The aviation industry is hitting a wall, while the media focuses on pilots, the real bottleneck for 2026 is the Certifying Staff shortage.
Boeing projects a global need for 710,000 new maintenance technicians over the next 20 years.
Experienced certifying and non certifying staff have many options for jobs and offers from employers, keeping staff is becoming an important part of a companies culture.
In aviation, “privilege” refers to the authority granted by a license to certify that work has been done correctly such as EASA or the UK CAA:
Category A (Line Maintenance) permits the holder to issue a Certificate of Release to Service (CRS)—the legal sign-off that an aircraft is safe—following minor scheduled maintenance and simple repairs.
Category B1 (Mechanical) grants the legal authority to release aircraft after major work on structures, power plants (engines), and mechanical or electrical systems.
Category B2 (Avionics) is an important role and focuses on the aircraft’s “brains”—communications, navigation, and integrated electronic flight systems.
Part-147 is the regulation governing “Approved Training Organisations.” Completing an approved course at am approved school can reduce the practical experience requirement for a Category B license from five years down to just two in some cases. However, you must be at least 21 years old to hold the license.
The First Type Rating: Once you have your basic license, you need a “Type Rating” to work on a specific aircraft (like a Boeing 737). The final bridge to full certifying authority is a focused task or time based On-Job Training (OJT) program—a supervised period of real-world tasks—conducted within a Part-145 organisation (an approved maintenance facility).
The statistics for late 2025 and 2026 show a supply-demand gap that could lead to more Aircraft On Ground situations due to technical issues, costing airlines availability and money.
UK & Europe: Over 35% of the current workforce is aged 55+. By late 2026, a 19% gap in certified staff is expected as these seniors retire.
USA: A shortfall of 43,000 technicians is projected by 2027 by the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration).
The Experience Gap: We are losing the “voice of experience.” As experience retires, the industry is desperate for new, licensed engineers to step up and prevent the delays that are beginning to paralyze global flight schedules due to maintenance checks.
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