The US aviation maintenance and manufacturing sector supports almost 288,000 American jobs and generates more than 52 billion dollars in economic activity each year, according to a 2026 market assessment. The figures place aircraft maintenance among the more substantial industrial employers in the country, concentrated in specialized, high skill work.

FAA certificated repair stations are the largest single employers within that total, with just under 194,000 people at work across their US facilities. These stations perform the highly regulated maintenance, repair, and overhaul tasks that keep commercial and business aircraft in service, and their share of employment underscores how central independent repair operations have become to national fleet readiness.

Revenue is expanding alongside the workforce. US aircraft MRO revenue reached 26.9 billion dollars in 2026, growing at a compound annual rate of about 2.6 percent. Yet the assessment flags a widening gap between demand and available capacity, as supply chain constraints and a continuing labor shortage limit how fast repair stations can grow.

Workforce development is uneven. Enrollment in Part 147 aviation maintenance technician programs is drawing more young workers into the field, but attrition continues to offset those gains. With aging fleets keeping older aircraft in service and utilization running high, the data describes an industry where the volume of maintenance work is outpacing the number of certified technicians available to perform it.

Source: Aeronautical Repair Station Association - https://arsa.org/market-assessment/