RAF Aircraft Technician to Aviation MRO Engineer

I was an RAF Aircraft Technician (Mechanical) for nine years, working on Tornado GR4 and then Typhoon. I left as a Senior Aircraftman, which I'll admit made me feel underqualified on paper when I started looking at civilian aviation jobs. I was wrong. **The skills gap myth** Every aviation MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) company I spoke to treated RAF trade training as better than most civilian apprenticeships — not just equivalent to it. The reason is simple: military aircraft have tighter tolerances, stricter documentation requirements and less margin for error than most commercial platforms. When I told an interviewer that a sign-off error on a military fast jet has consequences beyond what any civil operator deals with, that landed. **Getting the EASA Part-66 licence** The main practical barrier was that my military qualifications didn't automatically convert to an EASA Part-66 Aircraft Maintenance Licence, which most civilian aviation engineering jobs require. The CAA has a credit scheme for ex-military technicians — I got significant module credits, which reduced the exams I needed to pass from the full set down to just a few. I still had to study and sit exams, which cost money and time (I used ELC funding for a conversion course), but I was Part-66 B1.1 within 18 months of leaving. If you're reading this before your IRTC window opens — start the CAA credit claim process early. It takes time to process and you want it moving before your last day. **What surprised me about civilian aviation** The pay was genuinely better than I expected once I had the Part-66 licence. Base pay plus shift premiums at a regional MRO put me above what I'd have been earning as a Sergeant if I'd stayed. The culture was different — less formal, more commercially driven — but the safety culture was recognisable and that made the transition easier than moving into a totally different industry might have been. What I hadn't expected: the shift patterns. Military work has its own anti-social hours, but civilian MRO shift patterns (especially nights) took adjustment. I had a family by the time I left, and the hours were harder than they'd been in the RAF where at least I'd had notice of exercises and deployments. **What I'd do differently** I'd start the Part-66 conversion course during resettlement rather than after leaving, using the 35-day resettlement entitlement. I wasted about three months between leaving and starting study. The CAA credit application, conversion course booking and any exams all take longer than you expect. I'd also have asked for a higher starting salary. I accepted the first offer because I was relieved to have a job in aviation. A colleague who joined the same company six months later — with less experience — negotiated 8% more than me just by asking.