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SOC 53-2021 · O*NET 53-2021.00
Air traffic controllers authorise, sequence and hand over aircraft in a tower, an approach control facility or an area control centre under established procedures, in order to maintain safe separation, issue accurate instructions and record the operating process; entry is centred on the medical, training and licence standards.
Model impact index for three equally weighted representative core tasks; not a measured share of working time or a job-loss probability. floor((50+25+25)/3+0.5)=33; fermatmind-ai-impact-v1; 2026-10-18.
In one sentence: a safety-critical post that authorises, sequences and hands over aircraft in a tower, an approach control facility or an area control centre under established procedures, in order to maintain safe separation, issue accurate instructions and record the operating process.
Insufficient evidence: the precise Chinese occupational wage distribution was not obtained, and NBS serves only as industry background. The checked U.S. 53-2021 figures are: a national median of 148,080 U.S. dollars in 2025, month 5 (May), with P10/P25/P75/P90 at 78,420/104,520/190,570/215,610 U.S. dollars; BLS2025 posts 24,000, growth 2% from 2025 to 2035, and average annual openings 2,100. The wage and projection periods differ; the Chinese qualification is checked against the 2026 rule No. 9 and its applicable exceptions.
People who are more likely to adapt: those who can hold attention for long periods and stay accurate through repeated instructions, are willing to communicate in standard phraseology and accept read-back verification, can handle situations to procedure under pressure rather than improvising, and can accept night, weekend and shift duty. If sustained concentration is hard, strict procedure and supervision are unwelcome, or the person will not stand down from duty when fatigued or unwell, the risk is usually greater.
Air Traffic Controllers (corresponding on the U.S. side to O*NET/BLS 53-2021.00) control air traffic in and around an airport and between sectors at various altitudes and between control centres; under established procedures and policy they authorise, regulate and control aircraft movement in order to expedite and ensure flight safety; the workplace is a tower, an approach control facility or an area control centre. On the mainland China side, civil aviation controllers operate under a licence system: licences are issued and administered centrally by the Civil Aviation Administration of China and are endorsed by category such as aerodrome control, approach control, area control, approach surveillance control, area surveillance control, flight service, operations monitoring and apron control. In boundary terms the occupation is not the same as a pilot flying an aircraft, nor the same as the communication, navigation and surveillance technicians who install and repair the facilities.
Career direction comparison
The table below compares the three control directions inside this occupation with three adjacent occupations; the comparison dimensions are direction, core work and output, key differences, and what it suits better.
| Career direction | Core work and output | Key differences | Best-fit choice |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tower control (aerodrome control) | Manage aircraft and ground vehicles in and near the airport with a combination of visual and radar control, direct taxiing, runway entry, take-off and landing, and watch runway and taxiway occupancy. | Editorial comparison: tower control also covers aircraft near the airport and ground vehicles on the runway and taxiways; traffic, facilities and weather set the tempo, and no uniform ranking of the three directions is given. | People willing to work at a high tempo on a short time scale and also rely on visual observation. |
| Approach control |
AI impact on this career
Insufficient evidence: no AI adoption rate, effect validation, substitution ratio or wage/establishment causal study for this occupation was obtained. The task assistance below is all editorial condition scenarios, and the ONet duties and the HotTech job-posting mentions do not prove actual facility adoption or effect. AI Impact Score 33% is an editorial estimate. Model impact index for three equally weighted representative core tasks; not a measured share of working time or a job-loss probability. floor((50+25+25)/3+0.5)=33; fermatmind-ai-impact-v1; 2026-10-18.The three tasks, ratings and sources are listed in the FermatMind method source record on this page.
FermatMind AI Impact Score estimation method v1
FermatMind / 费马测试 · 2026-10-18
Chinese mainland salary reference
The NBS material on this page is only an industry-sector, unit-type and above-scale position-category background; the occupational title is not used to decide the employer's industry affiliation or an individual's pay. No Chinese wage distribution for this occupation was obtained, and an industry average is not passed off as the occupational median.
On the China side this page uses broad-basis proxies by industry sector and unit type (transport, storage and postal services; public administration, social security and social organisations; information transmission, software and information technology services; and others); these are not a national wage distribution for this occupation, and an industry figure must not be treated as this occupation's median.
Insufficient evidence: no national or by-city wage distribution for the exact occupation of air traffic controller was obtained
Insufficient evidence: this occupation is not listed separately; the neighbouring non-private transport, storage and postal services sector was 133,981 yuan/year in 2025, which is a broad-basis reference only
U.S. pay reference
U.S. 53-2021: a national median of 148,080 U.S. dollars a year and 71.19 U.S. dollars an hour in 2025, month 5 (May), with the P10 boundary at 78,420 and the P90 boundary at 215,610; these are not starting salaries. BLS separately lists a federal government median of 156,250 and an air transport support median of 83,890.
| Position in the wage statistics | Annual wage reference | Conversion boundaries | How to understand this position |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lowest 10% | 78,420 U.S. dollars a year (37.70 U.S. dollars an hour) | Official annual wage, not individual monthly income | Lowest 10%: below 78,420 U.S. dollars a year, on a U.S. single-occupation basis, and not a starting salary or a minimum wage standard. |
| Median (50%) | $148,080/year | Official annual wage, not an individual's actual pay |
Occupation fit guide
Start with three observable behaviours: whether the person can hold attention over long periods and stay accurate through repeated instructions, whether they can communicate in standard phraseology and accept read-back verification, and whether they can handle situations to procedure under pressure rather than improvising. The CRE interest code is a verifiable starting point, but fitness to control is ultimately decided by the medical, training and licence standards.
You may be better suited to： The fit signals come from observable behaviour: whether the person can hold attention over long periods, communicate in standard phraseology and verify the read-back, handle situations to procedure under pressure, and accept night duty and shift work. The CRE interest code is a verifiable starting point.
These situations call for caution： Editorial caution observation: where sustained concentration is hard, procedure is bypassed under pressure, or shift work or strict supervision is unacceptable, first check the actual training and post conditions; no health diagnosis or hiring conclusion is drawn from this.
Do one entry exercise： Do the AT30 fully fictional card version, sequencing and handover exercise to observe the recording method only; the complete task statement and answers are in the entry section, and it is not an attention or selection scale.
Work pressure, risks and occupational boundaries
Four kinds of risk are most worth judging in advance: first, separation and instruction risk (a missed read-back verification, a clearance beyond the authorisation); second, communication and coordination risk (communication degradation, an unclear handover); third, personnel status risk (fatigue and a decline in physiological condition); fourth, data and record risk (over-trusting an automation prompt, an inaccurate or untraceable record). The risks vary with the facility type: the tower is closer to the runway and ground vehicles, approach to dense traffic and track adjustment, and area to sector handover and en-route separation.
Evidence scope: O*NET 53-2021.00 provides the tasks and work context (88% consider precision or accuracy extremely important, 76% consider the consequences of an error extremely serious, and 48% face time pressure every day); the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook provides wages, employment and entry requirements; and the Rules on the Administration of Licences for Civil Aviation Air Traffic Controllers provide the mainland China licence, medical, alcohol and recent-experience requirements. The risk list is an editorial synthesis and contains no incidence probability.
Typical scenario：Continuing to vector without verifying the altitude or heading read back by the pilot while handling several aircraft at a traffic peak.
Entry, qualifications and career development
The U.S. BLS lists an associate or bachelor's degree, progressively responsible work experience or a combination pathway, and the specific FAA recruitment and training follow the rules in force; China is checked against Articles 21/41 and the applicable exceptions, the training examinations and the valid registration, and neither a degree nor a paper exercise confers authority.
Career prospects and moves to related occupations
BLS2025—2035 projection: 24,000 posts in 2025 → 24,400 in 2035, growth 2%, a net gain of about 400 and about 2,100 openings a year, mostly replacement demand; this is not an individual employment guarantee or an AI causal result. A national single-occupation projection cannot stand in for Chinese recruitment.
United States national (53-2021 single occupation) · Air traffic controllers (53-2021)
About 24,000 people (2025)
Employment size
BLS2025 about 24,000 posts; O*NET2025 industry distribution: government broad category 93%, other 7%; the BLS2025 federal government figure of 92% is a different classification and the two are not mixed.
Does not establish：The BLS employment projection base is 24,000 posts in 2025; O*NET currently states 2025 as well, and no headcount for another year that was not obtained from the source table, nor an OEWS employment estimate, is used.
Take duty in a tower, an approach control facility or an area control centre, continuously monitor aircraft within the airspace of responsibility, predict track crossings and sequence movement; issue altitude, heading, speed, runway-entry and take-off and landing clearances in standard phraseology and listen to and verify the pilot's read-back; coordinate with adjacent positions and complete the transfer of control, handle lost communication, severe weather and an aircraft in distress and record the action.
This occupation issues instructions within the airspace of responsibility and maintains safe separation; flight operations are the pilot's responsibility; airspace rules, separation standards and licence administration are set and overseen by the civil aviation authority; the installation, scheduled inspection and repair of communication, navigation and surveillance equipment are handled by specialist technical units; and airport facilities and operating-resource coordination belong to adjacent occupations such as airport operations officers.
Choose a real task from this page for a small practice project or a conversation with someone in the field. Use the planning guides to set a date, an output and feedback questions before deciding whether to continue.
Air traffic controllers combine flight plans, radar or visual surveillance, and weather and radio reports into a real-time airspace picture, and then maintain safe separation between aircraft with standard control instructions; the workplace is a tower, an approach control facility or an area control centre, and the core measures are safe separation, accuracy of instructions and completeness of handover, not flying an aircraft or running an airport. People worth exploring usually accept sustained monitoring under high-precision rules, communicate in concise phraseology, and are prepared for the handover responsibility and the shift rhythm.
Do one 45-minute AT30 fully fictional card version, sequencing and handover exercise; the six-card input, the paper rules and the reference answers are in the entry section; it only observes the record verification method, uses no real flights, issues no control instructions, and is not an attention scale or a hiring test.
The tasks of air traffic controllers fall into three groups: surveillance and sequencing (continuously monitor the airspace of responsibility with radar, computer equipment or visual reference, predict track crossings and conflicts, and sequence aircraft movement); issuing and handover (issue altitude, heading, speed, runway-entry and take-off and landing clearances, listen to and verify the pilot's read-back, and hand control over to the adjacent tower, approach or area position); and anomalies and coordination (on lost communication, severe weather, runway incursion or an aircraft in distress, issue alerts, adjust the sequence, notify airport emergency services and record the action).
The three task groups carry different weight in tower, approach and area control.
The data and cooperation tasks differ with the level of facility automation.
The boundary turns on four things: who sets the airspace rules and separation standards, who exercises control within the airspace of responsibility, who flies the aircraft, and who is responsible for the facility and the equipment. Controllers exercise control and provide information to procedure and within the authorisation; flight operations are the pilot's responsibility; airspace rules, separation standards and licence administration are set and overseen by the civil aviation authority; and the installation, scheduled inspection and repair of communication, navigation and surveillance equipment are handled by specialist technical units.
| Dimension | Primary track | Comparison track |
|---|---|---|
| Core purpose | Answers the questions 'which aircraft is sequenced where, to what procedure, and what anomaly occurred' with accurate control instructions, read-back verification and a complete handover. | Maintain safe separation within the airspace of responsibility using standard instructions and read-back verification, and take responsibility for the accuracy of the instructions. |
| Main objects and basis | The objects are the aircraft and the flight flow within the airspace of responsibility; the basis is the airspace rules, the separation standards, the control procedures and the licence endorsements. | Adjacent duties (flying the aircraft, setting airspace rules, and repairing communication, navigation and surveillance equipment) are not counted as core tasks of this occupation. |
| Core process | Editorial process example: take the position and the picture → surveillance and prediction → choose the separation plan → issue instructions and verify the read-back → coordination and handover → records and debrief. The specific sequence and actions follow the real post procedures and authorisation. | AI can assist with picture integration and conflict alerts, but the issue of instructions, the read-back verification and the responsibility remain with the licensed controller. |
| Main outputs | Control instruction and read-back verification records, handover and coordination records, anomaly and emergency handling records, and daily activity reports. | Output is measured by safe separation, accuracy of instructions and completeness of handover, not by the number of aircraft handled alone. |
| Responsible party | Day-to-day control is the responsibility of controllers who hold a licence and are in valid registration status; flight operations are the pilot's responsibility; airspace rules and licence administration are the responsibility of the civil aviation authority; and the installation and repair of facilities are handled by specialist technical units. | Organised by position and shift; before starting, the licence endorsements, the duty time limits and the training arrangements should be checked. |
| Authority and approval | A validly registered controller licence must be held and work must stay within the licence endorsements; operations must not exceed the endorsed category or the post authorisation; where the medical, alcohol and psychoactive-substance restrictions apply, they follow the licence rules and the employer's regulations. | The licence categories and the medical and duty requirements are set out in the licence rules and the employer's own regulations. |
| Boundary of conclusions | A record applies only to the corresponding position, period and aircraft; one handling or one training result must not be extrapolated into a conclusion about overall operating ability, and a system prompt must not be treated as the final judgement. | Fatigue, feeling unwell and equipment anomalies must be reported on your own initiative, and must not be concealed or worked around under schedule pressure. |
Monitor aircraft within the airspace of responsibility with radar, computer equipment or visual reference, predict track crossings and maintain safe separation.
Monitor, direct or sequence aircraft movement and issue altitude, heading, speed, runway-entry and take-off and landing clearances.
Inform pilots in standard phraseology of potential hazards such as nearby aircraft, weather, wind speed and direction, and visibility.
Keep radio or telephone contact with the adjacent tower, approach or area control centre, coordinate movement and complete the transfer of control.
On lost communication, worsening weather, runway incursion or an aircraft in distress, issue alerts, adjust the sequence and notify airport emergency services.
Complete daily activity reports and keep records as the regulations require, and provide on-the-job training for new air traffic controllers.
Before starting, check at least six things: the licence and its endorsements (category, work location, English qualification); the nature of the employer (civil aviation air traffic control system, airport, airline or general aviation); the medical and fitness requirements (including the alcohol and drug restrictions); the duty and shift arrangements (night duty, weekends and the age-based withdrawal rule); the training and observation (specialist training, theory examination, skills assessment and registration); and the pay structure and promotion path.
Look at the licence category and the endorsements, not at the job title.
Post structures, training and duty requirements differ between employers and must be checked with the specific unit.
| Organise the arrival and departure flow around the airport, use radar to guide climbs, descents and the approach sequence, and coordinate arrival and departure tracks. |
| The airspace structure is complex and traffic is concentrated, so headings and altitudes need frequent adjustment and multi-airport coordination has to be handled. |
| People willing to plan tracks and altitudes in dense traffic. |
| Area control (en-route control) | Cover upper-airway sectors, take over control on departure and hand over control on arrival, maintaining en-route separation. | The time scale is longer and aircraft speeds are higher, and sector handover and traffic management are the focus. | People willing to work on a longer planning scale and handle sector coordination. |
|---|
| Airline pilots, first officers and flight engineers (adjacent occupation) | Fly the aircraft and carry out flight operations, and are directly responsible for aircraft handling and flight safety. | Carries out flight tasks in the cockpit; controllers provide separation and clearance from the ground, the two have different duties and different licence systems. | People who prefer to handle the aircraft themselves and accept flight training and medical standards. |
|---|
| Airport operations officers (adjacent occupation) | Coordinate airport operating resources: stand allocation, runway and taxiway status, snow handling and the emergency plan. | Focuses on airport facilities and operations coordination; controllers focus on airspace separation and aircraft sequencing. | People who prefer airport facilities and operations coordination. |
|---|
| Avionics technicians (adjacent occupation) | Install, test and repair avionics and communication, navigation and surveillance equipment. | Faces equipment and technology, whereas controllers face airspace and aircraft. | People who prefer testing and repairing electronic equipment. |
|---|
Suggested order of choice: first decide the control direction (tower, approach or area), then check the employer's facility type and the licence category endorsements, and finally confirm the medical, duty and age arrangements. The three directions share procedure execution, standard phraseology, read-back verification and judgement under pressure; moving to an adjacent occupation requires building up different abilities such as flight training, airport operations or equipment repair, and the licence and qualification systems differ, so nothing can be transferred directly.
Once the direction is decided, check the licence category endorsements, medical and duty requirements that actually exist for each direction.
Editorial ratings use the existing occupational responsibilities and AI task analysis on this page. They are not adoption rates, measured effects, job-disappearance or personal-unemployment probabilities, or official scores from Stanford or another external institution. No measured time weights or future robot deployment are assumed.
Editorial condition scenario: information compilation or prompts may receive tool assistance, and the actual adoption effect was not verified; the ONet tasks and the BLS NextGen note do not prove an AI substitution authority. Operations are still checked against the real procedures and authorisation in force.
Editorial check items: the safety approval and operational validation of the target facility or technology are checked against the real material; this page did not verify a uniform adoption period and does not extrapolate from a single facility.
The BLS projects growth of 2% over 2025—2035, with average annual openings mostly for replacement; BLS also notes that NextGen may limit the need for additional controllers. This is not a causal study of AI adoption in this occupation, and a net gain or replacement openings are not used to infer a fall in automation-related staffing.
| Work area | Task | Current change | Human control point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Surveillance and the picture | Monitor aircraft within the airspace of responsibility continuously with radar, computer equipment or visual reference. | Editorial condition scenario (adoption and effect not verified): automation can assist with track prediction and conflict-detection prompts. | Verify the raw data and the equipment status, judge whether the prompt is trustworthy, and verify manually when in doubt. |
| Sequencing and separation | Monitor, direct or sequence aircraft movement and choose the separation plan. | Editorial condition scenario: sequencing suggestions or traffic management can serve as assistance discussion items; the adoption effect was not verified and it cannot be said that manual calculation has already been reduced. | The final choice of the separation plan and the safety margin is the controller's responsibility. |
| Instructions and read-back | Issue altitude, heading, speed, runway-entry and take-off and landing clearances and verify the read-back. | Editorial condition scenario (adoption and effect not verified): speech recognition can assist with transcription, but the standard phraseology and the content of the instruction are still decided by a person. | The content of instructions, the read-back verification and the correction of errors rest with the licensed controller. |
| Advisory and information | Inform pilots in standard phraseology of potential hazards such as nearby aircraft, weather, wind speed and direction, and visibility. | Editorial condition scenario (adoption and effect not verified): weather and aeronautical information can be aggregated and pushed automatically. | Judge which information is critical for the current aircraft and decide the timing of the advisory. |
| Handover and coordination | Coordinate with the adjacent tower, approach or area control centre and complete the transfer of control. | Editorial condition scenario: electronic handover can serve as a record-assistance discussion item; the adoption effect and the extent to which telephone coordination steps are reduced were not verified. | The handover conditions, the timing and the responsibility boundary are confirmed by the controller. |
| Emergency handling | On lost communication, worsening weather, runway incursion or an aircraft in distress, issue alerts and adjust the sequence. | Editorial condition scenario (adoption and effect not verified): alerts can be triggered automatically and contingency plans can be retrieved quickly. | The emergency judgement, the priority order and the decision responsibility still rest with the controller. |
| Records and training | Complete daily activity reports, keep the records and provide on-the-job training for new controllers. | Editorial condition scenario (adoption and effect not verified): records can be captured automatically and summarised in a structured way. | The authenticity of the record, the explanation of anomalies and the training evaluation rest with a person. |
The five evidence cards support the statistics, the tasks, the job-posting software mentions and the survey scope; this page did not verify an AI effect or a substitution causal link, and the technology assistance is an editorial condition scenario that makes no prediction of job disappearance.
The table below compares the tower, approach and area directions on the difference in automation impact.
AI primarily changesEditorial condition scenario (adoption and effect not verified): ground and low-altitude surveillance and runway-occupancy alerts can be automated.
Human responsibility remainsVisual observation judgement, ground vehicle control and runway clearance responsibility.
AI primarily changesEditorial condition scenario (adoption and effect not verified): arrival sequencing and descent-profile suggestions can be generated by a tool.
Human responsibility remainsTrack adjustment, speed control and multi-airport coordination decisions.
AI primarily changesEditorial condition scenario (adoption and effect not verified): sector traffic and handover prompts can be automated.
Human responsibility remainsEn-route separation plans, the timing of sector handover and traffic-management judgement.
The responsibility process separates the parts that can be automated from the decisions that must be taken by a person; this is an editorial suggestion and does not represent a uniform procedure of any air traffic control organisation.
First confirm the airspace scope, the available procedures, the equipment status and the authorisation limits of this task, and establish which judgements must be made by a licensed controller.
Limit the automatable part to information compilation, situation prompts, sequencing suggestions and record capture, and do not let a tool issue instructions or make handover decisions directly.
Editorial check items: an inconsistency goes to the post's real procedure and authorisation for review, and no piece of raw data is assumed always correct nor is any action prescribed by this page.
Keep the instruction, read-back verification, handover and anomaly-handling records, note the tool version and the human verification points, and make the process traceable.
Make the escalation path and the owner of the decision explicit for emergencies and abnormal situations; tool output is not an operating clearance and the responsibility lies with the licensed controller and the unit.
Treating a system prompt as the final judgement conceals a track-prediction deviation, missing data or sensor error and bears directly on safe separation.
Control: Editorial check items: record the inconsistency between the tool and the raw information and the authorisation review points; degraded-mode actions follow the facility's real procedures and are not prescribed by this page.
Editorial risk scenario: omitting the verification of a key value may affect separation and the accuracy of instructions; this page obtained no ranking of risk sources and does not call it the most direct.
Control: Carry out read-back verification strictly, confirm the key values a second time, and correct any deviation immediately.
Lost communication or a missing handover record leads to unclear responsibility and an interruption in surveillance.
Control: Editorial check items: hand over and record an anomaly under the unit's real emergency procedures and authorisation; this page does not prescribe a backup-communication switching step.
Shift work and sustained concentration can create pressure; individual fatigue and health are checked through the official process, and a decline in ability is not inferred directly from the shift pattern.
Control: Follow the rest and rotation system, report feeling unwell on your own initiative, and comply with the alcohol and drug restrictions.
A missing or inaccurate record hinders incident investigation and operational improvement.
Control: Record the operating process and the anomalies faithfully, note the basis and the time, and keep the records as the regulations require.
First check the target jurisdiction: jobseekers in China check the controller licence rules in force and the recruitment for the year; jobseekers in the United States check the citizenship, age, medical, security-clearance and education/experience pathway. U.S. FAA pathway: Standard AT-CTI graduates can be exempted from the Basics course and still enter the Academy for the corresponding initial training; Enhanced AT-CTI graduates can go directly into facility local training once hired, and must still pass the ATSA and meet the medical and security-clearance requirements. Graduating or completing a course is not the same as being hired or being qualified to work independently.
Turn procedure execution, standard-phraseology communication and judgement under pressure into trainable abilities; the focus is read-back verification, conflict prediction and the anomaly-handling process.
Practise setting out the picture judgement and the conflict resolution clearly, learn the boundary of facility automation and decision-aid tools, and keep the human verification record.
Make the authorisation boundary and the human verification points of the automation tools explicit, manage tool prompts and control instructions separately, and keep complete operating and debrief records.
Insufficient evidence: no AI substitution ratio or overall replacement study for this occupation was obtained; this page gives only editorial task observations, and a duty list cannot prove that replacement will never happen.
Source: The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook and the O*NET 53-2021.00 task material (editorial synthesis)Original source ↗
The BLS U.S. pathway lists education/experience/combination and the citizenship, medical, security-clearance and examination-training requirements, and does not list programming as a general requirement; the recruitment in force is checked against the official source. China follows the licence rules in force and the U.S. threshold cannot be written up as global.
Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook entry requirements (editorial synthesis)Original source ↗
Editorial condition observation: material compilation, status prompts or record organisation may receive tool assistance; the task-impact ranking and the actual effect were not verified, and a person's legal authority is not ranked against the technical capability.
Source: O*NET 53-2021.00 tasks and work activities (editorial synthesis)Original source ↗
BLS2025—2035 projection: 24,000 posts in 2025 → 24,400 in 2035, growth 2%, a net gain of about 400 and about 2,100 openings a year, mostly replacement demand; this is not an individual employment guarantee or an AI causal result.
Source: BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook 2025—2035 projectionOriginal source ↗
Check the operating authorisation against the jurisdiction's rules for the current post; this page does not treat an AI prompt as a clearance, nor does it infer from the ONet task description that no future technology can ever be authorised.
Source: O*NET 53-2021.00 task material and the licence system (editorial synthesis)Original source ↗
This page provides no job disappearance year, and no reliable projection was obtained; a year is not inferred from a single technology's maturity.
Source: Editorial note (no year prediction)Original source ↗
Give priority to building the abilities of procedure execution, standard-phraseology communication, read-back verification, conflict prediction and judgement under pressure, and become familiar with the boundary of facility automation and decision-aid tools; at the same time, check the medical, age and training requirements through official channels.
Source: The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook and O*NET 53-2021.00 (editorial synthesis)Original source ↗
Use the AT30 fully fictional card exercise to observe the record/version verification; a score on the exercise cannot verify control ability or fitness under pressure.
Insufficient evidence: no Chinese wage distribution by unit type for this occupation was obtained; the 155,491 yuan/year for professional and technical personnel in above-scale enterprises is only a background figure for a different statistical object.
A like-for-like comparison needs the licence category, facility type, region and duty arrangements to match; an industry proxy cannot replace the written pay terms.
| Educational background | Pathway directions to be checked | Notes and verification advice |
|---|---|---|
| Bachelor's degree or above (general application condition) | Check the general education item and the applicable exceptions | Article 21 of the Chinese rule No. 9 of 2026 generally requires a bachelor's degree or above for an application; Article 30 exempts an existing licence holder adding a category from the bachelor's degree item, and Article 74 covers the apron transition subject to its conditions. A degree is not a licence: the other medical, training, examination, skill and experience requirements are still checked against the applicable rules. |
| Exceptions such as an existing licence and the transition | First check who it actually applies to | The new 2026 rule states the general bachelor's-degree-or-above requirement for an application; adding a category with an existing licence, the instructor restriction in Article 42 and the apron transition in Article 74 are checked against their own applicable conditions, and an application cannot be judged on the old rule. |
| Air traffic control specialism at a civil aviation institution | Editorial pathway navigation: check the actual institution and the unit's announcement | Training at an institution is only the entry point; after joining, the post training, the observation and the licence registration must still be completed, and the recent-experience requirement of at least 80 hours within every 6 months must be met. |
| Other science and engineering specialisms | Entering by transfer or from another specialism | The specialist training, medical examination and licence process must be completed; this page provides no list of specific training providers, and the Civil Aviation Administration of China and the employer's information apply. |
When checking your own expectations, first confirm the licence category endorsement, the facility type and its busyness, the region, the duty and shift arrangements, and the medical and age requirements; an industry proxy must not replace the written pay terms.
Editorial post navigation: specific employers such as the civil aviation air traffic management system must be checked against that year's recruitment; licences are issued uniformly by the Civil Aviation Administration of China, and registration is handled by law by the employer or the endorsing unit and filed with the regional administration.
Aerodrome control and apron control posts; airport operations coordination posts usually belong to an adjacent occupation.
The operations monitoring and flight service direction; the aerodrome control (general) endorsement at a general aviation airport carries additional restrictions.
Insufficient evidence: no causal study of AI adoption changing pay in this occupation in China was obtained; the NBS industry averages and the task list cannot be used to infer a pay cut. The editors check the actual post's pay terms and period.
| The median of 148,080 U.S. dollars a year is the midpoint of the distribution and must not be called an average; this page cites no average wage figure that was not checked in this round. |
| Highest 10% | 215,610 U.S. dollars a year (103.66 U.S. dollars an hour) | Official annual wage, not an individual's actual pay | The annual-wage boundary for the highest 10% is 215,610 U.S. dollars; it does not represent a fixed salary for a senior post, and the percentile cannot be used to infer the facility, region or seniority mix. |
|---|
Pay · 10th percentile：Below $78,420/year；The upper bound of the 10th annual-wage percentile (hourly wage 37.70 U.S. dollars), a position in a statistical distribution and not a starting salary or a minimum wage.；BLS 2025, month 5 (May) wage percentiles shown by O*NET
Pay · 25th percentile：$104,520/year；The 25th annual-wage percentile (hourly wage 50.25 U.S. dollars).；BLS 2025, month 5 (May) wage percentiles shown by O*NET
Pay · median：$148,080/year；The median annual wage in 2025, month 5 (May) (hourly wage 71.19 U.S. dollars), consistent between the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook and OEWS.；BLS 2025, month 5 (May) wage percentiles shown by O*NET
Pay · 75th percentile：$190,570/year；The 75th annual-wage percentile (hourly wage 91.62 U.S. dollars).；BLS 2025, month 5 (May) wage percentiles shown by O*NET
Pay · 90th percentile：Above $215,610/year；The 90th annual-wage percentile boundary is 215,610 U.S. dollars, with an hourly wage of 103.66 U.S. dollars；a statistical percentile by itself says nothing about the seniority, region or facility mix of that group. BLS2025 wages shown by O*NET
The national median of 148,080 U.S. dollars is not a starting salary; BLS explains that the training stage and the facility location or route complexity affect pay. Insufficient evidence: this page did not verify the starting salary of a specific entry-level post.
No. The hourly and annual wages are two expressions of the same statistical distribution (a median of 71.19 U.S. dollars an hour corresponding to 148,080 U.S. dollars a year), and actual income also depends on the duty arrangements, overtime and allowances.
From the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS) for 2025, month 5 (May), shown by O*NET and consistent with the 53-2021 basis of the BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook.
No. The U.S. figures are a U.S. national single-occupation basis, which is not the same system as this page's China-side industry-sector proxies, and the two cannot be extrapolated from each other.
| Industry | Median wage for this occupation in this industry | How to understand this value |
|---|---|---|
| Federal government | $156,250/year | BLS OOH: the median annual wage for this occupation in the federal government sector in 2025, month 5 (May) is 156,250 U.S. dollars, with 92% of employers in 2025; the O*NET government broad category of 93% is a different classification. |
| Air transport support activities | $83,890/year | BLS OOH: the median annual wage for this occupation in the air transport support sector in 2025, month 5 (May) is 83,890 U.S. dollars; it does not represent the pay of the O*NET other-industries total of 7%. |
| State and local government | Insufficient evidence: no state and local government sub-median was obtained from the BLS overview in this round, and not being listed does not mean that no such data are published. | The O*NET government broad category of 93% is not split into state and local government, and this page does not use federal government pay to fill in state and local government pay. |
| National (all industries, reference) | $148,080/year | The national median annual wage for this occupation in 2025, month 5 (May) (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook / OEWS), used for comparison and not an industry figure. |
Busy terminal and area control centres have a higher control intensity, and the pay structure usually reflects the facility level and the workload; this page provides no per-facility figures.
Insufficient evidence / editorial check: this page obtained no by-region occupational wage; it is checked against the specific facility, region and real written pay terms, and no causal claim is made about cost of living or hiring competition affecting income.
Editorial check items: the target unit's training stage, region/facility and the actual shift pay terms; Chinese licence endorsements and the examiner system cannot be used directly as U.S. income factors.
BLS2025 posts about 24,000； O*NET2025 industry distribution: government broad category 93%, other 7%； the BLS2025 federal government figure of 92% is a different classification and the two are not mixed.
Growth of 2% over 2025—2035, a net gain of about 400 posts, below the average for all occupations； no other period is spliced on.
Most come from replacement demand, which is not the same as net new posts and is not a ten-year total.；BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: air traffic controllers
Which Holland interest type is closer to air traffic controllers?
The O*NET 53-2021.00 interest code is CRE (Conventional, Realistic, Enterprising): Conventional corresponds to processing data to procedure and standard, Realistic to using equipment and tools, and Enterprising to coordinating others and taking responsibility. The interest code is a verifiable starting point, but selection and fitness to control follow the medical, training and licence standards.
Do not use it this way: Treating an interest code as a hiring basis; interest is not the same as ability or fitness to control.
Test my Holland vocational interestsWhich Big Five traits are more relevant to this job?
Insufficient evidence: this page did not verify the occupational validity of the Big Five for controller performance or a selection threshold. It is for self-exploration only, and the editorial observation checks sustained concentration, recording and communication rather than judging individual qualification from a group personality.
Do not use it this way: Replacing training performance and the medical conclusion with a personality label.
View my Big Five personality traitsCan MBTI be used to judge whether I am suited to being an air traffic controller?
Insufficient evidence: the predictive validity of MBTI for this occupation and any formal use requirement were not verified. The type is used only to explore preference, and qualification is checked through the actual medical, training, examination and licence process.
Do not use it this way: Replacing real training and duty experience with a type label.
Understand my MBTI preferencesCan the Enneagram tell me whether I am suited to this occupation?
Insufficient evidence: the validity of the Enneagram for this occupation and any screening requirement were not verified; self-exploration cannot replace the official process.
Do not use it this way: Explaining a training or duty mistake with a type label reduces the chance to improve.
Explore my Enneagram patternCan I be an air traffic controller if I am not good at mathematics?
Insufficient evidence: no uniform IQ threshold or scale validity for this occupation was verified; the ONet ability description is not a score threshold, and the real selection and skills process applies.
Do not use it this way: Treating 'not good at mathematics' as a fixed label ignores trainability.
Understand my intelligence and reasoning performanceDo air traffic controllers need high emotional intelligence?
Insufficient evidence: no EI selection threshold or validity for this occupation was verified; the editorial observation checks only cooperation, communication and records, and it is not claimed that no organisation has a hard requirement.
Do not use it this way: Skipping procedures because of emotion or fatigue magnifies safety risk.
Understand my emotional intelligence abilitiesFits better when: Editorial direction observation: willing to take on flying duties in a civil flight crew that match the actual position; this occupation includes captains, first officers and flight engineers, and captain responsibility must not be written for all of them.
Watch for: The licence and training must be obtained under the civil aviation authority's rules, and control experience cannot be converted directly.
Explore related career: Airline pilots, first officers and flight engineersFits better when: Suits people who want to work in the various civil aviation operations.
Watch for: Needs to build up civil aviation regulations, type conversion and operating experience and obtain the licence as required.
Explore related career: Commercial pilotsFits better when: Suits people who want to work on airport facilities and operations coordination.
Watch for: The focus of the work shifts from airspace separation to airport operating resources and the emergency plan.
Explore related career: Airport operations officersFits better when: Suits people who prefer testing and repairing communication, navigation and surveillance equipment.
Watch for: Editorial comparison: first distinguish aircraft avionics maintenance from the upkeep of ground communication, navigation and surveillance facilities, and check the target scope of work, jurisdiction qualification and actual training; the two kinds of post are not equated.
Explore related career: Avionics techniciansFits better when: Suits people who want to work on airframe and powerplant maintenance.
Watch for: Training and certification are required under the civil aviation maintenance qualification rules.
Explore related career: Aircraft mechanics and techniciansFits better when: Suits people interested in the design of aircraft and air traffic management systems.
Watch for: Engineering design, airworthiness and drawing skills must be added, and an engineering education background is usually required.
Explore related career: Aerospace engineersThere is no 'suited' personality. Reliability comes from observable behaviour: whether the person can sustain concentration, communicate in standard phraseology and verify the read-back, and handle situations to procedure under pressure.
Editorial observation: an introversion label cannot decide qualification on its own; the actual communication performance and the official process are what is checked.
Editorial observation: an extraversion label does not prove a communication advantage or occupational fitness, and the actual performance is still what is checked.
This page did not verify an MBTI screening requirement or its validity and cannot give a type threshold.
The O*NET 53-2021.00 interest code is CRE (Conventional, Realistic, Enterprising); an interest code describes the tendencies of the work content only and is not an individual diagnosis.
This page did not verify the validity of personality for job performance in this occupation; the official medical, training and licence process is checked separately.
This page did not verify a uniform IQ threshold; the ONet ability description is not an examination score, and the specific process is checked separately.
This page did not verify an EI threshold; editorial preparation can observe communication and cooperation, and no hiring judgement is made from a scale.
No. The Enneagram is a self-exploration tool and does not constitute evidence of occupational fit.
First check the qualification conditions of the real jurisdiction/post, and then do the AT30 fictional card version, sequencing and handover exercise; it is not an attention measurement or a qualification judgement.
Roles most affected：All control positions
Possible consequence：Missing or not verifying a key value directly causes insufficient separation or a wrong clearance; O*NET shows that 76% consider the consequences of an error extremely serious.
How to reduce risk：Carry out read-back verification strictly, confirm the key values a second time, and correct and record any deviation immediately.
Evidence：O*NET 53-2021.00 occupation summary and task material · O*NET 53-2021.00 Work Context
Typical scenario：Issuing a runway-entry clearance early, before the runway status is confirmed, in order to reduce delay.
Roles most affected：Tower and approach control positions
Possible consequence：Issuing a take-off, landing or runway-entry clearance without the authorisation or without confirming the runway and separation conditions can cause a runway incursion or a separation conflict.
How to reduce risk：Confirm the authorisation, the runway status and the separation conditions before clearing; when unsure, wait or ask to procedure rather than working around it from experience.
Evidence：O*NET 53-2021.00 occupation summary and task material · Rules on the Administration of Licences for Civil Aviation Air Traffic Controllers (Ministry of Transport Order No. 9 of 2026)
Typical scenario：Not stating the aircraft's intention and restrictions at handover, so the receiving position has to ask again and time is lost.
Roles most affected：All control positions
Possible consequence：Lost communication or a missing handover record leads to unclear responsibility, an interruption in surveillance and an instruction not carried out.
How to reduce risk：Editorial check items: handle a communication anomaly under the unit's real emergency procedures and authorisation, state the unknown elements of the handover and the confirmation record; this page provides no instruction for switching to a backup means.
Evidence：O*NET 53-2021.00 occupation summary and task material · Rules on the Administration of Licences for Civil Aviation Air Traffic Controllers (Ministry of Transport Order No. 9 of 2026)
Typical scenario：Not reporting fatigue on your own initiative after consecutive night duties and continuing to control during a peak period.
Roles most affected：Controllers on night, shift and long duty
Possible consequence：Editorial risk: fatigue or feeling unwell may affect duty; individual health and fitness are judged by the official body, and this page gives no diagnosis, no size of a decline in reaction and no accident probability.
How to reduce risk：Check against the target jurisdiction and the real unit's rest/rotation, unwell-reporting and alcohol and drug restrictions; the Chinese rules in force and the U.S. age-retirement system apply separately, and no age requirement is generalised to all posts.
Evidence：BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: air traffic controllers · Rules on the Administration of Licences for Civil Aviation Air Traffic Controllers (Ministry of Transport Order No. 9 of 2026)
Typical scenario：Taking the absence of a system conflict alert as meaning there is no conflict and not re-checking the track trend.
Roles most affected：Positions using automation and decision-aid tools
Possible consequence：Treating a system prompt as the final judgement conceals a track-prediction deviation, missing data or sensor error.
How to reduce risk：Editorial check items: keep the difference between the system prompt and the raw information and hand it to the authorised process; a degraded-mode or stop action is determined by the real manual.
Evidence：O*NET 53-2021.00 occupation summary and task material · BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: air traffic controllers
Typical scenario：Not recording the process and the basis promptly after handling an anomaly, so the decision chain cannot be reconstructed afterwards.
Roles most affected：All control positions and the duty supervisor
Possible consequence：A missing or untrue record hinders incident investigation, operational improvement and licence oversight.
How to reduce risk：Record the operating process, the anomalies and the basis for the action faithfully, note the time and the position, and keep the records as the regulations require.
Evidence：O*NET 53-2021.00 occupation summary and task material · Rules on the Administration of Licences for Civil Aviation Air Traffic Controllers (Ministry of Transport Order No. 9 of 2026)
| Entry directions | Early tasks | Observable preparation items the editors suggest (not a formal competence credential) | Preparation evidence you can present without experience | How it differs from adjacent positions |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tower control direction | Learn the corresponding aerodrome position tasks under the supervision of the formal post training instructor; this is not observation with a flight crew. | Editorial observation example: check the corresponding task records and their basis; formal recognition of ability follows the authority's and the unit's assessment. | The AT30 six-card version matrix. | Unlike airport operations officers: it issues instructions at a control position and is responsible for separation. |
| Approach control direction | Practise radar vectoring, climbs and descents and the approach sequence under mentorship. | Editorial observation example: check the corresponding task records and their basis; formal recognition of ability follows the authority's and the unit's assessment. | Independent calculation of the two AT30 sequences and the adjacent differences. | Unlike an airline pilot: it provides separation and clearance from the ground and does not handle the aircraft. |
| Area control direction | Practise sector handover, en-route separation and traffic management under mentorship. | Editorial observation example: check the corresponding task records and their basis; formal recognition of ability follows the authority's and the unit's assessment. | The AT30 V2 to-be-verified and missing list. | This direction faces the airspace of responsibility, aircraft and sector handover; the routine equipment check, adjustment and specialist repair are a different division of work. Whether the post carries a specific check or a dual role must be checked against the post documents, and equipment work is not uniformly excluded by the name. |
| Checks and read-back verification | Carry out the position handover check and verify the key values in the instructions. | Editorial observation example: check the corresponding task records and their basis; formal recognition of ability follows the authority's and the unit's assessment. | The AT30 10:15 handover and the boundary of A's acknowledgement. | This direction checks the handover and the key instruction values; the authority for operational management decisions and a dual supervisor duty must be checked against the real post authorisation, and no absence of management authority is inferred across the board from a read-back verification task. |
| Emergency handling and debrief | Handle anomalies to procedure and take part in the debrief. | Editorial observation example: check the corresponding task records and their basis; formal recognition of ability follows the authority's and the unit's assessment. | The AT30 eight-point scoring and the record of the unknown cause. | Unlike airline dispatch: the control responsibility is limited to the airspace of responsibility and the position. |
The U.S. BLS has education/work-experience/combination pathways; the general bachelor's-degree condition in Article 21 of the Chinese rule and the exceptions in Articles 30/42/74 are checked separately.
A degree does not replace the formal medical examination, training, examinations, endorsements and valid registration, and the specific recruitment is checked separately.
The alcohol and drug restrictions must be strictly observed: control work must not be carried out within 8 hours of drinking an alcoholic beverage or at a blood alcohol concentration of 0.04%.
On the mainland China side the Rules on the Administration of Licences for Civil Aviation Air Traffic Controllers (Ministry of Transport Order No. 9 of 2026) apply; a civil licence does not apply to a military control post.
The occupational description covers surveillance and sequencing, issuing clearances and read-back verification, handover coordination and emergency handling.
This page does not use a third-party ability score or personality conclusion to replace the licence and training requirements.
Paper rules: only a confirmed card may be sequenced; sequence in increasing request-slot order, where a placed slot = max(request slot, previous placed slot +3), and the first card uses its request slot. 3 is an arbitrary paper constraint set by the author and is emphatically not an aviation safety separation. At 10:10, V2 changes D from confirmed to to-be-verified (a new field is inconsistent, cause unknown); the other cards are unchanged and an existing confirmation may be carried over.
Within 45 minutes produce the six-card V1/V2 state matrix, the two sequences and the adjacent slot differences, the V2 confirmation ratio and the 10:15 handover. At 10:15, A gives only a 'file received' acknowledgement without version or item confirmation; this does not make C/D/E pass, nor does it mean the whole is closed.
It issues no aircraft clearance or control instruction and invents no communication-loss or runway-incursion handling action. The exercise observes information and version verification only and cannot serve as an attention scale, a medical examination, a licence or proof of selection ability.
Reference handover: the 10:15 summary cites AT30 V2, lists the six-card input and states, and records that D changes from confirmed to to-be-verified because a new field at 10:10 is inconsistent with the cause undetermined; C is still to be verified and E is blank. The A/B/F paper sequence meets the given 3-unit constraint; A has only received the file, and the to-be-verified and missing items are still unresolved.
Keep the original 10:00 input, the 10:10 change and the carry-over rule for unchanged cards.
V1 4/1/1, V2 3/2/1, each version totalling 6; the unknown C/D/E are not filled in by invention.
Write the max rule, the confirmed-card filter and the first-card handling; the 3 unit is a fictional paper constraint only.
Separately calculate the confirmation ratio 3/6=50%, which is not treated as an operational success or qualification pass rate.
Attach A's original 'file received' acknowledgement and the version/item confirmation gap, with the cause of the D anomaly unknown.
No control instruction is issued, no real operating material is used, and a paper mark is not called attention or selection ability.
| Selection and training stage | Verifiable checkpoints | Observable evidence | Boundaries and warnings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Application and qualification review | Whether the basic conditions of the year's recruitment or hiring such as age, education and status are met. | Able to provide the supporting documents the official process requires and to report faithfully. | Report faithfully under the real announcement and the regulations; no inference is drawn that any unofficial channel is automatically disqualified. |
| Medical examination and background check | Follow the actual jurisdiction's official medical and vetting process; this page does not substitute for a diagnosis of the specific items or standards. | The medical conclusion is fit and the background check is passed. |
Transcribe the AT30 six-card request slots and V1 confirmation fields, and state that the fictional 3-unit constraint is not an aviation standard.
List A/B/D/F confirmed, C to be verified and E blank; count 4/1/1 out of a total of 6.
Sequence the confirmed cards only and independently calculate 0/3/6/9 and the differences 3/3/3.
Rebuild the 3/2/1 matrix after the D change at 10:10, and resequence 0/3/9 with differences 3/6.
Calculate 3/6=50% as the confirmation rate only; state that C/D are to be verified, that E is missing and that the cause of the anomaly is unknown.
Write the V2 handover and state that A receiving the file does not mean version or item confirmation, keeping the outstanding items.
| Path or preparation item | Who it applies to | Effect on entering this occupation | Whether it is a general threshold | Conditions of application | Investment and duration | Limitations and risks |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Education or work-experience pathway | People checking the target jurisdiction/pathway | Meets the corresponding application conditions | Subject to the applicable conditions | The U.S. has education/experience/combination pathways; China has a general bachelor's-degree condition and exceptions such as adding a category | Per the actual education/experience and the training arrangements |
Typical scope：Complete checklist, taxiing and take-off and landing instruction practice under mentorship and record it.
Readiness evidence：Able to complete the checklist items under mentorship and explain the runway and taxiway safety points.
Credential boundary：Pass selection, the medical examination and basic training; per the FAA or the Civil Aviation Administration of China requirements.
Next moves：Obtain the tower control post qualification and the licence endorsement.
Typical scope：Independently manage aircraft and ground vehicles in and near the airport and issue taxiing, runway-entry, take-off and landing clearances.
Readiness evidence：Instructions are accurate, the read-back verification is complete, and common anomalies can be handled.
Credential boundary：Obtain and register the aerodrome control category endorsement; per the licence rules.
Next moves：Take part in duty training during peak periods and in complex weather.
Typical scope：Maintain procedure and judgement in peak traffic and complex conditions, and mentor new controllers.
Readiness evidence：Able to stay accurate at a high tempo and to guide others.
Credential boundary：Accumulate several endorsements and duty experience; per the unit's rules.
Next moves：Develop towards mentoring, checking or the approach and area directions.
Typical scope：Takes on on-the-job training, procedure improvement and some operational management duties.
Readiness evidence：Able to take responsibility for training quality and procedure execution.
Credential boundary：Editorial stage example: mentoring, control examiner and operational management are different duties, and the qualification and appointment must be checked separately against the target jurisdiction and the actual post; an examiner qualification cannot be uniformly required nor a minimum seniority given.
Next moves：Extends to instruction and checking across facilities or directions.
Typical scope：Practise radar vectoring, climbs and descents and the approach sequence under mentorship.
Readiness evidence：Able to explain the basis for the track and altitude adjustments.
Credential boundary：Pass selection, the medical examination and basic training; per the FAA or the Civil Aviation Administration of China requirements.
Next moves：Obtain the approach control post qualification and the licence endorsement.
Typical scope：Independently organise the arrival and departure flow around the airport and coordinate arrival and departure tracks.
Readiness evidence：Able to maintain separation in dense traffic and sequence accurately.
Credential boundary：Obtain and register the approach control or approach surveillance control category endorsement.
Next moves：Take part in multi-airport coordination and complex-weather training.
Typical scope：Maintain track and altitude planning in peaks and complex weather, and mentor new controllers.
Readiness evidence：Able to maintain procedure and judgement in multi-airport coordination.
Typical scope：Practise sector handover, en-route separation and traffic management under mentorship.
Readiness evidence：Able to explain the handover conditions and the basis for the separation plan.
Credential boundary：Pass selection, the medical examination and basic training; per the FAA or the Civil Aviation Administration of China requirements.
Next moves：Obtain the area control post qualification and the licence endorsement.
Typical scope：Independently cover upper-airway sectors and complete the takeover and handover of control.
Readiness evidence：Able to maintain en-route separation and complete the handover.
Credential boundary：Obtain and register the area control or area surveillance control category endorsement.
Next moves：Take part in high-traffic sector and traffic-management training.
Typical scope：Maintain sector separation and handover efficiency in high traffic and complex conditions, and mentor new controllers.
Readiness evidence：Able to maintain separation and complete handovers under high traffic.
Editorial stage example: complete the necessary training for the target jurisdiction and the actual hiring pathway, and carry out facility observation under formal supervision. U.S. FAA pathway: Standard AT-CTI graduates can be exempted from the Basics course and still enter the Academy for the corresponding initial training; Enhanced AT-CTI graduates can go straight into facility local training once hired, and must still pass the ATSA and meet the medical and security-clearance requirements. Graduating or completing a course is not the same as being hired or being qualified for independent duty. In China the licence application, training, skills assessment and registration requirements in force are checked, and the FAA pathway is not used to replace the Chinese conditions.
Takes independent duty at one tower, approach or area position, able to handle routine traffic and common anomalies and to record them completely.
Maintains procedure and judgement in peak traffic, complex weather and multi-position coordination, and is able to mentor new controllers.
Takes on on-the-job training, procedure improvement and some operational management duties, with the ability to move towards control examiner or supervisor roles.
United States national (53-2021) · Air traffic controllers (53-2021)
2%
Employment growth rate
The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook projects employment growth of 2% for this occupation, a net gain of about 400; over the same period there are about 2,100 openings a year, mostly from replacement demand.
Does not establish：The growth rate is below the average for all occupations; average annual openings are not the same as net new posts, and the 2025—2035 period is used consistently.
United States national (53-2021) · Air traffic controllers (53-2021)
About 2,100 per year on average
Average annual job openings
BLS2025—2035 has about 2,100 openings a year, mostly from the replacement demand of job changes and retirement, not a net gain and not a ten-year total.
Does not establish：Average annual openings are not net new posts; they are a different basis from the net change in employment and the two cannot be subtracted.
These are capability relationships, not automatic promotions or credential waivers.
Transfers：Understanding of flight procedures, airspace and aircraft performance is helpful.
Build next：The licence and flight training must be obtained under the civil aviation authority's rules, and control experience cannot be converted directly.
View career profileTransfers：Understanding of airspace rules and communication standards is helpful.
Build next：Civil aviation regulations, type conversion and operating experience must be added, and the licence obtained.
View career profileTransfers：Understanding of runways, taxiways and airport operations coordination is helpful.
Build next：Airport operating resources, snow handling and emergency-plan capability must be added.
View career profileTransfers：Understanding of the principles of communication, navigation and surveillance equipment is helpful.
Build next：Editorial comparison: aircraft avionics maintenance differs from the upkeep of ground communication, navigation and surveillance facilities; first check the target duties, jurisdiction qualification and equipment training, and no uniform certificate is given.
View career profileTransfers：Understanding of aircraft systems and check processes is helpful.
Build next：Editorial check: the target aircraft maintenance duties and whether licensing and type training are required; it is not claimed that all maintenance posts need the same certificate.
View career profileTransfers：Understanding of aircraft and air traffic management systems is helpful.
Build next：Engineering design, airworthiness and drawing skills must be added, and an engineering education background is usually required.
View career profileTransfers：Understanding of transport regulations and inspection processes is helpful.
Build next：The regulatory basis, inspection procedures and certification standards must be added.
View career profileTransfers：Understanding of on-board tasks and crew coordination is helpful.
Build next：The target air-crew-members is the U.S. O*NET55-3011 military occupation of air crew members, and the specific service-branch post and the formal selection and training must be checked; civil aviation posts are other occupations, and civil aviation selection cannot stand in for this military occupation.
View career profileInsufficient evidence: this page obtained no AI adoption rate, effect, substitution ratio or causal establishment study for this occupation. BLS has an outlook note that NextGen may limit the need for additional staff, which is not an overall replacement ratio; this page does not predict disappearance.
Insufficient evidence: no national or by-city wage distribution for this occupation in China was obtained. The NBS2025 non-private transport, storage and postal services figure of 133,981 yuan and the public administration, social security and social organisations figure of 119,465 yuan/year are industry background only and not the occupational median; individual pay is checked separately against the real written terms.
No. The median annual wage in 2025, month 5 (May) is 148,080 U.S. dollars (71.19 per hour), with the lowest 10% below 78,420 U.S. dollars and the highest 10% above 215,610 U.S. dollars; these are positions in a statistical distribution, not an individual quote or a starting-pay guarantee.
The U.S. BLS has education, work-experience and combination pathways, checked against the FAA conditions in force; China's rule No. 9 of 2026 sets the general bachelor's-degree conditions in Article 21 and the exceptions in Articles 30/42/74, with the experience in Article 41 checked against the specific group. Aerodrome control (general) is an exception to the age item, and military control-qualification experience may be recognised as appropriate under Article 42; neither issues a licence automatically.
The risk cards are editorial scenarios: unknown instruction/handover elements, exceeding the authority, distorted records, pressure and over-trusting prompts. Operational emergency or degraded-mode actions follow the real unit procedures and authorisation, and this page provides no backup-switching instruction or individual health diagnosis.
The BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook projects employment growth of 2% for this occupation in the United States over 2025—2035 (below the average for all occupations, a net gain of about 400), with about 2,100 job openings a year, mostly from replacement demand; the 2024—2034 projection shown by O*NET is 1% to 2%. This is a national single-occupation projection.
Take duty in a tower, an approach control room or an area control centre. O*NET 53-2021.00 shows that 97% of respondents work indoors in a controlled environment every day, 88% consider precision or accuracy extremely important, 76% consider the consequences of an error extremely serious and 48% face time pressure every day; night duty, weekends and shifts are the norm.
The editors compare the tower's duties near the airport and on the runway and taxiways, approach's arrival-to-departure duties, and the area's en-route sector duties; traffic, facilities and weather set the tempo, and no uniform fastest ranking is given. Check the actual endorsement, post training and work arrangements; difficulty cannot be judged from the direction name.
FermatMind careers content editorial team
Date of this round of checking: 2026-10-02. The ONet/BLS/NBS/Ministry of Transport and CAAC texts in force were read; a few outbound links were not checked, and the use of each source is noted separately.
The O*NET 53-2021.00 air traffic controller occupation profile and task material; BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook: air traffic controllers; Rules on the Administration of Licences for Civil Aviation Air Traffic Controllers (Ministry of Transport Order No. 9 of 2026); National Bureau of Statistics, 'Average Annual Wages of Employed Persons in Urban Units in 2025'.
Limitations：Not a causal basis for Chinese qualifications or an AI effect
Limitations：The national median and the two industry medians are kept separate, openings are not net growth, and nothing is extrapolated to China
Limitations：Contains no AI effect or selection threshold for this page
Limitations：P10/P25/P50/P75/P90 are not starting or minimum wages
Limitations：Not this occupation's wage distribution or an individual offer
Limitations：The link was not readable this round and is not used as a basis for this occupation's specific classification, working hours or employment rules
Limitations：A respondent share is not a guarantee for all posts or an accident probability
Limitations：Office16%, Outlook10% and Excel9% are de-duplicated job-posting mentions, not facility adoption or an AI capability effect
Limitations：Only this occupation's 2025 broad-category industry employment share, which is different from the federal employer grouping.
Limitations：The detailed items of this directory were not checked this round and it is not evidence of a mandatory qualification, health or recruitment
Limitations：The detailed items of this directory were not checked this round and it is not evidence of a mandatory qualification, health or recruitment
Limitations：The link was not readable this round and is not used as a basis for this occupation's specific classification, working hours or employment rules
Limitations：The exceptions in Articles 21/30/42/74 are checked against the group they apply to and are not the recruitment for the year or U.S. rules
Limitations：The statistical composition definition of total wages, which provides no wage, pay or qualification for this occupation.
Limitations：The preparation level is not an FAA statutory threshold or a Chinese condition
Limitations：Not an individual ability score or a selection threshold
Limitations：The detailed items of this directory were not checked this round and it is not evidence of a mandatory qualification, health or recruitment
Limitations：Supports the tasks of this control occupation and is not used as task or qualification material for another occupation.
Limitations：Not a basis for wages or an AI effect
Limitations：Only this occupation's 2025 broad-category industry employment share, which is different from the federal employer grouping.
Limitations：Not an individual income offer or a Chinese wage
Limitations：High school 36%, a certificate 21% and a bachelor's degree 20% are not a hiring probability or a statutory threshold
Limitations：An interest code is not an individual diagnosis or proof of occupational validity
Limitations：The wage page cannot be used as a basis for an employment estimate of 22,510
Limitations：Not the archivist occupation or a Chinese records-retention period
Limitations：An Enhanced graduate can go straight into facility training only once hired and must still pass the ATSA, the medical and the security check; a Standard graduate is only exempted from Basics and then enters the Academy. Neither is extrapolated to China or guarantees hiring.
The U.S. figures are the O*NET/BLS 53-2021 single-occupation basis (wages in 2025, month 5 (May) and the 2025—2035 projection); the Chinese figures are broad-basis proxies by industry sector and unit type and contain no separately listed wage for this occupation. Controller licence, medical and fitness requirements follow the Rules on the Administration of Licences for Civil Aviation Air Traffic Controllers and the Civil Aviation Administration of China rules. This page does not constitute a legal opinion, and the two systems are not extrapolated from each other.
Big Five personality (English) · MBTI (Chinese) · Enneagram (Chinese) · Intelligence and reasoning (Chinese)
The medical certificate and fitness to control are continuing requirements, not a one-off threshold.
The shift and age-based rules affect long-term arrangements and should be clarified before starting.
A degree is not the same as a licence; the training, examinations, assessments and registration must still be completed.
Pay and promotion follow the employer's regulations and can develop through extending licence categories, mentoring and air traffic control examiner duties.
The 8 entries on that HotTech page are office software mentioned in 2025 job postings and contain no facility adoption rate; the ONet summary separately describes dedicated software such as ATOP/ARTS/CTAS, so it cannot be said that no public technology material is listed.
Preparation should build the mathematical, physical and equipment-principle basics from public material and learn the training requirements through official channels.
Eight-point scoring, 1 point each: ① the complete six cards and the V1 states 4/1/1; ② the D change and the V2 states 3/2/1, plus the carry-over condition for the others; ③ the V1 sequence 0/3/6/9 and the differences 3/3/3; ④ the V2 sequence 0/3/9 and the differences 3/6; ⑤ 3/6=50% as the confirmation rate only; ⑥ C/D to be verified and E missing, with an unknown cause and no fabricated entry; ⑦ the 10:00/10:10/10:15 versions and A's file acknowledgement not closing the loop; ⑧ the paper 3 unit is not an aviation standard and no clearance/instruction/qualification conclusion is issued. Sample A writes only ③, the sequences and differences, omitting the rest, 1/8; sample B copies the complete input matrix and the ①-⑧ deliverables above, 8/8; a mark is not a qualification proof.
Recalculate card by card independently under the max rule, include only confirmed cards in the sequence and check the adjacent differences; after the D change, recalculate rather than carrying the old table over.
The handover states the version, the time, the verified/unknown items and the original acknowledgement; A's file receipt and the item confirmation are kept apart, and an unknown cause is retained.
Sample B's 8/8 only shows that the eight paper criteria in this text are met; the outstanding C/D/E items and A's lack of confirmation still mean the whole task cannot be called closed, and no operating instruction is issued. The occupational background cites the ONet task description; the paper task statement, rules and formulas were written by this page's author and are not an ONet standard.
| Specialist training and assessment | Whether the training can be completed with a training certificate, a pass in the theory examination (80% or above) and the skills assessment (good or above). | The training and assessment records are complete and the standard phraseology and procedure execution are accurate. | The consequences of a breach follow the real provisions and the handling process, and it cannot be generalised that all cases automatically end the post qualification. |
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| Licence registration and recent experience | Whether a validly registered licence can be obtained and maintained, and the recent-experience requirement of at least 80 hours within every 6 months met. | The licence registration is valid and the recent-experience and assessment records are complete. | No independent duty may be taken while the registration has lapsed or while licence privileges are suspended. |
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Score A point by point at 1/8 and B at 8/8, bring together the four deliverables, and decide from the actual recording experience whether to keep looking into the official pathway.
| The FAA Academy or AT-CTI training pathway | The U.S. FAA application pathway | Even after meeting the pathway requirements, hiring and facility training are still required | Not everyone has to go to the Academy; check against the actual pathway | Standard graduates are exempted from Basics and still go to the Academy; Enhanced graduates can go straight to facility training once hired, and both must still pass the ATSA, the medical and the security check | Checked against the official programme and the actual recruitment, with no uniform duration estimated | Graduating from the school is not the same as being hired, licensed or qualified for independent duty |
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| Medical examination and background check | The U.S. and Chinese actual pathways are checked separately | Determines whether training can begin | Required | Per the corresponding medical and vetting system, with the specific judgement made by the official body | Recurring | Neither this page's description nor AT30 is used to judge medical fitness |
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| Specialist training and the theory/skills assessment | Mainland China pathway | Determines whether a licence can be applied for | Required | The training certificate, a theory examination result of 80% or above, and a skills assessment of good or above | The training duration | A failed assessment requires retraining and a re-examination |
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| Licence issue and registration | Mainland China pathway | Determines whether independent duty may be taken | Required | Per the Rules on the Administration of Licences for Civil Aviation Air Traffic Controllers | Continuing registration administration | No duty may be taken while the registration has lapsed or is suspended |
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| Military control qualification to civilian (conditional pathway) | Holders of the corresponding military control qualification who also meet the conditions | Article 42 of the Chinese rule allows an application for the corresponding civil category, and the experience may be simplified but not below 1/2 | It is not automatic and does not apply to all service personnel | Article 42 of the Chinese rule in force; the U.S. experience pathway follows the FAA requirements in force | Per the actual training/experience and the recognition process | It is not a pilot licence, and control experience is not inferred from officer status |
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Credential boundary：Accumulate several endorsements and complex-mission experience.
Next moves：Develop towards mentoring, checking or operational management.
Typical scope：Takes on on-the-job training, procedure improvement and some operational management duties.
Readiness evidence：Able to take responsibility for training quality and procedure execution.
Credential boundary：Editorial stage example: mentoring, control examiner and operational management are different duties, and the qualification and appointment must be checked separately against the target jurisdiction and the actual post; an examiner qualification cannot be uniformly required nor a minimum seniority given.
Next moves：Extends to cross-facility instruction and checking.
Credential boundary：Accumulate several endorsements and high-traffic sector experience.
Next moves：Develop towards mentoring, checking or traffic management.
Typical scope：Takes on on-the-job training, procedure improvement and some operational management duties.
Readiness evidence：Able to take responsibility for training quality and procedure execution.
Credential boundary：Editorial stage example: mentoring, control examiner and operational management are different duties, and the qualification and appointment must be checked separately against the target jurisdiction and the actual post; an examiner qualification cannot be uniformly required nor a minimum seniority given.
Next moves：Extends to cross-sector instruction and traffic management.
Limitations：Editorial ratings use the existing occupational responsibilities and AI task analysis on this page. They are not adoption rates, measured effects, job-disappearance or personal-unemployment probabilities, or official scores from Stanford or another external institution. No measured time weights or future robot deployment are assumed.
