What Do Aerospace Engineers Do (including Their Typical Day At Work)

Job Description

Aerospace Engineers perform engineering duties in designing, constructing, and testing aircraft, missiles, and spacecraft. May conduct basic and applied research to evaluate adaptability of materials and equipment to aircraft design and manufacture. May recommend improvements in testing equipment and techniques. They also formulate mathematical models or other methods of computer analysis to develop, evaluate, or modify design, according to customer engineering requirements.

Other tasks include:

• Plan or conduct experimental, environmental, operational, or stress tests on models or prototypes of aircraft or aerospace systems or equipment.
• Formulate conceptual design of aeronautical or aerospace products or systems to meet customer requirements or conform to environmental regulations.
• Plan or coordinate investigation and resolution of customers’ reports of technical problems with aircraft or aerospace vehicles.
• Write technical reports or other documentation, such as handbooks or bulletins, for use by engineering staff, management, or customers.
• Direct or coordinate activities of engineering or technical personnel involved in designing, fabricating, modifying, or testing of aircraft or aerospace products.
• Diagnose performance problems by reviewing reports or documentation from customers or field engineers or by inspecting malfunctioning or damaged products.

We asked Aerospace Engineers how satisfied they are with their job. Here is what they said.

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71% of them said they were satisfied with their job and 64% said they find that their job makes the world a better place or helps to make someone else’s life better.

Typical Day At Work

On a daily basis, Aerospace Engineers direct or coordinate activities of engineering or technical personnel involved in designing, fabricating, modifying, or testing of aircraft or aerospace products. They diagnose performance problems by reviewing reports or documentation from customers or field engineers or by inspecting malfunctioning or damaged products.

A typical day for an Aerospace Engineer will also include:

• Formulate mathematical models or other methods of computer analysis to develop, evaluate, or modify design, according to customer engineering requirements.
• Direct aerospace research and development programs.
• Evaluate product data or design from inspections or reports for conformance to engineering principles, customer requirements, environmental regulations, or quality standards.
• Analyze project requests, proposals, or engineering data to determine feasibility, productibility, cost, or production time of aerospace or aeronautical products.
• Formulate conceptual design of aeronautical or aerospace products or systems to meet customer requirements or conform to environmental regulations.

We asked some Aerospace Engineers a few questions to find out what else does their work day look like. Here is what we found.

	Do you have telephone conversations everyday in this job?	64% said yes
	How important is it to work in a team in this job?	52% said very important
	Do you have group discussions everyday in this job?	93% said yes
	Do you talk or work with customers everyday in this job?	43% said yes
	Do you have to deal with angry customers everyday in this job?	5% said yes
	Do you have to make decisions everyday in this job?	7% said yes

Other responsibilities

Besides their typical day, Aerospace Engineers also plan or coordinate investigation and resolution of customers’ reports of technical problems with aircraft or aerospace vehicles. They may also develop design criteria for aeronautical or aerospace products or systems, including testing methods, production costs, quality standards, environmental standards, or completion dates.

On a weekly to monthly basis, Aerospace Engineers Evaluate product data or design from inspections or reports for conformance to engineering principles, customer requirements, environmental regulations, or quality standards. They might also Design new or modify existing aerospace systems to reduce polluting emissions, such as nitrogen oxide, carbon monoxide, or smoke emissions.

In addition, they Write technical reports or other documentation, such as handbooks or bulletins, for use by engineering staff, management, or customers.

Although specific duties may vary, many of them Maintain records of performance reports for future reference.

To some Aerospace Engineers, it is also their responsibility to Review aerospace engineering designs to determine how to reduce negative environmental impacts.

Working life

More than 40 hours per week

Regular schedule like a 9 to 5

In a typical work week as an Aerospace Engineer, you can expect to work more than 40 hours per week.

Is this right for me

People who are suitable for this job tends to like working with ideas, and require an extensive amount of thinking. They like searching for facts and figuring out problems mentally..

They also like work activities that include practical, hands-on problems and solutions. They like working with plants, animals, and real-world materials like wood, tools, and machinery.

You can read more about these career personality types here.

Explore other careers

http://www.bls.gov/OOH/architecture-and-engineering/aerospace-engineers.htm

http://www.aia-aerospace.org/

http://www.aiaa.org/