A flight engineer (FE) is a member of the flight crew who is responsible for monitoring and operating the aircraft’s complex systems. Their role is to monitor and manage the aircraft’s engines and critical flight systems. They were often called “air mechanics” early on in aviation, but the position became redundant with the development of computers and electronic microprocessors. Until the 1980s, widebody aircraft required flight engineers, working alongside the captain and first officer.
The narrowbody Boeing 737, which had its maiden flight in 1967, began the process of eliminating the flight engineer. The role persisted in widebody aircraft, including the McDonnell Douglas MD-11, and then in Russia until 2013. Many of the oldest widebody aircraft flying today originally had flight engineers, but they have been retrofitted to eliminate the position. Here is what to know about the continual use of flight engineers.
Almost Gone From Commercial Aviation
The role of the flight engineer is now almost fully gone from the commercial sector, at least among airlines operating Western-built aircraft. This is due to relatively few flight engineer-era airframes still flying, and most of those that are have been upgraded to eliminate the position. The Boeing 747-400 and Boeing 747-8 were built without a flight engineer. Jumbos requiring flight engineers are limited to the relatively few older variants, particularly the 747-200, still in commercial use and that haven’t been upgraded.
Besides being freighters, most of these older 747s fill specialty roles as testbed aircraft or with the military (e.g., VC-25 Air Force One aircraft). That said, a few do remain in commercial service. Other Boeing models that had flight engineers include Boeing 307, Boeing 377, Boeing 707, and Boeing 727. Douglas aircraft that needed them were DC-6, DC-7, and early models of the DC-8 and DC-10. Other examples include the Lockheed L-1011 TriStars, early Airbus A300s, and the Lockheed Constellation.
The widebody aircraft that followed these aircraft, namely the Airbus A310, Airbus A300-600, Boeing 767, and McDonnell Douglas MD-11, did not require flight engineers. Some flight engineer-era aircraft remain in commercial use as freighters, but that doesn’t mean they have flight engineers today. For example. FedEx completed upgrades of its DC-10s in 2021 that removed the need for a flight engineer.
Kyrgyzstan: A Flight Engineer Stronghold
Aerostan is a Kyrgyzstan chartered cargo airline based at Manas International Airport in the capital of Bishkek. According to Planespotters.net, it operates three Boeing 747-200s (averaging 38.2 years old) and a single Airbus A300B4 (now 46.4 years old). As stated, the Boeing 747-200 variant required a flight engineer. The most common older variant of the Airbus A300B4 also required a flight engineer. Given that Aerostan’s A300B4 was built in 1979, it originally required a flight engineer, although it’s unclear if it does now.
It also seems that, unlike FedEx’s DC-10s, Aerostan’s 747-200s have not been upgraded to replace the flight engineer. This is clear thanks to Aerostan posting job positions for a flight engineer. On its website, Aerostan says, “We are hiring a Flight Engineer – B747-200. Duties: Oversee the Boeing 747-200 Aircraft systems.” Applicants need to have Kyrgyz citizenship, have a current Flight Engineer License, speak English, and more. Kyrgyzstan’s Air Charter Service lists flight engineer as one of the highest-paid aviation jobs in the country.
|
Example aircraft in civilian service with flight engineers |
Note |
|---|---|
|
Boeing 747-200 |
Operated by multiple cargo airlines |
|
Airbus A400B4 |
Some or all may have been modified to eliminate FE |
|
Ilyushin Il-76 |
In use by many cargo airlines |
|
Antonov An-124 |
In limited civil use |
According to Planespotters.net, Kyrgyzstan is a stronghold of the A300B4. All five remaining operators of the type listed are in Kyrgyzstan. Operators include Aerostan, Gewan Airways, KAP.kg, Moalem Aviation, and SkyJet. These operate a total of eight A300B4s. Some of these were built as passenger aircraft and have since been converted into freighters. Some later A300B4-200FFCC (Forward Facing Crew Cockpits) were modified to eliminate the flight engineer. It is unclear which of these Kyrgyz A300B4s do or do not require flight engineers.
Vanishingly Rare Commercial Passenger FE Airliners
Iran Air has finally withdrawn the oldest operating passenger Airbus aircraft, an Airbus A300B4 (registered EP-IBG). The A300B4 was withdrawn from passenger service in August 2025, according to data from FlightRadar24. That aircraft was 41 years old at the time of its retirement and had served Iran Air for almost two decades. This A300B4 was one of the very few regular passenger aircraft still in service that likely required a flight engineer.
According to Planespotters.net, Iran Air has now retired all of its A300B4s and A300B2s, although it still has four newer A300-600s in service. It is unclear if there are any other commercial passenger airliners in regular service that still require flight engineers. Cuba’s flag carrier, Cubana de Aviación, operates Russian Ilyushin Il-96-300s and Tupolev Tu-204-100s, but these are updated variants that eliminate the position.
Iran has a collection of old aircraft in service due to sanctions. Similar to how Cubans are forced to keep old cars in service, Iranians have to keep old airframes flying. Still, Iran purchases second-hand aircraft on the black market through shelf companies and eventually retires its oldest aircraft, which are held together with duct tape.
Persisting In Old Cargo Airliners
Other operators of the 747-200 include the Moldovan cargo airline Fly Pro, the Georgian airline Geo-Sky, the Iranian airline Saha Airlines, and Iran Air. Extremely limited numbers of the 747SP and 747-300 Jumbos also remain in use. The only remaining operator of the Boeing 747SP is Pratt & Whitney, which has two examples as testbed aircraft for its engines. However, these are modernized aircraft that do not require a flight engineer. They have been modified with advanced technology and automation.
The largest military transport aircraft still flying is the Antonov An-124 Ruslan. Unlike the C-5M Super Galaxy, exclusively operated by the US Air Force, An-124s are operated by civil airlines as freighters. Civil operators include Ukraine’s Antonov Airlines, the Abu Dhabi-based Maximus Airlines, and Russia’s Volga-Dnepr, although it seems these Russian aircraft will be requisitioned by the Russian Air Force. An-124s require flight engineers.
The Ilyushin Il-76 was the backbone of the Soviet Union’s strategic airlift fleet and remains the backbone of Russia’s strategic airlift capability. It is in use by many militaries around the world and by many civil cargo airlines. Original military and civilian models like the Il-76MD and more modern versions like the Il-76MD-90A require flight engineers. The airline Air Cargo Aviacon operates a fleet of IL-76TDs that require a total of five air crew (including a flight engineer) and four load masters.
Military Aircraft Have Flight Engineers
The largest operator of the 747-200 remains the United States Air Force, which operates them as Presidential transport aircraft and as E-4B Nightwatch “Doomsday” aircraft. These all apparently still require flight engineers. But while the position of flight engineer persists in the US Air Force, it is minimal. Modern US transport and tanker aircraft like the C-17 Globemaster III and the KC-46A Pegasus (based on the Boeing 767) do not require flight engineers.
The KC-135 Stratotanker is the backbone of the US Air Force tanker fleet and was developed from the Boeing 367-80 prototype alongside the Boeing 707 airliner. These tankers originally had flight engineers, but upgrades over time have eliminated this position. The last KC-135 flight engineer retired in 2017. Remaining examples of the US Air Force with flight engineers include the E-3B/G Sentry (based on the 707) and the upgraded C-5M Super Galaxy (requires two engineers).
Aircraft with flight engineers continued for longer in the Soviet Union and later in Russia. The final Russian aircraft built with a flight engineer was a Tupolev Tu-154 in 2013. Today, it is more common to find Soviet/Russian aircraft, particularly military transport aircraft like the Il-76, to feature flight engineers.
Going, Going, But Not Gone
The role of flight engineers has all but been abolished in the United States. Two of the remaining examples in Air Force service, the 747-200 VC-25A and the E-3 Sentry, are well on their way to retirement and replacement. Most airframes in the US that originally had flight engineers have been upgraded to abolish the position. Internationally, the final regular passenger airliner with a flight engineer may have retired in 2025 with Iran Air (A300B4), but this is uncertain.
A few cargo airlines around the world continue to operate old variants of the Boeing 747, Il-96, and An-124 that require flight engineers. Potential other examples of US-built aircraft still flying with engineers include the three remaining operational Douglas DC-8s. There is also one Lockheed L-1011 still airworthy called Stargazer, used by Orbital Sciences (a division of Northrop Grumman) to launch Pegasus rockets carrying satellites.
There may be other types of widebody aircraft still flying with flight engineers, but these are likely to exist in low numbers. Other aircraft with flight engineers include older turboprops like the Lockheed C-130 Hercules. The Hercules’ civilian variant, the Lockheed L-100 Hercules, requires a flight engineer and sometimes a loadmaster. These are in the process of being replaced by the upgraded C-130J Super Hercules and its civilian variant, which don’t require a flight engineer.
