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Where is it easiest to open: Aircraft Manufacturing
17 states, side by side. Operator counts and wages from Census and BLS; licence records matched on “SOC 17-2011” (soc) for Aerospace Engineers. A blank gate means NO RECORD MATCHED, which is not the same as no licence.
| State | Operators | Avg staff | Pay / employee | Gate | Licence titles matched |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CA | 32 | 629.4 | $121,610 | licence | Engineer In Training (E.I.T.); General Engineering Contractor |
| FL | 22 | 74.2 | $111,835 | licence | Engineering Intern; Professional Engineer |
| TX | 20 | 1097.4 | $135,689 | licence | ENGINEER, PROFESSIONAL; PODIATRIST |
| WA | 14 | 3472.1 | $110,633 | licence | Engineer |
| KS | 9 | 865.7 | $98,869 | exam | Professional Engineer |
| AZ | 9 | 524.7 | $95,014 | licence | Engineer/Aeronautical |
| OR | 8 | 51.9 | $69,723 | licence | Engineer, Licensed Professional |
| AL | 8 | 440.9 | $106,301 | exam | Licensed Professional Engineer |
| CT | 5 | 42.0 | $82,776 | exam | Engineer-in-training; Professional Engineer |
| GA | 4 | 2276.8 | $115,264 | exam | Engineer In-Training; Professional Engineer |
| NY | 4 | 510.5 | $135,903 | exam | Professional Engineer |
| CO | 3 | 3.0 | $52,778 | exam | Engineer Intern; Professional Engineer |
| OK | 3 | 149.7 | $61,922 | licence | Engineer Intern |
| NV | 3 | 10.7 | $46,875 | not matched | — |
| ID | 3 | 2.0 | $89,500 | exam | Engineer; Engineer Intern |
| UT | 3 | 4.0 | $62,167 | licence | PROFESSIONAL ENGINEER |
| NM | 3 | 38.0 | $102,991 | exam | Engineering Intern Certification; Professional Engineers |
Axes are shown side by side and deliberately NOT collapsed into a ranking. A composite would be a score with no measured interval, and an unmeasured score is the thing this product exists to argue against. A high licence gate is a cost to enter and a moat once cleared — which of those matters more is the operator's call, not ours.
Licence data courtesy of CareerOneStop, sponsored by the U.S. Department of Labor. Free to read, no account, always — a condition of the data licence as well as our own position.