Is Aeronautical Engineering better than Aircraft Maintenance Engineering? 2

[Juliae]

i was considering a career in aircraft maintenance engineering (AME) but then i thought manufacturing it would be fun and rewarding!
so please can you tell me which job is fun and more rewarding?
aeronautical engineer or aircraft maintenance engineer?
and does anyone have a e-copy of Aircraft Maintenance and Repair : [URL unfurl="true"]http://www.amazon.com/Aircraft-Maintenance-Repair-Michael-Kroes/dp/0028034597[/url]

thank you !

 

[MiketheEngineer]

Design them or build them - you choose

 

[berkshire]

Juliae,
This is just me and i am biased,
I have worked in aircraft manufacturing and aircraft maintenance,for close to 40 years.
In Manufacturing, you are a tiny cog in a humongus machine, unless you pick a small company of which there are not very many.
Maintenance facilities tend to be smaller, making you a bigger fish in a smaller pond,however, they can also dry up quicker. You will also find youself doing some hands on work, unless you end up in a trade union shop where engineers are forbidden to touch the tools.
Each has it's advantages and drawbacks.

One thing that may convince you to try flying for a living, is to look up off the floor from under an aircraft, when you are covered in oil, and grease, at this immaculate spectacle of a person in crisp creased uniform and gold braid on the arms and shoulders, with a gold peaked hat demanding to know, if it is ready yet?
You then ask yourself, why am I not doing that?
B.E.


The good engineer does not need to memorize every formula; he just needs to know where he can find them when he needs them. Old professor

 

[thruthefence]

http://www.faa.gov/library/manuals/aircraft/

select the various FAA-H-8083-XX manuals. Very large PDF files.

If you are an AME, you are a mechanic. Not saying it can't be a hoot, (I have a degree in Mechanical Engineering, but have been a mechanic for nearly 40 years,) but STAY IN SCHOOL and get a degree.

 

[KirbyWan]

Where are you located? This may be one of those location issues where maintenance engineer in the UK means someone who repairs aircraft per approved data but in the US would be someone with a bachelors degree in engineering designing repairs that go beyond the approved data? I was an auto mechanic before I earned my degree in mechanical engineering and work as what is often called a liason engineer doing that second part. I find both rewarding, but I'm not a craftsman and feel I do a better job as an engineer then I did as a mechanic.

I think the hands on stuff of learning to do the actual fixing is fun and rewarding, and would be a great basis for going back to school for an engineering degree focused on aviation. The real danger is life happens and if you get a good paying job fixing aircraft, get married have a couple of kids, suddenly a lot of time has passed and financial resources are scarce and the chance for a degree slips away. So I'm not going to suggest you go one way or the other, I just want you to look at some of the issues I've faced along my journey.

Good luck which ever way you go.

-Kirby

Kirby Wilkerson

Remember, first define the problem, then solve it.

 

[KENAT]

Kirby makes a good point, what do you mean by aircraft maintenance engineer?

In some organizations/situations a maintenance engineer may spend most of their time managing a bunch of mechanics/technicians. Not my cup of tea thanks.

However, someone actually designing repairs etc. might be a bit more interesting to me.

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http://eng-tips.com/market.cfm?

(probably not aimed specifically at you)
What is Engineering anyway: faq1088-1484​

 

[mfgenggear]

Juliae

some guys can not stand it to be tied to a desk & chair all day & are brilliant mechanics, machinist fabricators.. & smart as hell.
some guys do not have the manual dexterity to work with their hands but are brilliant thinkers & are also smart as hell.

me I am in the middle some where, I like to do both, I clearly like working with my hands,& I tinker,& to this day I like to fabricate, machining, & mechanics , I also enjoy the thinking part of getting paper work done. I have worked with talented people & still do.:>)
I never stop learning, & thats part of my make up. I never quit asking questions, I may come across a know it all some times but
I love this work & I still get excited about my projects. I believe you must have the passion to do this type of work.

all above is good advice from season folk, I too have forty or more years in my trade, and would not take back any of it.
my only advice is finish your degree while you can it get tougher as the years pass.

Mfgenggear

 

[Sparweb]

Hi Juliae:

I assume you mean engineering for maintenance vs. engineering for OEM, but your question has elicited other kinds of answers, too.

Hard to choose. You might want to consider a personality fit, over all else. While the technical and analytical tools may be similar (we have many of the same books on our desks) the environment will be very different. Shops concerned with repair have a variety of clients who own a variety of aircraft... and rotorcraft which should not be forgotten about. The diversity of that experience is very valuable.

The flip-side is the rigor of the training and focus on single models or similar machines when at an OEM. You become very familiar with the minute details, the why and how in every corner of the airframe (unless you specialize on a particular system or component area).

Just in case you actually are in Canada, we use "aircraft maintenance engineer", or AME, usually for the specific tradesman who is licensed to sign the maintenance logbook once repair work or modifications to the aircraft are complete and approved. That's not a university degree, it's a trades eductation followed by an apprenticeship. You start out specialized in a field like structures or avionics or powerplants. Later you can expand your license to new domains, if you're ambitious and study part-time while working. I have worked alongside a lot of talented AME's and they earn my respect. I think the terminology in the USA is similar, but since I don't work there I won't make assumptions.

STF

 

[ybryan]

If you're talking about AME for an OEM, you will spend most of your time updating documents of maintenance manuals and responding to operators with questions regarding clarifications concerning those manuals. In general, AME engineering is not as glamorous and not as high paying but a very stable industry. However, stress levels are also pretty low and demands are not as high as other design engineering groups. You'll get a better chance to interact with operators during maintenance evaluations than you would with other groups and perhaps a more holistic sense to the industry.

If your looking for a more technical and challenging position... I'd go with the design job

 

[kontiki99]

If you can design you can probably always cross over to maint easier that crossing from maint into design. Definitely learn to fly, it's a blast.

In theory, there is no difference between theory and practice; experience suggests that in practice, there is.