Air Traffic Controllers
Transportation and Material Moving · SOC 53-2021
AI exposure from the Anthropic Economic Index (2025); salary from BLS; skills from O*NET. See /sources.
Decision card
Career Evidence Passport
SOC 53-2021 evidence across exposure, wages, projections, postings, certified LCAs, skills, and transitions.
- SOC exposure
- 0.0%
- Low · Anthropic AEI
- Automation friction
- 60/100
- High friction; broad SOC seed ORS job-requirements coverage.
- Wages
- $148,080
- No H-1B offered-wage row for this SOC.
- Projected openings
- 2,300
- BLS EP 2024–2034; employment change +1.2%.
- Observed/proxy demand
- —
- FY— certified LCAs; 3,021 postings in 2025.
Skill evidence
Transition context
- H-1B values are certified Labor Condition Applications, not visa approvals.
- Job postings are seed-static / seed-derived; treat as provider-ready proxy coverage until observed provider data is wired in.
- Transition matches are directional skill-overlap context, not placement guarantees.
- This release is a FutureGrid broad-SOC seed derived from public BLS ORS requirement concepts and categories, not direct occupation-level ORS survey estimates. It describes job requirements, not worker ability, AI capability, or displacement probability. Automation friction is a FutureGrid derived score and should be read alongside exposure, demand, wage, and projection signals.
AI Exposure Analysis
Across AI measures
Multiple exposure lenses for this occupation.
AI could do ~34.1% of this role but only ~0% is currently done with AI — a large capability-vs-adoption gap.
Top Skills
H-1B Visa Sponsorship Demand
View full H-1B trends →No H-1B certified LCA filings recorded for this occupation in FY2016–FY2025.
O*NET occupation profile
What this work involves
Control air traffic on and within vicinity of airport, and movement of air traffic between altitude sectors and control centers, according to established procedures and policies. Authorize, regulate, and control commercial airline flights according to government or company regulations to expedite and ensure flight safety.
Common titles: Air Traffic Control Specialist (ATCS), Air Traffic Controller (ATC), Center Air Traffic Controller (Center ATC), Certified Professional Controller (CPC), Control Tower Operator, Enroute Air Traffic Controller (Enroute ATC)
Representative Tasks
- •Inform pilots about nearby planes or potentially hazardous conditions, such as weather, speed and direction of wind, or visibility problems.
- •Issue landing and take-off authorizations or instructions.
- •Transfer control of departing flights to traffic control centers and accept control of arriving flights.
- •Provide flight path changes or directions to emergency landing fields for pilots traveling in bad weather or in emergency situations.
- •Alert airport emergency services in cases of emergency or when aircraft are experiencing difficulties.
Detailed Work Activities
- •Notify others of emergencies, problems, or hazards.
- •Communicate with others to coordinate vehicle movement.
- •Coordinate flight control or management activities.
- •Respond to transportation emergencies.
- •Direct vehicle traffic.
Tools & Technologies
Employment Projections & AI Exposure
Employment & Wage Trend
BLS OEWS, 2019–2025
Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS). See /sources.
Sector Comparison
| Metric | This Career | Sector Average |
|---|---|---|
| AI Exposure | 0.0% | 0.2% |
| Outlook | Average | 20% Bright |
| Median Salary | $148,080 | N/A |
| AI Resiliency | 100/100 | N/A |