Transportation
Airport Ground Crew
SOC 53-6061
Load baggage, marshal aircraft, and support flight operations on the ramp.
The job
Median pay
$38k
$31k to $42k typical range
Outlook, 2025 to 2035
Growing fast
+6.0% projected
Openings a year
4k
BLS projection
Typical education
High school
Our model
AI displacement risk
Moderate
How much of this job AI may do instead of the person
Works with AI
5/100
AI alongside the person rather than instead of them
AI exposure
27th pct
More exposed than 27% of occupations · modeled estimate · 99th pct in Microsoft's data
Future-proof
46/100
Key skills
- Active Listening
- Speaking
- Monitoring
- Reading Comprehension
- Critical Thinking
- Active Learning
Pay and jobs by state
BLS OEWS May 2025, 51 states. Sorted by jobs; per 1,000 is jobs per thousand workers in the state; vs national compares that rate with the country's. A tilde marks a figure estimated from the parent occupation group where BLS publishes none.
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Texas | 5,170 | 0.4 | 2.1× | $31k |
| New York | 3,190 | 0.3 | 1.9× | $42k |
| California | 2,810 | 0.2 | 0.9× | $43k |
| Florida | 2,590 | 0.3 | 1.5× | $30k |
| Illinois | 1,700 | 0.3 | 1.6× | $39k |
| Massachusetts | 1,330 | 0.4 | 2.1× | $43k |
| Ohio | 1,049 | 0.2 | 1.1× | $26k~ |
| Georgia | 1,042 | 0.2 | 1.2× | $26k~ |
| Maryland | 950 | 0.3 | 2.0× | $33k |
| Washington | 900 | 0.3 | 1.4× | $42k |
All 51 states
| State | Jobs | Per 1,000 | vs national | Median pay |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Colorado | 870 | 0.3 | 1.7× | $38k |
| Michigan | 840 | 0.2 | 1.1× | $40k |
| Indiana | 713 | 0.2 | 1.3× | $38k~ |
| Washington DC | 710 | 1.0 | 5.8× | $53k |
| New Jersey | 640 | 0.1 | 0.9× | $40k |
| Hawaii | 610 | 1.0 | 5.6× | $42k |
| Pennsylvania | 500 | 0.1 | 0.5× | $33k |
| Missouri | 480 | 0.2 | 0.9× | $34k |
| Minnesota | 459 | 0.2 | 0.9× | $40k~ |
| Kentucky | 447 | 0.2 | 1.3× | $45k~ |
| Alabama | 412 | 0.2 | 1.1× | $33k~ |
| Louisiana | 371 | 0.2 | 1.1× | $33k~ |
| Utah | 370 | 0.2 | 1.2× | $26k |
| Oregon | 341 | 0.2 | 1.0× | $40k~ |
| Wisconsin | 330 | 0.1 | 0.6× | $25k |
| Tennessee | 300 | 0.1 | 0.5× | $27k |
| Iowa | 291 | 0.2 | 1.1× | $39k~ |
| Kansas | 267 | 0.2 | 1.1× | $38k~ |
| Arkansas | 266 | 0.2 | 1.2× | $33k~ |
| Arizona | 250 | 0.1 | 0.4× | $37k |
| Mississippi | 243 | 0.2 | 1.2× | $32k~ |
| Alaska | 220 | 0.7 | 3.9× | $54k |
| Nebraska | 181 | 0.2 | 1.0× | $38k~ |
| Idaho | 145 | 0.2 | 1.0× | $38k~ |
| New Mexico | 128 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $35k~ |
| South Carolina | 120 | 0.1 | 0.3× | $29k |
| West Virginia | 119 | 0.2 | 1.0× | $32k~ |
| Connecticut | 110 | 0.1 | 0.4× | $34k |
| North Carolina | 110 | 0.0 | 0.1× | $36k |
| New Hampshire | 101 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $37k~ |
| Maine | 97 | 0.2 | 0.9× | $38k~ |
| Nevada | 90 | 0.1 | 0.3× | $32k |
| Delaware | 85 | 0.2 | 1.0× | $39k~ |
| North Dakota | 85 | 0.2 | 1.1× | $42k~ |
| South Dakota | 79 | 0.2 | 1.0× | $34k~ |
| Montana | 78 | 0.2 | 0.9× | $39k~ |
| Virginia | 70 | 0.0 | 0.1× | $39k |
| Rhode Island | 62 | 0.1 | 0.7× | $38k~ |
| Wyoming | 51 | 0.2 | 1.0× | $40k~ |
| Vermont | 41 | 0.1 | 0.8× | $39k~ |
| Oklahoma | 40 | 0.0 | 0.1× | $33k |
Top metro areas
- New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ3,410 jobs · $42k median
- Houston-Pasadena-The Woodlands, TX1,780 jobs · $31k median
- Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA1,200 jobs · $39k median
- Boston-Cambridge-Newton, MA-NH1,150 jobs · $43k median
- Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL990 jobs · $32k median
- Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA820 jobs · $42k median
- Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV790 jobs · $49k median
- Denver-Aurora-Centennial, CO780 jobs · $38k median
Explore the rankings
Explore Airport Ground Crew interactively →Pay and outlook from BLS (OEWS 2025, Employment Projections 2025-2035). Skills and work activities from O*NET 30.3. AI exposure and future-proof scores are modeled estimates. How these numbers are made.