Aviation Ground Specialist

On an aviation ground specialist apprenticeship course, you’ll supervise the safe arrival, turnaround and departure of aircraft.

An aviation ground specialist may work in a commercial airport, military base/aerodrome, heliport, or another airfield type. You will be in charge of an aircraft arrival, turnaround, and departure, as well as the management of the aviation business. 

Your duties may involve aircraft loading and unloading, air traffic control, airside movement of planes and vehicles, and both airside and landside passenger handling.

You’ll be part of a combined team where interaction with colleagues is essential, and you’ll be an integral part of a well-coordinated operation. This apprenticeship will most likely lead to an aviation operations specialist career, with the possibility of advancement to an aviation operations manager.

What you’ll learn

On an aviation ground specialist apprenticeship course, you’ll learn to:

• Monitor the area of responsibility for compliance with aviation legislation and organisational procedures and for resolving and/or reporting hazards.
• Maintain aviation security in one’s area of operations, for example, by addressing people in restricted zones and recording and reporting security incidents.
• Monitor compliance with rules, procedures, and regulations in an aviation context within one’s area of responsibility.
• Successfully communicate in the workplace by adapting methods and language to the situation.
• Maximise team performance and accomplish team objectives while embracing equality and inclusiveness.
• Use aviation systems effectively in your role. If defects or errors are detected, remedial action should be taken as quickly as feasible.
• Keep an eye on the area of responsibility and take the appropriate steps to alleviate the consequences of crises, catastrophes, or interruptions.
• Handle dangerous commodities in your area of responsibility with care.

Entry requirements

You’ll usually need:

• Depending on the employer, but likely GCSEs or equivalent qualifications or relevant experience.
• Apprentices without level 2 English and maths will need to achieve this level before taking the end-point assessment.

Assessment methods

The End Point Assessment consists of three distinct assessment methods: 

• On-demand test
• Observation
• Professional discussion

Duration, level, subjects and potential salary upon completion

Apprenticeship standard

More information about the Level 3 Aviation Ground Specialist Apprenticeship standard can be found here.

Apprenticeship end point assessment

For more information about the End Point Assessment Process, please read the Institute of Apprenticeships’ information page.