aeronautical engineer

mechanical engineer

engineer

test engineer

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NAVAIR

I would love to do some actual work but nothing ever gets done at that place. We are either waiting long periods of time to get software needed, or having to do countless hours of unnecessary training. You even have to do your own reviews to get promotions.

If you are an engineer who actually cared about school and would love to apply what you learned, this is NOT the place for you. Regardless of your engineering background, you're probably going to end up doing software, or some other engineering unrelated task. If you're EE, stay away from here.

I am currently looking for a new job, applying for positions related to my school background and it's being rough to get interviews or calls back because in the year that I've been working there I probably have about 3 months of relevant experience.

On the other hand if you did not learn anything in school, and you literally want to get paid to pretty much do nothing, then this is the place for you!

Engineers quit left and right at NAVAIR because they get tired of the bureaucratic process to get anything done. Engineers are leaving within 6 months of working here; however, NAVAIR makes no changes. What's their best solution? hire more engineers than are actually quitting and you'll have some engineers left, yay!

TL;DR: Stay away from here.

One of the best things about NAVAIR is that there is a ton of things going on all the time. A new hire might not love their job as sometimes happens. But the nice thing is that once you're at NAVAIR there is incredible mobility to change work platforms. As an entry-level engineer especially, a person is given opportunities to take rotations to different groups on base and off base for several months. 

The pace of the environment really depends on the type of work and who you work for. As an entry-level employee one might be bored with little to do if the work environment is a relaxed one. If one works with flight test however, it is more likely that there will be a fast paced and more demanding environment. 

Working for the government also has many benefits. There is tremendous job security in working for the federal government. There are also great job benefits including a great 401K system. 

I have enjoyed my experiences here and will carry on skills taken from this employment into my next jobs.

I cannot give a overall review of NAVAIR, because the Navy is huge and there are many different jobs that you can do here.  

NAVAIR has a wonderful program that allows you to experience different jobs in your first year, then pick one and work there for as long as you want.  Because you are a federal employee you don't worry about job security, and it is illegal for your employer to make you work more than 40 hours a week without compensation.

I was able to find a great place that fit my work desires and challenge me to learn and get better every day.  My supervisor is fantastic and my colleagues are intelligent, and we all respect each other.

Sadly this is not the case for everyone in NAVAIR.  I was one of the lucky ones.  In the government you do have to deal with an inordinate amount of bureaucracy, and security is always a concern.  Most engineers get stuck doing paperwork or test and never get to do development.

Typical day: Glued to a cubicle doing a mindless repetitive task, ( stress and structural engineer 4.3)

Learned: on the job training and task orientated classes that will helps any engineer career.

Management: zero management experience, excessive micromanaging, if they do not agree with your career goals they would not offer any type of support and will try to stop you. People of "older" generations in term of progressiveness. If you are of a minority ethnicity you will have a hard time advancing your career in the engineering department 4.3 . 

Coworkers: They are some of the best people I have the opportunity to work with. They are willing to teach you what they know and they will be the best resource for learning new techniques

Hardest part of the job: keeping the moral up and not letting poor management decisions get to you.

Most enjoyable part of the job: hands on Fixing planes, coworkers, and benefits.


 .

Typical day: Glued to a cubicle doing a mindless repetitive task.
Learned: A lot about airplanes which is the only positive to point out.

Management: Little experience, excessive micromanaging, and people of "older" generations in term of progressiveness. Have many complaints and suits against them. I suspect they "terminated" a few people's employment because of color, orientation, religious beliefs, etc. Surprisingly good at covering themselves when "terminating" for the above.

Coworkers: Actually nice if on their good side, but usually people who commit themselves to make complaints about anything and anyone.

Hardest part of the job: fixing everything to a reviewer's standard which is not consistent with the multiple reviewers available.

Most enjoyable part of the job: Fixing planes and walks to the hangars.

Assigned as the Projects Lead of R&D and Integration operations at Pt Mugu, CA.  PGSS Engineering and Technical Support Lead and Technical Training Lead providng proactive, timely, and accurate technical and engineering assistance to the deployed PGSS operations.    Guide engineering and development work with Navy- and USMC-related aerostat operations leading to multiple new capabilities and program efficiencies. Orchestrated  the allocation of  a new base of operations in collobration  with  West Coast NAVAIR partners.  Sucessfully  built relationships across directorates resulting  in expanded operational  opportunities and better utilization of base assets. Procured an additional building for ongoing R&D projects, a depot level sensor repair shop for systems returning from OEF operations, and multiple storage locations for GFE.

If you don't really care about what you do for a living, you just want to keep your head down and put in your 8 hours, this is a great job.  Great work/life balance, good benefits, and the work isn't hard.  The pay isn't great, but I'm never stressed about work when I get home.  But if you want to be a real engineer that solves problems and comes up with creative solutions, this is not the job for you.  Creativity and new ideas are destroyed by a company culture that is so afraid to deviate from "the book" that they would rather do nothing than do something new.  Despite the above complaints, it isn't a bad job, just painfully uninteresting.

The leadership seems to support everyone and encourages development. The STRL scale allows for a good amount of growth and nice compensation though high grade positions can be limited (especially on the technical side). The work is important and the mission is viewed in a positive light but many people find the work to be too contract and management-y for many engineers liking. Pay and promotion for entry level engineers is competitive

NAVAIR is headquartered in Southern Maryland which is more rural than many people like.

Lots of opportunity for young engineers looking to learn new things and get exposure to the aerospace industry.  Be careful though, it is very easy to get pigeon holed into a specific and small role.  Pay does need meet industry standards (at least for engineers), but the work/life balance is great and the job is not stressful.  After a few years, personal/professional growth stagnates and the cracks in the system start to show.

I started out as entry level engineer and advanced my way up to Journeyman level, which is equivalent to senior position in the industry. The work/life balance is exceptionally good here. A lots of PTO and sick leaves. Tuition Assistance is available. The only down side is for the equivalent work you do here, you earn way less income compare to other companies. 
There are a lot of incompetence people work at NAVAIR. They relied on contractors to do the good work. The good workers eventually leave the job to to earn more income somewhere else.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Aeronautical engineer 4 salaries reported	$106,250 per year
Mechanical engineer 3 salaries reported	$76,797 per year
Engineer 6 salaries reported	$85,667 per year
Test engineer 7 salaries reported	$101,571 per year
Contract specialist 9 salaries reported	$93,238 per year

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