Updated October 2, 2026. Verified against 2026-27 school cost sheets, catalogs and tuition schedules, accreditor disclosures and FAA pass-rate data. How we verify.
Florida has 18 FAA-certificated A&P mechanic programs taking new students, plus Embry-Riddle’s, which has paused admissions. Twelve are public: district technical colleges and state colleges that cost Florida residents about $6,000–$18,000 for both ratings. Six private schools run $36,000–$53,000. Programs cluster around Orlando, Miami, Tampa Bay and the Panhandle.
Key Takeaways
- Lowest cost: Florida State College at Jacksonville (about $6,324 plus tools), Pensacola State College (about $6,435 in tuition), Northwest Florida State College ($6,458) and George T. Baker in Miami (about $5,760 in tuition at $2.56 per clock hour).
- Fastest: Broward College’s express format and National Aviation Academy’s AMT program each take about 13–14 months.
- Highest FAA pass rates: Eastern Florida State College (98.7%), Lively Technical College (95.6%), Embry-Riddle (93.3%) and FSCJ (92.9%).
- Night classes: George T. Baker, Broward, National Aviation Academy, AIM Orlando and International AeroTech Academy offer evening or night schedules.
- Recent changes: Aviator College lost its accreditation and closed its Fort Pierce campus in April 2026. US Aviation Academy opened a new maintenance school at Kissimmee Gateway Airport, where Aviator had run its A&P program, in May 2026. Embry-Riddle’s A&P associate degree is not accepting applications.
Compare schools by metro: Orlando and Central Florida A&P schools · Miami and South Florida A&P schools
Florida A&P Schools Compared
Schools are grouped by region. Costs cover both the Airframe and Powerplant ratings. Florida technical colleges charge by the clock hour and state colleges by the credit; where a school publishes a cost sheet, we use its total.
| School | Full A&P path | Length | Cost (Florida resident) | Starts | FAA pass rate* |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aviation Institute of Maintenance – Orlando Casselberry | AMT certificate (78 credits) | 21 months | $52,077 (2023-24, latest published) | Next start Nov 2, 2026 | 68.3% |
| US Aviation Academy – Kissimmee Kissimmee Gateway Airport | A&P program | 16 months | About $36,000 all-in | Not published | New (opened May 2026) |
| Epic Flight Academy New Smyrna Beach | A&P (2,250 hours) | About 15–16 months | $36,995 (includes FAA exams) | Next Nov 30, 2026 | 86.0% |
| Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Daytona Beach | AS Aviation Maintenance Science (66 credits) | 4 semesters | About $57,076 (2025-26 rates) | Not accepting applications | 93.3% |
| Eastern Florida State College Melbourne airport | Airframe + Powerplant (2,250 hours) | 80 weeks | $17,996 (includes tools, lab fees) | January and August | 98.7% |
| International AeroTech Academy Lakeland | A&P (1,885–2,000 hours) | 15 months day; 22 night | $36,000 | About every 14 weeks | 73.5% |
| Traviss Technical College Lakeland Linder airport | Airframe + Powerplant (1,350 hours each) | Not published | $10,633 | Not published | Not reported separately |
| National Aviation Academy – Tampa Bay Clearwater | AMT program (2,000 hours) | 14 months | $41,650 | Day or night shifts | 80.2% |
| George T. Baker Aviation Technical College Miami | Airframe + Powerplant (about 2,250 hours) | About 20 months | About $5,760 tuition + materials | Aug, Jan, Apr | 85.2% |
| Universal Technical Institute – Miramar Miramar | A&P Technician diploma (1,950 hours) | 78 weeks (about 18 months) | $53,095 | Not published | Too few tests |
| Broward College Pembroke Pines | Airframe + Powerplant certificates (60 credits) | 13 months express; 18–19 traditional | $7,074 | Express: Spring 2027 | 84.7% |
| Charlotte Technical College Punta Gorda Airport | Airframe + Powerplant (2,250 hours) | About 17 months | $14,130 (includes tools) | Powerplant Oct 16, 2026; Airframe Feb 10, 2027 | 86.0% |
| Lorenzo Walker Technical College Naples | Airframe + Powerplant (about 2,205 hours) | About 22 months | $15,566 (includes tools, FAA tests) | Powerplant Dec 10, 2026 | 87.5% |
| Florida State College at Jacksonville Cecil Airport | Three technical certificates (60 credits) | About 5 terms | $6,324 + tools | Fall, spring, summer | 92.9% |
| Lively Technical College Tallahassee | Airframe + Powerplant (2,160 hours) | About 2 years | $8,521 (2025-26 rates) | Fall and spring | 95.6% |
| Northwest Florida State College Crestview / Niceville | Airframe + Powerplant (about 2,250 hours) | About 15 months per certificate | $6,458 + lab fees | Not published | 89.0% |
| George Stone Technical College Pensacola | Airframe + Powerplant (1,350 hours each) | About 2 years (estimate) | About $9,750 (estimate) | Not published | 92.1% |
| Pensacola State College Pensacola airport | Airframe + Powerplant (1,350 hours each) | 18 months | About $6,435 tuition + fees | Fall | Not yet in FAA data |
| Tom P. Haney Technical College Panama City | Airframe + Powerplant (1,800 hours) | 68 weeks | $13,566 | Applications open Oct 20, 2026 | Too few tests |
*Combined General, Airframe and Powerplant written-test pass rate, August 1, 2023–December 31, 2024, from the FAA’s pass-rate report. The FAA labels this data preliminary. Public-college figures are tuition and required fees for Florida residents, including tools where the school’s cost sheet does; private-school figures are full program charges. Traviss Technical College teaches adults at the Central Florida Aerospace Academy, a high school program whose FAA results are reported together.
What A&P School Costs in Florida
Technical colleges
Florida’s school-district technical colleges charge Florida residents about $2.56–$4.34 per clock hour including fees. Both ratings total about 1,800–2,250 hours. Charlotte Technical College’s cost sheets total $14,130 for both ratings including a $2,500 tool kit, and Lorenzo Walker’s total $15,566 including tools, books and FAA written tests. Out-of-state students pay about four times the resident hourly rate.
State colleges
FSCJ now teaches A&P as 60 college credits at $104.88 per credit for residents ($401.27 out of state). Broward charges $117.90 per credit, about $7,074 for 60 credits. Eastern Florida State’s cost estimate is the highest public figure, $17,996, because its lab fees include tools and supplies.
Private schools
UTI Miramar lists $53,095 for students enrolling from August 2026, with books included and up to $2,000 in FAA test fees covered. AIM’s latest published price for Orlando is $52,077 (2023-24). National Aviation Academy charges $20.75 per clock hour, $41,650 for its 2,000-hour program. Epic Flight Academy ($36,995), US Aviation Academy (about $36,000) and International AeroTech Academy ($36,000) price their programs to include FAA testing or books.
Florida A&P Schools by Region
Orlando and Central Florida
Compare all Orlando-area A&P schools side by side.
Aviation Institute of Maintenance – Orlando (Casselberry)
AIM’s Orlando Metro campus in Casselberry has an 18,000-square-foot hangar and runs day and evening classes. It offers the 21-month AMT certificate and, at only two AIM campuses, the 27-month Aviation Maintenance Technical Engineer program, which adds avionics. AIM reports 68% graduation and 77% employment for its 2021-22 cohort; graduates passed 68.3% of FAA written tests, one of the lower rates in Florida.
US Aviation Academy – Kissimmee
US Aviation Academy opened an FAA Part 147 maintenance school at Kissimmee Gateway Airport in May 2026, in facilities where Aviator College previously ran its A&P program. Its 16-month program costs about $36,000 including tools, digital textbooks and first attempts at every FAA exam. It is not VA-approved in Florida.
Epic Flight Academy (New Smyrna Beach)
Epic trains at New Smyrna Beach Airport, Monday–Thursday, 8 a.m.–3 p.m. Its 2,250-hour A&P program costs $36,995, paid course by course, including the FAA written and oral and practical exams.
Eastern Florida State College (Melbourne)
Eastern Florida State trains at Orlando Melbourne International Airport, Monday–Thursday, with January and August starts and a second location in Titusville from Fall 2026. Its graduates passed 151 of 153 FAA written tests, the best rate in Florida.
Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University (Daytona Beach)
Embry-Riddle’s A&P associate degree is not accepting applications. Its bachelor’s now pairs with Daytona State College, whose new A&P associate degree starts in Fall 2026 at Embry-Riddle’s Aviation Complex, pending FAA approval.
Lakeland: International AeroTech Academy and Traviss Technical College
Two programs train near Lakeland Linder International Airport. International AeroTech Academy, now marketed as A&P Mechanic Institute, charges $36,000 with day (15-month) and night (22-month) shifts. Traviss Technical College teaches adults at the Central Florida Aerospace Academy for about $10,633.
Tampa Bay
National Aviation Academy (Clearwater)
NAA has trained mechanics in the Tampa Bay area since 1970, with a hangar at St. Pete–Clearwater International Airport. The 2,000-hour AMT program takes 14 months on a day or night shift; NAA reports 86% graduation and 91% placement. Manatee Technical College plans a new program starting January 2027.
Miami and South Florida
Compare all Miami-area A&P schools.
George T. Baker Aviation Technical College (Miami)
Baker, a Miami-Dade public technical college near Miami International Airport, is one of Florida’s largest A&P schools: its graduates took 582 FAA written tests in the latest report and passed 85.2%. Airframe and Powerplant run 1,350 hours each, day or evening, with starts each trimester.
Universal Technical Institute – Miramar
UTI’s Miramar campus received FAA approval for its 78-week A&P Technician program in February 2024. It is too new for meaningful FAA pass-rate data.
Broward College
Broward’s Emil Buehler Aviation Institute teaches A&P in a traditional format (18–19 months, day or night) or a 13-month express format, Tuesday–Saturday; the next express cohort starts in Spring 2027.
Southwest Florida: Charlotte Technical College and Lorenzo Walker Technical College
Charlotte Technical College trains at Punta Gorda Airport, and Lorenzo Walker in Naples. Both publish complete cost sheets ($14,130 and $15,566 for both ratings) and run daytime schedules.
North Florida and the Panhandle
Florida State College at Jacksonville
FSCJ trains at Cecil Airport and, for 2026-27, converted its A&P programs to college-credit technical certificates: 60 credits over about five terms. Its graduates passed 92.9% of FAA written tests.
Lively Technical College (Tallahassee)
Lively trains at its Aviation Campus near Tallahassee International Airport, with partners including StandardAero and PSA Airlines. Its graduates passed 95.6% of FAA written tests, and both ratings cost about $8,521 at 2025-26 rates.
Pensacola, Crestview and Panama City
George Stone Technical College in Pensacola has a 92.1% pass rate and reports 90%+ placement. Pensacola State College started a separate on-airport program with ST Engineering in 2024. Northwest Florida State College trains at its Aviation Center of Excellence in Crestview, and Tom P. Haney Technical College in Panama City runs a morning schedule.
How to Become an A&P Mechanic in Florida
- Complete a Part 147 program (about 13 months to 2 years in Florida), or document 30 months of hands-on maintenance experience.
- Pass three written tests (General, Airframe, Powerplant) at an FAA-approved testing center.
- Pass the oral and practical exams with a Designated Mechanic Examiner.
- Receive your FAA Mechanic Certificate with Airframe and Powerplant ratings. You must be at least 18. Florida has no separate state license.
Mechanics who already qualify through experience can take short test-prep courses such as AMT School Miami ($590–$1,290 in 2026); these are not Part 147 schools.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the cheapest A&P school in Florida?
For Florida residents, FSCJ (about $6,324 plus tools), Pensacola State, Northwest Florida State and George T. Baker all cost about $6,000–$6,500 in tuition and fees for both ratings, before tools and books.
What A&P schools are in Orlando?
Aviation Institute of Maintenance in Casselberry and US Aviation Academy in Kissimmee, with Epic Flight Academy (New Smyrna Beach), Eastern Florida State College (Melbourne) and two Lakeland schools within about an hour. See the Orlando comparison.
What A&P schools are in Miami?
George T. Baker Aviation Technical College, UTI Miramar and Broward College. See the Miami comparison.
Is Aviator College still open?
No. ACCSC withdrew Aviator College’s accreditation, and its Fort Pierce campus closed in April 2026. US Aviation Academy now runs an A&P program at Kissimmee Gateway Airport, where Aviator’s maintenance school operated.
Which Florida A&P school has the best pass rate?
Eastern Florida State College (98.7%), Lively Technical College (95.6%), Embry-Riddle (93.3%) and FSCJ (92.9%) led for August 2023–December 2024.
How We Verify This Information
We check every figure against primary sources: each school’s 2026-27 cost sheet, catalog and tuition schedule; accreditor outcome disclosures; Florida Department of Education program frameworks; and the FAA’s pass-rate report. Where a school does not publish a figure, we say so. Florida moved its Airframe and Powerplant career certificates to new program codes for 2026-27, and some school pages still show the old versions. Verified October 2, 2026.
Sources
- FAA AMTS pass rates by exam, Aug 2023–Dec 2024
- Florida Department of Education – 2026-27 aviation program frameworks
- UTI Miramar campus catalog
- National Aviation Academy – 2026-27 tuition and cost of attendance
- Eastern Florida State College – estimated expenses
- FSCJ – tuition and fees
- Charlotte Technical College – Aviation Airframe Mechanics
- ACCSC – withdrawal actions