Aircraft Maintenance Engineer

Inspect and repair aircraft, then sign them safe to fly. A Transport Canada licence, not a university degree.

Typical pay: $81,000a year
Time to qualify: 4 to 6 yearsafter high school
Demand: Moderate
Licence needed: Yesregulated job

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Quick answers

How much does an aircraft maintenance engineer make in Canada?

The median pay is about $81,000 a year. Across everyone in the job it runs from about $51,000 at the lower end to about $110,000 at the upper end. The source is listed under Sources at the end of this page.

How long does it take to become an aircraft maintenance engineer in Canada?

4 to 6 years after high school, on the usual route.

What does it cost to become an aircraft maintenance engineer?

$14,000 to $30,000 all in for tuition, fees, exams and kit. Living costs are not counted.

Do you need a licence to work as an aircraft maintenance engineer in Canada?

Yes. It is a regulated job, so you need a licence or registration before you can work.

What is the job outlook for an aircraft maintenance engineer in Canada?

Moderate demand nationally, from government outlook data. Demand varies by region, so check your area.

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Aircraft Maintenance Engineer salary in Canada

What you earn and what it costs to get there.

What AMEs (aircraft maintenance engineers) make

Median

$81,000

Lower end

$51,000

Upper end

$110,000

Job Bank's figures for aircraft mechanics and aircraft inspectors across Canada (2023 to 2024) are $24.48 an hour at the low end, $39.00 median and $52.88 at the high end, about $51,000, $81,000 and $110,000 a year at 40 hours a week. Major airlines like Air Canada and WestJet have union contracts. Small charter and bush operators often license you faster, and some northern bases add isolation pay.

Where pay is highest

$44.50 an hour

The median in Alberta, the highest in Canada

Yukon ($43.28) and the Northwest Territories ($41.71) follow. Ontario's median is $38.00 and Prince Edward Island's is the lowest, at $27.00. Shift premiums, overtime and licence bonuses come on top.

What it costs to get there

Approved college program (2 years): $6,000 to $12,000 a year in tuition
Tools: $2,000 to $5,000 to start
Transport Canada exams and licence fees: A few hundred dollars
Grants: Not a Red Seal apprenticeship, so the Canada Apprentice Loan and EI (Employment Insurance) school-block benefits do not apply. Student loans do.

Roughly, all in

$14,000 to $30,000

Tuition, fees, exams and kit. Not rent, food or travel

The low end is a two year approved college program at the cheaper end of tuition, a starter tool set, and the Transport Canada exam and licence fees. The high end is the same two years at higher tuition with a fuller tool set. This is not a Red Seal apprenticeship, so the Canada Apprentice Loan and the EI (Employment Insurance) school block benefits do not apply, only regular student loans. Some airlines and operators repay tuition for graduates who sign on, which can cancel most of the cost after the fact.

Some airlines and operators repay tuition for graduates who sign on. A college program is not legally required, but it cuts the experience requirement and it is how nearly everyone starts.

Benefits

Flight benefits
Airline staff and family fly standby for very little.
Union contract and pension
Air Canada and WestJet maintenance staff are unionized.
Shift premiums
Nights, weekends and holidays pay extra.
Licence and skill premiums
Extra pay per licence category at many employers.
Health and dental

How to become an aircraft maintenance engineer in Canada

The exact path from high school to qualified.

The path to becoming an aircraft maintenance engineer, step by step

College, then logged experience, then a Transport Canada licence. It is not an engineering degree.

1
High school diploma
Grade 12
Grade 12 with math, physics and English. Shop classes help.
2
Approved college program
2 years
A 2-year AME (aircraft maintenance engineer) diploma approved by Transport Canada: Centennial College in Toronto, BCIT (British Columbia Institute of Technology), SAIT (Southern Alberta Institute of Technology), Canadore College in North Bay, Red River College Polytechnic in Winnipeg and others. Approved programs give credit toward the experience requirement: Quebec's college diploma, for example, counts for 19 months.
3
Work as an apprentice
2 to 3 years
Join an airline, charter operator, repair shop or bush operator. Log every task in a personal logbook. Transport Canada wants 48 months of experience in total (36 for the S licence), minus your college credit, so about 2 to 3 more years.
4
Transport Canada licence
After your hours
Pass the regulatory exams and prove your logged tasks. The M1 licence covers smaller aircraft, M2 covers large transport aircraft like airliners. E is avionics, S is structures. Minimum age is 21.
5
Add type ratings
Ongoing
Courses on specific aircraft, run by the airline or manufacturer, let you sign for those types.

High school courses that help you become an aircraft maintenance engineer

Math
Tolerances, electrical values, weight and balance.
Physics
Lift, pressure, electricity, materials.
English
Manuals and regulations are dense, and your logbook must be exact.
Shop or technology
Sheet metal and small engines especially.
Chemistry
Composites, fuels and corrosion.

Time and money, at a glance

Years after high school: 4 to 6
Admission: High school diploma with math and physics. Programs fill up, apply early
Total tuition: $12,000 to $25,000
Paid while training?: Not in college. Yes as an apprentice

Licensed by Transport Canada

Only a licensed AME (aircraft maintenance engineer) can sign a maintenance release, the document that lets an aircraft fly after work is done. The licence is federal, so it is valid across Canada. The word engineer here does not mean a university engineering degree, and it is not the same as a professional engineer. Unlicensed technicians can work, but only under a licensed AME.

Quebec routeIn Quebec? The route is different. 2 more cards.

The path in Quebec

In Quebec the school route is a 3 year CEGEP (public college) diploma offered at one college, while the licence is the same federal one as in the rest of Canada.

1
Secondary V math and physics
Secondary V
The DEC (Diploma of College Studies) needs Secondary V math in the TS (Technical and Scientific) or SN (Science) sequence, plus Secondary V physics.
2
DEC in Aircraft Maintenance (280.C0)
3 years
2,790 hours at the École nationale d'aérotechnique in Longueuil, the only college offering it in Quebec. Taught in French, with an English version (280.CA) where other services stay in French.
3
Paid work terms
During the DEC
The ATE (alternance travail-études, the work-study option) adds two paid internships at aerospace companies. You can sign up from your first semester.
4
Experience under a licensed engineer
About 29 months
Transport Canada asks for 48 months of experience. With 70% or more in the theory of each core subject and under 5% absences, the DEC credits 19 months, leaving 29.
5
Licence exams
From age 21
Graduates who meet those marks are exempt from the technical exams and write only the regulations exam. Transport Canada issues the AME (aircraft maintenance engineer) M licence from age 21.

An evening route for adults in Quebec

The École nationale d'aérotechnique also runs an AEC (Attestation of College Studies) in Aircraft Maintenance (EWA.0X): 1,395 hours over 19 months, Monday to Friday from 5pm to 11pm, in French. It costs $187.03 a session plus materials. You need Secondary V math and physics and a mechanical aptitude test. It credits 13 of the 48 months of experience.

What helps you get ahead as an aircraft maintenance engineer

Things you don't need, but that help.

Licences and ratings that raise pay

M2 licence
Large aircraft. The airline licence.
E licence (avionics)
Electrical systems, radios, navigation and flight computers. In short supply.
S licence (structures)
Sheet metal and composite repair.
Type ratings
Boeing 737, Airbus A320, Dash 8 and so on. More types, more value.
Inspection and quality roles
Senior AMEs (aircraft maintenance engineers) move into inspection, planning and management.

Nice-to-haves

Air cadets
Many AMEs (aircraft maintenance engineers) started in the Royal Canadian Air Cadets.
A clean record
Airport security clearance is required.
Colour vision and hearing
Checked by employers and for some licences.
Comfort with heights and tight spaces
Wings, tails and fuel tanks.
French
Useful in Quebec and at federal employers.

The bush and the North

Small operators in northern Ontario, the Prairies, the territories and the BC (British Columbia) coast fly floatplanes, helicopters and old workhorses like the Twin Otter. They give young AMEs (aircraft maintenance engineers) wide experience fast, and some post isolation bonuses and housing.

What being an aircraft maintenance engineer is really like

Day to day, pros and cons, where you'd work.

A typical shift

Airlines run 24 hours. A night shift in a hangar might start at 7pm with a checklist of scheduled inspections on an aircraft that flies out at 6am: open panels, inspect, replace worn parts, run engine checks, sign the release. Line maintenance at the gate means fixing snags between flights in minutes, in any weather. Everything is written down, and every part has paperwork.

The honest pros and cons of being an aircraft maintenance engineer

The good

Federal licence recognized across Canada
No degree needed, licensed by your mid-20s
Airline pay, pensions and flight benefits
Aircraft are fascinating machines

The hard parts

Shift work: nights, weekends, holidays
Your signature carries legal responsibility
Outdoor line work in Canadian winters
Four to six years before full licence pay

Work life

Typical hours: 40 a week on rotating shifts
Remote work: None
Physical demand: Moderate to high
Unionized: Airlines yes, small operators rarely

Similar paths

Things nobody tells you about being an aircraft maintenance engineer

Things people don't tell you.

Not that kind of engineer

Canada uses the title aircraft maintenance engineer. In the US the same job is called an airframe and powerplant mechanic. Neither is a university engineering degree.

A logbook of every task

Transport Canada requires you to log the maintenance tasks you performed as an apprentice. You must have done at least 70% of the tasks on its list for your licence category, and at least 10% on civil registered aircraft.

You must be 21 to hold the licence

Transport Canada will not issue an AME (aircraft maintenance engineer) licence before age 21, even if you finished college and your logged experience earlier.

How an aircraft maintenance engineer compares

Every list is built from the same numbers shown above, so you can see where this career sits next to the others.

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Where these numbers come from

Last checked October 2026. Pay figures are typical full-time annual amounts in Canadian dollars, based on Government of Canada Job Bank wage data and published salary grids. They vary by province, employer and experience. Tuition is for domestic students. How every figure on this site is sourced and checked.