Aeronautical Engineering is a branch of Engineering that involves the Science or art of designing, Improving, testing and studying the structure of aircraft within the atmosphere. Students who are interested in the field of how aircraft, space shuttles or jet plane function, should follow a career in the field of Aeronautical Engineering. Following are numerous Aeronautical Engineering courses with career, jobs and salaries.
What is Aeronautical Engineering?
Aeronautics is derived from the Greek words “Aer” (meaning – Air) and “Nautike” (meaning – Navigation) so the literal meaning of the word is Navigation of the air. This branch of Engineering is one of the most innovative and at the same time challenging branch of Engineering.
Eligibility Criteria for Aeronautical Engineering Courses
This branch of Engineering came into existence roughly a century ago so this field is sprouting with opportunities and improvisations. The most important eligibility for a student to possess to pursue a career in Aeronautical Engineering is actually having a genuine interest in the field. Besides that, the aspirant must have a strong command over Mathematics, Physics and Chemistry. Following are the Academic eligibility criteria for Aeronautical Engineering courses.
- Senior Secondary School (10+2) or equivalent AICTE approved 3 years of Engineering Diploma in any stream.
- With Math, Physics and Chemistry as Compulsory subjects from a recognized board.
- An Aggregate of 70 – 75% marks in Math, Physics and Chemistry in the Qualifying examination.
- The applicant’s age should be between 16 – 28 at the time of the admission
Prowess Required to Pursue Career in Aeronautical Engineering
| 1. Creativity |
| 2. Hardworking |
| 3. Innovative |
| 4. Problem-solving and Analytic thinking ability |
| 5. Team working ability |
| 6. Considerable Work speed with precision |
| 7. Normal colour vision |
| 8. Presence of mind |
| 9. Technical and mechanical logic & approach |
| 10. Physically and mentally fit |
Aeronautical Engineering Courses List and Course Duration
| S.no. | Course | Course Duration |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | Polytechnic Diploma Course | 3 years (After 10+2) |
| 2. | Under Graduate Degree Courses (B.Tech.) and (B.E) | 4 years (After 10+2) |
| 3. | Post Graduation Degree Courses (M.Tech.) | 2 years (After Completion of UG Degree) |
| 4. | Doctoral Degree courses (PhD) | 1-2 years after completion of PG courses |
Admission Process for Aeronautical Engineering courses
Since these courses are offered by Engineering colleges, it is important to study hard for the best college by qualifying the following national level examinations-
- To get admission in Aeronautical Engineering courses, the aspirant must appear in the JEE Main and JEE Advanced score.
- To enroll for Post Graduate degree courses, the aspirant must qualify for the GATE Exam.
- Candidates holding a Diploma in Aircraft Maintenance are eligible to acquire degree in Aeronautical Engineering by qualifying for the Examination conducted by the Aeronautical Society of India.
- To enroll in Post Graduate course (M.Tech.), aspirant needs to qualify for the GATE exam first.
- If an Aeronautical Engineering graduate or post-graduate seeks to advance further in the area of research in the field of Aerospace Engineering, he/she needs to enroll for the Ph.D. Program. This opens new pathways for an aspirant to excel by being eligible to conduct research in different areas of Aeronautical Engineering such as propulsion, fluid dynamics etc. In this way, the candidates can also study for their Doctoral degree and work in the research area at the same time.
In India, there are many colleges, Institutions that offer courses in Aeronautical Engineering. All IIT, NIT and IIS, and other Scientific Research institutes offer courses in Aeronautical Engineering based on the GATE exam percentile. Candidates pursuing Aeronautical Engineering courses can specialize in Aerodynamics, Celestial Mechanics, Thermodynamics, Propulsion, Aircraft Structures among others.
Fee Structure for Aeronautical Engineering Courses
- The amount of fee varies from one institute to another but the fee is relatively different for candidates holding different All India Rank (AIR) in the qualifying examination.
- The fee can be INR 60 K to INR 2 Lakhs per year. The fee submission either be annual or Semester wise for some institutes.
Top Colleges/Institutes for Aeronautical Engineering
Listed below are top ranked colleges for Aeronautical Engineering courses in India including Aeronautical Engineering courses in IIT.
| S.no. | Name of the college |
|---|---|
| 1. | Manipal Institute of Technology, Manipal |
| 2. | Indian Institute of Space, Science and Technology, Thiruvananthapuram |
| 3. | Amity University, Mumbai |
| 4. | Lovely Professional University, Punjab |
| 5. | Indian Institute of Technology, IIT Madras |
| 6. | Indian Institute of Technology, IIT Kanpur |
| 7. | Hindustan Institute of Technology, Chennai |
| 8. | Visveshwaraya Technological University, Belgaum |
| 9. | Andhra University, Visakhapatnam |
| 10. | PES College of Engineering, Karnataka |
| 11. | Malla Reddy College of Engineering, Hyderabad |
| 12. | NITTE Meenakshi Institute of Technology, Bangalore |
| 13. | Indian Institute of Technology, IIT Kharagpur |
| 14. | Indian Institute of Technology, IIT Bombay |
Career Prospect in Aeronautical Engineering
With the exponential advancements in Aviation in modern times, aeronautical Engineers are in major demand. Therefore, the Aeronautical branch of Engineering opens the door for Engineers not to abroad but in India too.
The most important thing to bear in mind before choosing aeronautical Engineering as a career that a candidate should be completely in a frame of mind to operate complicated machinery and have the ability to think the problem in technical and analytical way. Aviation has made everyday life easier for millions of people and their lives are in the hands of the engineers that construct or evaluate the aircraft.
After the completion of the course, the fresh recruits are hired as Junior Engineers or Graduate Engineer Trainees in the companies or organization. Thereafter the recruits gain experience in that particular area and are promoted to higher posts based on their performance. There are many fields in Aeronautical Engineering in which the aspirant can choose to focus solely on and build a career in that particular field. Some example of these specialized fields are:
- Aerospace Propulsion
- Ground Vehicle Systems
- Aircraft Structure and Materials
- Electronic Systems
- Structural Analysis
- Transportation systems
- Aerodynamics and Fluid Dynamics
- Structural Design and Engineering
- Instrumentation and Communication
- Navigational Guidance and control system
Job Opportunities and Salary in Aeronautical Engineering
As mentioned above, with the rapid progress in aviation the demand for Aeronautical Engineers rises. The Eligible aeronautic Engineers can apply for jobs both abroad or in India in both private and government sector.
Aeronautical Engineers’ main job is to design an aircraft and propulsion systems and studying the aerodynamic properties. There are various specialized fields in Aeronautical Engineering that offer different job designation.
Following are some job profiles in Aeronautical Engineering according to the area of expertise.
| Job Designation | Job Description | Salary Offered (In INR) |
|---|---|---|
| Aircraft Production Manager | They review, analyze and file important documentation in regards to aircraft plans, schedules, maintenance or production. | 3.4 to 4 Lakhs per annum |
| Aeronautical Mechanical Engineer | They keep the aircraft Engines maintained and overhaul the service engine and air frames of the aircraft | 5 to 6 Lakhs per annum |
| Aeronautical Electronic Engineer | They maintain the electronic and electrical equipment in an aircraft. Such as: Radio, Radar, navigation etc. | 4.5 to 5.5 Lakh per annum |
| Flight Engineer | They make sure that an aircraft keeps in better condition. Their work includes making routine inspection of the aircraft and repair any irregularity if need be. | 5 to 6 Lakh per annum |
| Thermal Design Engineer | They design the equipment/systems of heating or cooling of an aircraft using thermodynamics that transfer heat or energy through liquid or gases | 5 to 6 Lakh per annum |
| Aerospace Design Checker | They construct, evaluate and check the design of an aircraft to the point of flawless | 5.5 to 6.5 Lakh per annum |
| Graduate Engineer Trainees | They observe, learn and sometimes assist other aeronautical engineers | 3.5 to 4 Lakh per annum |
| Assistant Aircraft Engineers | They assist the aircraft engineer in various works related to service and check ups of an aircraft | 3.5 to 4.5 Lakhs per annum |
| Assistant Technical Officers | They provide assistance to engineers and technicians | 4 to 3.5 Lakhs per annum |
Top Recruiters in Aeronautical Engineering
There are a number of private and government companies that hire Aeronautical Engineers in both India and abroad.
| 1. Air India | Owned by Air India Limited |
| 2. Civil Aviation Department | Includes both private and public non-military airlines |
| 3. Aeronautical Development Establishment | Laboratory of India’s Defense research and development |
| 4. Defense Research and Development Laboratories | Deals with designing and flight evolution of missile system for Indian armed Forces |
| 5. Hindustan Aeronautical Limited (HAL) | Governed under Indian Ministry of Defense. Headquarter in Benguluru, India |
| 6. National Aeronautics Lab (NAL) | A constituent of CSIR Council of scientific and Industrial Research. Established in 1959. It is only Indian R&D laboratory in country’s civilian sector |
| 7. Pawan Hans | New Delhi based miniratna helicopter company |
| 8. Indian Air Force | Air branch of Indian Armed forces. Ranked Fourth globally |
Apart from these Aeronautical Engineers may consider working in Boeing, NASA, ISRO, DRDO etc.. Therefore, as we’ve learned from the article Aeronautical Engineering and career in it is up and coming branch of Engineering that both challenges and inspires the student to learn and innovate in the Aviation Industry.
FAQs Related to Aeronautical Engineering
You must have passed qualifying exam according to the eligibility criteria. For Under Graduates, you must have PCM as subjects and acquired minimum 75% aggregate marks. Then you have to secure a good rank in JEE Mains and JEE Advanced. Then you can apply for a good institute.
If a candidate has a good command over mathematics and Physics and has considerable ability in analytical problems then it is not hard but merely challenging and interesting.
There are many suitable private colleges that conduct their own entrance exams for admissions as given above. IITs and NITs are also good choices to complete the course from.
Annual income of Aeronautical Engineers vary from one field of specialization to another and also from the experience and progress in a particular field made by the engineer.
Yes, overseas company hire graduates in their companies based on their work profiles and personal interviews.
Yes, the Air Division of Indian Armed forces recruit Aeronautical Engineers in Research and Development (R&D ) Sector. They research and design new fighting aircrafts and war missiles.
