Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2022

53-2021 Air Traffic Controllers

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.

National estimates for Air Traffic Controllers
Industry profile for Air Traffic Controllers
Geographic profile for Air Traffic Controllers

National estimates for Air Traffic Controllers:

Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Air Traffic Controllers:

Employment (1)	Employment RSE (3)	Mean hourly wage	Mean annual wage (2)	Wage RSE (3)
21,250	0.9 %	$ 62.90	$ 130,840	0.4 %

Percentile wage estimates for Air Traffic Controllers:

Percentile	10%	25%	50% (Median)	75%	90%
Hourly Wage	$ 35.38	$ 44.51	$ 63.58	$ 81.14	$ 91.25
Annual Wage (2)	$ 73,590	$ 92,580	$ 132,250	$ 168,770	$ 189,800

Industry profile for Air Traffic Controllers:

Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Air Traffic Controllers are provided. For a list of all industries with employment in Air Traffic Controllers, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Industries with the highest levels of employment in Air Traffic Controllers:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation)	19,330	0.93	$ 65.41	$ 136,040
Support Activities for Air Transportation	1,170	0.52	$ 35.64	$ 74,130
Scheduled Air Transportation	190	0.04	$ 43.81	$ 91,120
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation)	50	0.00	$ 35.40	$ 73,640
Management of Companies and Enterprises	50	0.00	$ 31.96	$ 66,470

Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Air Traffic Controllers:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation)	19,330	0.93	$ 65.41	$ 136,040
Support Activities for Air Transportation	1,170	0.52	$ 35.64	$ 74,130
Scheduled Air Transportation	190	0.04	$ 43.81	$ 91,120
Management of Companies and Enterprises	50	0.00	$ 31.96	$ 66,470
Local Government, excluding schools and hospitals (OEWS Designation)	50	0.00	$ 35.40	$ 73,640

Top paying industries for Air Traffic Controllers:

Industry	Employment (1)	Percent of industry employment	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Federal Executive Branch (OEWS Designation)	19,330	0.93	$ 65.41	$ 136,040
Architectural, Engineering, and Related Services	(8)	(8)	$ 63.34	$ 131,750
Nonscheduled Air Transportation	(8)	(8)	$ 44.27	$ 92,070
Scheduled Air Transportation	190	0.04	$ 43.81	$ 91,120
Support Activities for Air Transportation	1,170	0.52	$ 35.64	$ 74,130

Geographic profile for Air Traffic Controllers:

States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Air Traffic Controllers are provided. For a list of all areas with employment in Air Traffic Controllers, see the Create Customized Tables function.

Map of employment of air traffic controllers by state, May 2022

States with the highest employment level in Air Traffic Controllers:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
California	2,350	0.13	0.93	$ 65.06	$ 135,320
Florida	1,930	0.21	1.46	$ 60.75	$ 126,360
Texas	1,810	0.14	0.97	$ 69.85	$ 145,280
Virginia	1,060	0.27	1.91	$ 76.39	$ 158,890
New York	1,060	0.12	0.81	$ 69.19	$ 143,920

Map of location quotient of air traffic controllers by state, May 2022

States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Air Traffic Controllers:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Alaska	440	1.43	9.93	$ 57.77	$ 120,160
District of Columbia	490	0.71	4.91	$ 51.69	$ 107,510
New Hampshire	430	0.65	4.54	$ 72.94	$ 151,720
New Mexico	340	0.41	2.86	$ 59.88	$ 124,550
Hawaii	190	0.33	2.27	$ 64.14	$ 133,400

Map of annual mean wages of air traffic controllers by state, May 2022

Top paying states for Air Traffic Controllers:

State	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Virginia	1,060	0.27	1.91	$ 76.39	$ 158,890
New Hampshire	430	0.65	4.54	$ 72.94	$ 151,720
Georgia	890	0.19	1.35	$ 72.36	$ 150,510
Colorado	680	0.24	1.70	$ 70.01	$ 145,620
Texas	1,810	0.14	0.97	$ 69.85	$ 145,280

Map of employment of air traffic controllers by area, May 2022

Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Air Traffic Controllers:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	1,420	0.47	3.27	$ 70.48	$ 146,590
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA	930	0.10	0.71	$ 75.06	$ 156,120
Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL	800	0.31	2.13	$ 63.91	$ 132,930
Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA	790	0.13	0.90	$ 60.62	$ 126,090
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	760	0.28	1.94	$ 77.04	$ 160,240
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI	690	0.16	1.09	$ 78.03	$ 162,290
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	570	0.19	1.30	$ 78.86	$ 164,020
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	510	0.27	1.88	$ 72.01	$ 149,790
Cleveland-Elyria, OH	480	0.48	3.36	$ 73.49	$ 152,860
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	460	0.23	1.58	$ 71.31	$ 148,320

Map of location quotient of air traffic controllers by area, May 2022

Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Air Traffic Controllers:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Fairbanks, AK	80	2.23	15.51	$ 46.71	$ 97,150
Anchorage, AK	260	1.56	10.88	$ 65.79	$ 136,840
Crestview-Fort Walton Beach-Destin, FL	70	0.62	4.33	$ 42.91	$ 89,250
Yuma, AZ	40	0.57	3.96	$ 47.00	$ 97,760
Jacksonville, FL	390	0.54	3.77	$ 67.36	$ 140,110
Cleveland-Elyria, OH	480	0.48	3.36	$ 73.49	$ 152,860
Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV	1,420	0.47	3.27	$ 70.48	$ 146,590
Salt Lake City, UT	320	0.42	2.89	$ 64.91	$ 135,010
Kansas City, MO-KS	390	0.37	2.60	$ 66.11	$ 137,520
Burlington-South Burlington, VT	40	0.32	2.25	$ 41.47	$ 86,250

Map of annual mean wages of air traffic controllers by area, May 2022

Top paying metropolitan areas for Air Traffic Controllers:

Metropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Sacramento--Roseville--Arden-Arcade, CA	230	0.22	1.56	$ 79.87	$ 166,120
Houston-The Woodlands-Sugar Land, TX	570	0.19	1.30	$ 78.86	$ 164,020
Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI	690	0.16	1.09	$ 78.03	$ 162,290
Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA	760	0.28	1.94	$ 77.04	$ 160,240
Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH	450	0.17	1.16	$ 75.79	$ 157,630
New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA	930	0.10	0.71	$ 75.06	$ 156,120
Cleveland-Elyria, OH	480	0.48	3.36	$ 73.49	$ 152,860
San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA	430	0.18	1.25	$ 72.89	$ 151,610
Minneapolis-St. Paul-Bloomington, MN-WI	510	0.27	1.88	$ 72.01	$ 149,790
Seattle-Tacoma-Bellevue, WA	460	0.23	1.58	$ 71.31	$ 148,320

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Air Traffic Controllers:

Nonmetropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Alaska nonmetropolitan area	100	0.98	6.79	$ 45.22	$ 94,060
Eastern New Mexico nonmetropolitan area	40	0.27	1.89	$ 42.81	$ 89,050
Northern West Virginia nonmetropolitan area	40	0.28	1.94	$ 34.76	$ 72,290
Kansas nonmetropolitan area	40	0.09	0.64	$ 37.89	$ 78,810

Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Air Traffic Controllers:

Nonmetropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Alaska nonmetropolitan area	100	0.98	6.79	$ 45.22	$ 94,060
Northern West Virginia nonmetropolitan area	40	0.28	1.94	$ 34.76	$ 72,290
Eastern New Mexico nonmetropolitan area	40	0.27	1.89	$ 42.81	$ 89,050
Kansas nonmetropolitan area	40	0.09	0.64	$ 37.89	$ 78,810

Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Air Traffic Controllers:

Nonmetropolitan area	Employment (1)	Employment per thousand jobs	Location quotient (9)	Hourly mean wage	Annual mean wage (2)
Alaska nonmetropolitan area	100	0.98	6.79	$ 45.22	$ 94,060
Eastern New Mexico nonmetropolitan area	40	0.27	1.89	$ 42.81	$ 89,050
Kansas nonmetropolitan area	40	0.09	0.64	$ 37.89	$ 78,810
Northern West Virginia nonmetropolitan area	40	0.28	1.94	$ 34.76	$ 72,290

About May 2022 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia. The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.

The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall. The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median. More about percentile wages.

(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.

(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours; for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.

(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.

(8) Estimate not released.

(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration. A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.

Other OEWS estimates and related information:

May 2022 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates

May 2022 Occupation Profiles

Technical Notes

Last Modified Date: April 25, 2023