Aircraft Engine Mechanic
Drawn directly from OPM FedScope (June 2026), this page tracks headcount, average salary, tenure, and pay comparison for the Aircraft Engine Mechanic occupation series (code 8602).
The verdict
Aircraft Engine Mechanic is a smaller, specialized federal occupation: 1,686 employees (0.1% of the federal civilian workforce) in the Engine Overhaul Family family. At an average salary of $92,060 it pays below the federal average.
- Headcount change
- 0.0%
- Pay change
- 0.0%
- Avg tenure
- 12.2 yrs
- Rank in family
- #1 of 3
FedScope read on Aircraft Engine Mechanic (dense series)
Headcount moved sideways versus the prior period, a modest but trackable signal for anyone considering this specialized federal career path. Pay moved sideways between the two reporting periods, a small shift, within the range of normal year-to-year rounding rather than a broad pay-table change. On length of service, this series shows a mid-length average tenure, reflecting a mix of career employees and those who transfer or exit mid-career.
The Engine Overhaul Family family (code 86) groups Aircraft Engine Mechanic together with 2 other related occupations across the federal government. Candidates browsing USAJOBS for Aircraft Engine Mechanic postings should also review these sibling occupations in the Engine Overhaul Family family. Across the Engine Overhaul Family family, 1,764 employees work in 3 occupations; Aircraft Engine Mechanic is 95.6% of that headcount. Its average salary ranks in the top half (67th percentile) of pay among Engine Overhaul Family occupations.
Salary Context
How Aircraft Engine Mechanic pay compares to the federal average
Occupation Average
$92,060
Federal Average
$117,339
vs. Federal Avg
-21.5%
Where Aircraft Engine Mechanic ranks on federal pay
Aircraft Engine Mechanic earns more on average than 47% of federal occupation series (255 of 541). The highlighted bar marks where Aircraft Engine Mechanic sits in the federal pay distribution.
Average-salary distribution across all 541 federal occupation series; the highlighted bar marks Aircraft Engine Mechanic.
Related Occupations in Engine Overhaul Family
2 other occupations in the same family
| Occupation | Employees | Avg Salary | Avg LOS |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miscellaneous Engine Overhaul | 44 | $62,714 | 22.9 yrs |
| Small Engine Mechanic | 34 | $71,351 | 18.3 yrs |
Nationwide peers near this dense headcount
Two peer sets for Aircraft Engine Mechanic outside the Engine Overhaul Family family, on headcount and average salary axes that vary across all OPM occupation series.
Similar dense headcount
Nearest employee counts in other occupation families (1,686 here).
Similar average salary
Nearest average salaries in other occupation families ($92,060 here).
Key takeaways
- Place Aircraft Engine Mechanic pay in context with the pay-rank chart above, then compare it with another occupation.
- Turn an average salary into a grade: the GS pay grade tables show how grades and steps map to pay.
- Browse the Engine Overhaul Family family occupations in the table above, or search current Aircraft Engine Mechanic postings on USAJOBS.
OPM FedScope and Federal Workforce Data figures are federal civilian headcounts, average salaries, and length-of-service statistics - not job-quality scores, hiring advice, or a live vacancy listing. A larger or higher-paid agency is not a better employer.