Organization and Significant Accounting Policies Other (Details) $ in Thousands	3 Months Ended								12 Months Ended
	Apr. 30, 2017 USD ($)	Jan. 28, 2017 USD ($)	Oct. 29, 2016 USD ($)	Jul. 30, 2016 USD ($)	Apr. 30, 2016 USD ($)	Jan. 30, 2016 USD ($)	Oct. 31, 2015 USD ($)	Aug. 01, 2015 USD ($)	Apr. 30, 2017 USD ($) item shares	Apr. 30, 2016 USD ($) shares	Apr. 30, 2015 USD ($) shares
Self-Insurance Liability
Estimated self-insurance liability of employee medical claim	$ 1,329				$ 1,176				$ 1,329	$ 1,176
Revenue Recognition
Number of key factors that impact reliability of management's estimates for revenue recognition | item									2
Maximum term of contract, considered as a factor in management estimates									6 months
Research and Development
Cost of sales									$ 29,790	34,786	$ 24,776
Revenue from customer-funded R&D									43,597	53,546	36,998
Foreign Currency Transaction [Abstract]
Foreign currency gain (loss)									(284)	(63)	(580)
Lease Accounting
Deferred rent	1,719				1,714				1,719	1,714
Advertising Costs
Advertising expenses									337	486	416
(Loss) Earnings Per Share
Net income attributable to AeroVironment	$ 30,476	$ (2,183)	$ (4,172)	$ (11,642)	$ 5,364	$ 6,164	$ 4,419	$ (6,981)	$ 12,479	$ 8,966	$ 2,895
Denominator for basic earnings per share:
Weighted average common shares (in shares) | shares									23,059,045	22,936,413	22,868,733
Dilutive effect of employee stock options, restricted stock and restricted stock units (in shares) | shares									248,693	217,080	277,264
Denominator for diluted earnings per share (in shares) | shares									23,307,738	23,153,493	23,145,997
Number of shares reserved for issuance that are anti-dilutive | shares									86,000	22,000	43,000