If you are a professional working in the aviation industry, it would make sense for you to seek out the best places to live for aviation jobs in the US. It is a fact that some states in the United States are better poised in terms of offering more promising job prospects to the personnel involved in the aviation industry. Today we bring you the top states for those looking for a job in the aviation industry.
Whether you are an airline pilot, a flight attendant, an aircraft mechanic, an aircraft service technician, an air traffic controller or just someone involved in some capacity with the aircraft industry, it is important for your career that you consider the option of relocating to these states in order to give yourself the best opportunity to succeed in your chosen line of work. If you are an aircraft mechanic and service technician, you might be looking for something more specific to your field, which is why we have also compiled a list of the Best States for Aircraft Mechanics and Service Technicians.
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If you are a professional involved in the aviation industry, you will naturally gravitate towards states that are able to attract investments from aviation employers. The states that are able to attract aviation employers are in turn good for aviation employees. This is because the greater number of aviation employers in a given state, the better the health of the aviation industry, which will mean better job prospects for potential employees. Not only will a high number of aviation employers result in higher number of job opportunities but it will also bode well for your long-term job security.
In order to compile our list, we looked at the data coming from a study conducted by Price Waterhouse Cooper (PwC) which sought to investigate the attractiveness of each state for commercial aviation companies based on a weighted average of these four crucial factors:
-Taxes
-Operating costs
-Industry size
-Educational attainment
These four factors capture the main reasons that make a state hospitable towards aviation companies, namely government support in the form of tax breaks, salary costs, the level of competence of workers, etc.
For the purpose of our list, we are most interested in the third variable, industry size, which takes into account not only the existing size of the labor force e.g. aerospace technicians, engineers and other aviation professionals, but also the growth rate within the labor force. This provides a holistic picture of the health of the aviation industry in the state from the perspective of the employees.
Furthermore, the size of the industry is not only based on the employees directly working for the aerospace companies but also on the workers contributing indirectly within the aviation industry such as metal fabricators and other such professionals.
In order to make the decision easier for you, we also included the cost of living index to better help you judge the best state to live for aviation jobs. The cost of living index is basically a relative comparison of the cost of living in one locality compared to another locality. The latest numbers for the first quarter of 2017 cost of living index were taken from the database maintained by MERIC (Missouri Economic Research and Information Center).
Check out our list of best places to live for aviation jobs in the US!
10. Massachusetts
Industry size rank (according to PwC): 10th
Overall attractiveness ranking to aviation companies: 21st
Cost of Living rank: 46th
Cost of Living index score: 129.4
We begin our list with Massachusetts. The state came in 2nd on PwC’s educational attainment ranking which helped it get to 21st on most attractive states for airline companies. But a prohibitively high cost of living rank of 46th might make you want to think twice before shifting here.
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9. Washington
Industry size rank (according to PwC): 7th
Overall attractiveness ranking to aviation companies: 12th
Cost of Living rank: 37th
Cost of Living index score: 106.1
The 7th position on our list of best places to live for aviation jobs in the US is a 3-way tie and we have had to resort to the overall attractiveness ranking to break the tie. First up is Washington, which is ranked 9th due to its score of 12th on the overall attractiveness ranking to aviation companies.
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8. Illinois
Industry size rank (according to PwC): 7th
Overall attractiveness ranking to aviation companies: 11th
Cost of Living rank: 25th
Cost of Living index score: 106.1
Home to the headquarters of The Boeing Company, Illinois is also ranked 7th on our list in terms of industry size but 8th on our list. Illinois is also home to the O’Hare International Airport, which came as the 2nd busiest airport in the United States in 2015 according to passenger traffic. With that many number of passengers at only one airport, there is bound to be plenty of aviation jobs in Illinois.
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7. Utah
Industry size rank (according to PwC): 7th
Overall attractiveness ranking to aviation companies: 4th
Cost of Living rank: 17th
Cost of Living index score: 94
Coming in 7th on our list of best places to live for aviation jobs in the US is Utah, the Beehive state. With its generous taxation rules on the airline industry, Utah is propelled to the position of fourth most favorable state towards airline companies.
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6. California
Industry size rank (according to PwC): 6th
Overall attractiveness ranking to aviation companies: 20th
Cost of Living rank: 49th
Cost of Living index score: 136.3
The Golden State of California comes in 6th on the industry rank size and despite the comparatively high cost of living remains a favorable destination for those looking for work in the aviation industry. Home to Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), California is a major hub for the aviation industry.
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5. Florida
Industry size rank (according to PwC): 5th
Overall attractiveness ranking to aviation companies: 1st
Cost of Living rank: 30th
Cost of Living index score: 100.4
The Sunshine State comes in number 5 on our list of the best places to live for aviation jobs in the US, and it looks like the sun sure is shining down on Florida as it was ranked by PwC as the number one most attractive destination for aviation companies due to its favorable tax rank and low overall operating costs. This is little surprise as Florida does host the headquarters of the iconic Pan American World Airways. Florida sure is the place to be for all major players in the aviation industry.
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4. Texas
Industry size rank (according to PwC): 4th
Overall attractiveness ranking to aviation companies: 8th
Cost of Living rank: 8th
Cost of Living index score: 90.4
The Lone Star state comes in number four on our list of best places to live for aviation jobs in the US. Playing host to the headquarters of American Airlines, the largest airline in the United States, certainly has its perks and one of them is having a high availability of jobs in the aviation and aerospace industries.
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3. Michigan
Industry size rank (according to PwC): 3rd
Overall attractiveness ranking to aviation companies: 2nd
Cost of Living rank: 4th
Cost of Living index score: 89.5
Continuing the theme of states from the Mid-West, on number three is a state from the heartland of America, Michigan, the Great Lakes state. Couple that with an excellent cost of living rank of being the fourth cheapest state to live in, as well as a being the second most coveted state among aviation companies, and you have Michigan as a prime destination for aviation industry professionals.
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2. Pennsylvania
Industry size rank (according to PwC): 2nd
Overall attractiveness ranking to aviation companies: 18th
Cost of Living rank: 35th
Cost of Living index score: 102.1
Number 2 on our list of best places to live for aviation jobs in the US is Pennsylvania, the Keystone state. Despite its high ranking in terms of industry size, high taxation within the airline field makes Pennsylvania a so-so state for aviation companies where it ranks 18th on the favorability index which is why you should consider the number 1 entry on our list which is…
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1. Ohio
Industry size rank (according to PwC): 1st
Overall attractiveness ranking to aviation companies: 3rd
Cost of Living rank: 14th
Cost of Living index score: 92.7
Finally, number 1 on our list of best places to live for aviation jobs in the US is Ohio, which stands proud and tall as the number 1 state in terms of a number of workers in the aviation industry as well as high prospects of employment growth within the airline business. It also managed to bag the 3rd position in overall attractiveness towards aviation companies which means that there is sure to be a slew of jobs in aviation available to people in Ohio in the near future.
And this rounds up our list of the very best places to live for aviation jobs in the US. We wish you all the very best in your search for your dream job.
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