Survival Equipment Specialists

Background

Military personnel often have hazardous assignments. They depend on survival equipment to protect their lives in case of emergencies. Survival equipment specialists inspect, maintain, and repair survival equipment such as parachutes, aircraft life support equipment, and air-sea rescue equipment.

What They Do

Survival equipment specialists in the military perform some or all of the following duties:

• Inspect parachutes for rips and tangled lines
• Pack parachutes for safe operation
• Repair life rafts and load them with emergency provisions
• Stock aircraft with fire extinguishers, flares, and survival provisions
• Test emergency oxygen regulators on aircraft
• Train crews in the use of survival equipment

Physical Demands

Normal color vision is required to work with color-coded wiring and repair charts.

Special Requirements

No information available.

Helpful Attributes

Helpful attributes include:

• Ability to do work requiring accuracy and attention to detail
• Interest in working for the safety of others

Helpful School Subjects

Helpful school subjects include:

• Science
• Shop mechanics

Helpful Fields of Study

No information available.

Work Environment

Survival equipment specialists in the military work in repair shops on land or aboard ships.

Services offering this career:

• Air Force
• Army
• Coast Guard
• Marine Corps
• Navy

Hiring Practices

To serve in the military, a person must be at least 17; the maximum age for enlistment varies. To enlist, a person must pass a physical exam and an aptitude test. An enlistee must also meet military standards of discipline and be a US citizen or permanent resident alien.

This position is for enlisted personnel.

Wages

The military is competitive with the civilian world when it comes to pay and benefits. All branches offer the same basic pay and benefits.

Pay depends mainly on rank or grade as well as length of service. Bonuses and the situation in which the person is serving (for example: flight duty, sea duty, hazardous duty) also affect pay. 

Cost-of-living increases usually occur every year, based on inflation. The military also pays allowances for food, clothing, and housing. All these factors combined are called Regular Military Compensation (RMC). They should all be considered when comparing military pay to civilian pay.

There are two main parts to RMC: basic pay and allowances. There are also additional incentives for special abilities, training, or hazardous duty.

Check out the RMC Calculator to calculate your RMC based on your inputs.

Training Provided

Job training consists of six to 12 weeks of classroom instruction, including practice in working with survival equipment.

Course content typically includes:

• Maintenance of air-sea rescue equipment
• Maintenance of oxygen equipment
• Parachute rigging techniques
• Repair of inflatable rafts and other survival equipment

Further training occurs on the job and through additional courses.

Civilian Counterparts

Civilian survival equipment specialists work for commercial airlines, parachute rigging and supply companies, survival equipment manufacturing firms, and some government agencies. They perform duties similar to military survival equipment specialists. Those that specialize in parachutes are called parachute riggers.

Employment and Outlook

In peace time the services have about 5,000 survival equipment specialists. In times of military action the number may be different, depending on the type of specialties required. Each year the services need new specialists due to changes in personnel and the demands of the field. After job training, survival equipment specialists work on survival equipment under the close direction of supervisors. With experience, they work with less supervision and perform more challenging tasks. In time, survival equipment specialists may become supervisors assisting in the management of survival equipment repair facilities.