Install, maintain, and repair aircraft electrical systems, wiring, and electronic components. Troubleshoot electrical malfunctions in aircraft.
ASVAB VE+AR+MK+MC: 217 OR VE+AR+MK+AO: 217
Catalog listing, not a contract offer. Confirm with a recruiter.
Aviation Electrician's Mates maintain aircraft electrical and instrument systems, from generators to lighting to flight instruments. Work alternates between flight line troubleshooting and bench repair of removed components. You trace faults using wiring diagrams, test equipment, and a methodical process of elimination. Shipboard operations compress the work into tight spaces on a demanding schedule. Documentation of every test and repair is mandatory and closely reviewed.
You learn electrical theory, circuit analysis, and the use of multimeters, oscilloscopes, and specialized test sets. Reading and interpreting complex wiring diagrams becomes second nature. The rating teaches soldering, connector repair, and wire harness fabrication to aviation standards. You gain familiarity with instrument, navigation, and control systems. Experience supports FAA Airframe and Powerplant certification eligibility.
The job builds logical, sequential thinking, because electrical faults are found by elimination rather than intuition. You develop patience, since intermittent faults can take days to isolate. It teaches precision in small, delicate work where a poor connection causes real problems. Aviation Electrician's Mates tend to become analytical people who trust process over guesswork. You also gain confidence with systems most people find intimidating.
Aviation electrical work transfers directly into airline and corporate aircraft maintenance with A&P certification. The broader electrical and electronics field hires readily, including industrial controls, robotics maintenance, and instrumentation. Avionics technicians are in demand and command strong pay in both civil and defense aviation. Many veterans move into test engineering support, field service, or technical training roles. The diagnostic skill set is genuinely portable across any industry that runs complex electrical systems.
Published personal accounts with source links. Each describes an individual experience, not a typical assignment or a guarantee of your own experience.
“If the power systems fail, and the helicopter isn’t able to get in the air, it diminishes our ability to keep the ship and crew safe from submarines or properly conduct a search and rescue effort.”
“This team and I have grown and bonded.”
“They are improving and surprising me every day, and I’m proud to be on the William P. Lawrence team with them.”
“I have the grossest coveralls in the world and I love ‘em because number one: it shows that I work; number two: they’re a lot more flexible.”
“One of our helicopters had gone down for a chip indication on their engine, which basically shows you if the engine is shredding itself from the inside. A piece of metal will complete a circuit on a chip detector and will give an indication in the cockpit saying ‘chip detected’. Our pilots didn’t want to risk anything so they landed that night and [we flew over] to Osan to check it out and make sure the engine was indeed fine. I changed out the chip detector, we spun it up a couple of times as per procedure, and everything worked out okay; so we were able to go home in the morning.”
Quotes are from U.S. government public-domain news stories (DVIDS, army.mil and other official sources). Individuals and units are named as reported at time of publication.
You begin the day tracing wiring diagrams and reviewing gripes on the aircraft's electrical systems in the shop or on the flight line. Your work involves troubleshooting generators, lighting, instruments, and electronic components with multimeters and test benches, then repairing faults before flight. Coordinating with the other aviation ratings during phase inspections keeps the aircraft mission-ready.
Related career-field video—not specific to Navy AE.
No suitable exact-MOS video was verified in the recorded search. This does not establish that none exists.
Related field: shipboard electronics — interior communications perspective. Source occupation: Navy IC.
An informational video about the Interior Communications Electricians aboard the Nimitz class aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush (CVN 77). (U.S. Navy video by Mass Communication Specialist Seaman Apprentice Soley Reed)
Official publisher description and direct video page checked; playback not independently watched. Checked 2026-10-25. This assignment may not reflect every posting in this career.
$43,902–$74,948
2026 basic pay only; the same grade and service time pay the same across jobs. Promotions are assumed, not promised. Excludes allowances, bonuses and special pays.
Possibilities for serving Sailors, including those in support roles—not guaranteed admission or awards. Individual eligibility, assignment, selection, available training or competition places and successful qualification apply.
Assignment-dependent qualification and insignia earned aboard a qualifying surface ship or afloat staff—not automatically awarded for this rating.
For enlisted Sailors in an eligible surface assignment, including support ratings. Complete the command's current qualification standards, assessments and approval process. A shore or submarine assignment alone does not establish eligibility; confirm current enrollment rules with the command.
Assignment-dependent aviation qualification and insignia; support Sailors may qualify at authorized aviation commands.
Requires a qualifying aviation assignment or an authorized support-command arrangement, required in-rating technical qualifications and command approval. Current enrollment and pay-grade prerequisites must be checked; this is not a promotion or a badge awarded just for holding this rating.
Restricted to qualifying expeditionary assignments; recognizes tested field and unit-specific proficiency, including support duties.
Requires assignment to a command authorized to administer EXW and completion of its general and unit-specific personnel qualification standards and approval process. Published NSW program evidence establishes this route, not that every Navy unit offers it. Confirm current command authorization and prerequisites.
Sources reviewed . Confirm current course and badge requirements with official school guidance and your unit.
For Navy AE Aviation Electrician's Mate, official service-wide guidance and any exact feeder-list matches are distinguished below from unverified specialty-specific requirements. Ranks are not separate jobs, and these possibilities are not guaranteed promotions or available contracts.
Examples of higher service ranks
These are service-wide rank names, not a verified promotion ladder for this specialty. Examples are not exhaustive; appointments sharing a pay grade are not additional promotion steps.
Official military rank referenceThe Navy directs enlisted Sailors to rating-specific Learning and Development Roadmaps (LaDRs), and officers to their community managers and officer career-progression guidance. Rating conversion and commissioning are separate application paths, not automatic promotions.
Navy career planning: LaDRs, officer progression, and commissioningService-level application reference—not a verified next step for this listing
Limited Duty Officer (LDO) and Chief Warrant Officer (CWO) appointments require separate applications and program-specific qualifications. The reviewed active-duty page contains FY28 cycle requirements, not Reserve eligibility. Its 1 October 2026 application deadline has passed; this is not an open application offer or a verified designator match for this listing.
Navy active-duty LDO/CWO applicant requirementsSpecialty-specific advancement, senior assignments, and eligibility for a different personnel category have not been verified for this listing. No feeder eligibility or automatic transition to another specialty is implied.
Advancement depends on current service rules, performance, required education, qualifications, selection, and authorized positions—not simply years served. Confirm current requirements with an official recruiter or career counselor.
Related military jobs below are for exploration, not promised progression or confirmed transfer paths.
Sources reviewed 2026-10-03. This is a partial evidence review, not verification of every advancement route for this specialty. Source retrieval dates do not replace policy effective dates.
Career-field mappings, not automatic qualifications. Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (May 2024 national medians). O*NET links explain each occupation; military experience does not guarantee a job or salary.
Install, maintain, and repair aircraft electrical systems, wiring, and electronic components. Troubleshoot electrical malfunctions in aircraft.
Aviation Electrician's Mates maintain aircraft electrical and instrument systems, from generators to lighting to flight instruments. Work alternates between flight line troubleshooting and bench repair of removed components. You trace faults using wiring diagrams, test equipment, and a methodical process of elimination. Shipboard operations compress the work into tight spaces on a demanding schedule. Documentation of every test and repair is mandatory and closely reviewed.
You learn electrical theory, circuit analysis, and the use of multimeters, oscilloscopes, and specialized test sets. Reading and interpreting complex wiring diagrams becomes second nature. The rating teaches soldering, connector repair, and wire harness fabrication to aviation standards. You gain familiarity with instrument, navigation, and control systems. Experience supports FAA Airframe and Powerplant certification eligibility.
Aviation electrical work transfers directly into airline and corporate aircraft maintenance with A&P certification. The broader electrical and electronics field hires readily, including industrial controls, robotics maintenance, and instrumentation. Avionics technicians are in demand and command strong pay in both civil and defense aviation. Many veterans move into test engineering support, field service, or technical training roles. The diagnostic skill set is genuinely portable across any industry that runs complex electrical systems.
ASVAB VE+AR+MK+MC: 217 OR VE+AR+MK+AO: 217. This is the catalog's listed requirement, not an individual eligibility decision. Confirm the current standard and any exceptions with the service.
This specialty can be pursued through an initial enlistment, subject to eligibility and available contracts. Confirm the current status of this specific classification with an official recruiter.
Catalog sources consulted: 2026-09-26. This is not an entry-by-entry verification date. No record-specific verification date is recorded. Occupation audit evidence reviewed: 2026-09-26; this does not re-verify every requirement.
Official branch occupation evidence
Occupation identified. This occupation was identified in the cited source. This does not verify requirements, benefits, or a current opening.
Navy enlisted occupational standards, NAVPERS 18068F, July 2026, Appendix B (rating enumeration) · reviewed 2026-09-26
Confirmed. Catalog evidence is not an inventory of open contracts.
No dated public inventory confirmed a currently open recruiting contract for this role. This does not mean there are no openings. Confirm current eligibility and offers with an official recruiter.
Advertised — Navy, as of 2026-09-28Deployment likelihood: Moderate*
* Estimated. Rank progression and specialty-pay eligibility are illustrative assumptions. Deployment likelihood, when shown, is inferred from similar specialties in the branch and career field, not a published specialty deployment rate.
Descriptions may change. No military role is free from risk of injury or death, including non-combat work. Catalog review dates do not establish current openings or re-verification of every requirement.
Recruiting signals reflect what each branch published on the dates shown. They are not offers, and they do not mean a contract is open for you. Eligibility depends on your ASVAB scores, medical qualification, security clearance eligibility, and ship date. Confirm everything with an official recruiter. See our Disclaimer and Terms.