Transportation

Air Traffic Controllers

SOC 53-2021

Direct aircraft on the ground and in the air to keep them safely separated.

Median pay

$148k

$105k to $191k typical range

Outlook

Growing

2k openings / yr

Education

Associate's plus FAA academy

AI exposure

56%

modeled estimate · 60th pct in Microsoft's data

Future-proof

58/100

Key skills

Active Listening
Speaking
Critical Thinking
Monitoring
Reading Comprehension
Active Learning

Where this ranks

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Pay and outlook from BLS (OEWS 2025, Employment Projections 2024-2034). Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How we model AI exposure.