thinking, customs, practices, and their impact on human culture.
    • Telecommunications
      • Knowledge of transmission, broadcasting, switching, control, and operation of telecommunications systems.
    • Food Production
      • Knowledge of techniques and equipment for planting, growing, and harvesting food products (both plant and animal) for consumption, including storage/handling techniques.
    • Sales and Marketing
      • Knowledge of principles and methods for showing, promoting, and selling products or services. This includes marketing strategy and tactics, product demonstration, sales techniques, and sales control systems.
    • Design
      • Knowledge of design techniques, tools, and principles involved in production of precision technical plans, blueprints, drawings, and models.
    • Building and Construction
      • Knowledge of materials, methods, and the tools involved in the construction or repair of houses, buildings, or other structures such as highways and roads.
    • Mechanical
      • Knowledge of machines and tools, including their designs, uses, repair, and maintenance.
    • Physics
      • Knowledge and prediction of physical principles, laws, their interrelationships, and applications to understanding fluid, material, and atmospheric dynamics, and mechanical, electrical, atomic and sub-atomic structures and processes.
    • Communications and Media
      • Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
    • Administration and Management
      • Knowledge of business and management principles involved in strategic planning, resource allocation, human resources modeling, leadership technique, production methods, and coordination of people and resources.
    • Customer and Personal Service
      • Knowledge of principles and processes for providing customer and personal services. This includes customer needs assessment, meeting quality standards for services, and evaluation of customer satisfaction.
    • Psychology
      • Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.
    • Personnel and Human Resources
      • Knowledge of principles and procedures for personnel recruitment, selection, training, compensation and benefits, labor relations and negotiation, and personnel information systems.
    • Production and Processing
      • Knowledge of raw materials, production processes, quality control, costs, and other techniques for maximizing the effective manufacture and distribution of goods.
    • Chemistry
      • Knowledge of the chemical composition, structure, and properties of substances and of the chemical processes and transformations that they undergo. This includes uses of chemicals and their interactions, danger signs, production techniques, and disposal methods.
    • Public Safety and Security
      • Knowledge of relevant equipment, policies, procedures, and strategies to promote effective local, state, or national security operations for the protection of people, data, property, and institutions.
    • Law and Government
      • Knowledge of laws, legal codes, court procedures, precedents, government regulations, executive orders, agency rules, and the democratic political process.
    • Therapy and Counseling
      • Knowledge of principles, methods, and procedures for diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation of physical and mental dysfunctions, and for career counseling and guidance.
    • English Language
      • Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, and rules of composition and grammar.
    • Foreign Language
      • Knowledge of the structure and content of a foreign (non-English) language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition and grammar, and pronunciation.
    • History and Archeology
      • Knowledge of historical events and their causes, indicators, and effects on civilizations and cultures.

    Education

    Education
    Postsecondary certificate
    Work Experience
    No work experience
    Training
    No on-the-job training

    Pay

    Washington Annual Salary
    107640/yr
    Washington Hourly Wage
    51.75/hr

    Washington Employment Trends

    Currently Employed
    3,850
    Yearly Projected Openings
    400

    Personality

    Realistic: People interested in this work like activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They do well at jobs that need:
    • Attention to Detail
    • Integrity
    • Dependability
    • Analytical Thinking
    • Achievement/Effort
    • Independence

    Tools

    • Acoustic ear muffs or defenders
    • Adjustable wrenches
    • Alignment jig
    • Ball peen hammer
    • Binocular light compound microscopes
    • Calibrated resistance measuring equipment
    • Calipers
    • Circuit tester
    • Cold chisels
    • Combination wrenches
    • Desktop computers
    • Diagonal cut pliers
    • End cut pliers
    • Flat nose pliers
    • Frequency analyzers
    • Frequency calibrator or simulator
    • Frequency counters or timer or dividers
    • Goggles
    • Grounding hardware
    • Hacksaw
    • Hammers
    • Hex keys
    • Inspection mirror
    • Integrated circuit testers
    • Ladders
    • Lifts
    • Longnose pliers
    • Magnifiers
    • Megohmmeters
    • Multimeters
    • Needlenose pliers
    • Notebook computers
    • Nut drivers
    • Ohmmeters
    • Open end wrenches
    • Oscilloscopes
    • Personal computers
    • Power drills
    • Power meters
    • Protocol analyzers
    • Punches or nail sets or drifts
    • Reflectometers
    • Respirators
    • Rivet tools
    • Rulers
    • Screwdrivers
    • Signal generators
    • Slip or groove joint pliers
    • Socket sets
    • Sockets
    • Soldering iron
    • Stripping tools
    • Tension testers
    • Torque wrenches
    • Tweezers
    • Utility knives
    • Voltage or current meters
    • Wattmeters
    • Wire lug crimping tool

    Technology

    • Analytical or scientific software
    • Computer aided design CAD software
    • Development environment software
    • Document management software
    • Electronic mail software
    • Enterprise resource planning ERP software
    • Facilities management software
    • Object or component oriented development software
    • Office suite software
    • Operating system software
    • Portal server software
    • Presentation software
    • Spreadsheet software
    • Word processing software