Aviation maintenance

How to Become an FAA A&P Mechanic: Tests and Ratings

✓ Reviewed against current FAA sources on September 27, 2026

Aircraft mechanics hold one FAA certificate, the Mechanic Certificate, with an Airframe rating, a Powerplant rating or both. Holding both is what the industry calls an A&P, and it is what most employers advertise for. The route to it is set out in 14 CFR Part 65 Subpart D, and the order the steps come in matters more than people expect.

One certificate, two ratings

You can earn either rating alone and add the other later. Section 65.71 (opens in a new tab)(b) covers the add-on: a certificated mechanic applying for an additional rating must meet the experience requirement of 65.77 for that rating and, within a period of 24 calendar months, pass the tests prescribed by 65.75 and 65.79 for it. So adding a rating later is a real path, not a concession, and the clock on it is the same 24 months.

Eligibility under 65.71

• At least 18 years old.
• Able to read, write, speak and understand English. An applicant employed outside the United States by a U.S. air carrier who cannot meet this may hold a certificate endorsed "Valid only outside the United States."
• Have passed all of the prescribed tests within a period of 24 months.
• Comply with the sections of Subpart D that apply to the rating sought.

Note what is absent. There is no medical certificate requirement for a mechanic certificate, which is one of the differences between the maintenance path and the pilot certification path.

Experience under 65.77

You present one of the following:

• an authenticated document from an FAA-certificated aviation maintenance technician school, issued in accordance with 147.21; or
• documentary evidence of at least 18 months of practical experience with the procedures, practices, materials, tools, machine tools and equipment generally used in constructing, maintaining or altering airframes or powerplants, appropriate to the single rating sought; or
• documentary evidence of at least 30 months of practical experience concurrently performing the duties appropriate to both the airframe and powerplant ratings.

The 30 months is not 18 plus 18. It is a shorter concurrent period that earns both ratings, which is why a shop job covering both sides of the aircraft is worth more than two sequential specialist jobs.

The tests, and the order the rules put them in

There are three written tests and then an oral and practical for each rating.

1. General (AMG). Required for either rating and taken first.
2. Airframe (AMA) and Powerplant (AMP). One for each rating you want.
3. Oral and practical tests under 65.79, with a Designated Mechanic Examiner, for each rating.

Two sequencing rules catch people out.

Section 65.75 (opens in a new tab)(a) puts the written after the experience. The rule reads that each applicant must pass the written test "after meeting the applicable experience requirements of 65.77." You do not simply study and book a test.

Section 65.75 (opens in a new tab)(b) puts the written before the oral and practical. You must pass each section of the written before applying for the oral and practical under 65.79. A report of each written test is sent to you.

There are two deliberate exceptions, and both exist for school students:

• 65.75(c). You may take the general written before meeting the 65.77 experience requirement, provided you present an authenticated document from a certificated aviation maintenance technician school showing satisfactory completion of the general portion of its curriculum.
• 65.80. Where a Part 147 school shows the FAA that a student has made satisfactory progress and is prepared, that student may take the oral and practical during the final subjects of the curriculum, before meeting the 65.77 experience requirement and before passing the written tests.

What the tests are built from

The written, oral and practical tests all follow the Aviation Mechanic General, Airframe, and Powerplant Airman Certification Standards, incorporated by reference at 65.23. Section 65.79 (opens in a new tab) is explicit that the oral and practical demonstrate the knowledge, risk management and skill elements for each subject in those standards, so the ACS is the document that actually defines the exam, not a textbook. All three written tests draw their figures from one FAA testing supplement, FAA-CT-8080-4G.

Which study materials you need

The Aneroid Press Maintenance series follows exactly that structure, with a chooser that shows which volumes you need for the rating you are going after.

After certification

With experience, an A&P mechanic can apply for an Inspection Authorization under 65.91 through 65.95, which allows performing annual inspections and approving aircraft for return to service after major repairs and major alterations. It is the next step most mechanics take, and it has its own experience and currency requirements.

Sources: 14 CFR 65.23 (opens in a new tab), 65.71 (opens in a new tab), 65.75 (opens in a new tab), 65.77 (opens in a new tab), 65.79 (opens in a new tab), 65.80 (opens in a new tab), 65.91 (opens in a new tab) through 65.95 (opens in a new tab); 14 CFR 147.21; Aviation Mechanic General, Airframe, and Powerplant ACS; FAA-CT-8080-4G.