Air Traffic Controllers
Air Traffic Control Specialist (ATCS),
Air Traffic Controller (ATC),
Certified Professional Controller (CPC),
Enroute Air Traffic Controller (Enroute ATC)
What they do: 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.
- DemandHigh
- state Avg. Salary $$$$$$109,820Download Career Flyer
What do they typically do on the job?
- Inform pilots about nearby planes or potentially hazardous conditions, such as weather, speed and direction of wind, or visibility problems.
- Issue landing and take-off authorizations or instructions.
- Transfer control of departing flights to traffic control centers and accept control of arriving flights.
Personality
Interests
Career interests describe the perspectives and interests of people who enjoy the type of work involved in this career.
Discover what your interests are by taking the Interest Profiler Quiz
Abilities
Whether you have received formal training or not, these types of abilities are helpful in this career.
Attention
Pay attention to something without being distracted
Do two or more things at the same time
Visual Understanding
Quickly know what you are looking at
See hidden patterns
Verbal
Communicate by speaking
Listen and understand what people say
Ideas and Logic
Notice when problems happen
Skills
People who want to pursue this career have skills in these areas.
Basic Skills
Listening to others, not interrupting, and asking good questions
Talking to others
Problem Solving
Noticing a problem and figuring out the best way to solve it
People and Technology Systems
Thinking about the pros and cons of different options and picking the best one
Figuring out how a system should work and how changes in the future will affect it
Does this sound like something you'd like to do?
1. Do some research
- Identify how your interests, values, and strengths match this occupation
- Talk to someone who works in this field or spend a day job shadowing
- Use the colleges and training directory to explore programs related to this career
2. Plan your next move
- Talk to your college and career counselor or school admissions staff
- Visit Idaho Launch
- Search for available Air Traffic Controllers jobs on Idaho Works
Data for NSI career cards comes from the following: Idaho Department of Labor, US Bureau of Labor Statistics, O*NET, MyNextMove, and Career OneStop