BETA
Updated: Mar 2
BETA
Updated: Mar 2
Evolving
Last Update: 2/17/2026
Your role’s AI Resilience Score is
41.9%
Median Score
Changing Fast
Evolving
Stable
This reflects the reliability of your score based on the number of data sources available for this career and how closely those sources agree on the outlook. A higher confidence means more consistent evidence from labor experts and AI models.
What does this resilience result mean?
These roles are shifting as AI becomes part of everyday workflows. Expect new responsibilities and new opportunities.
AI Resilience Report for
Air Traffic Controllers
They guide airplanes safely in the sky and on the ground by giving pilots instructions to avoid collisions and ensure smooth flights.
This role is evolving
The career of an air traffic controller is labeled as "Evolving" because AI is being integrated to support and assist rather than replace human controllers. New technology provides better data and alerts, but human judgment and decision-making remain crucial.
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View analysisChat with CoachLatest newsMore career infoAnalysisChatNewsMoreThis role is evolving
The career of an air traffic controller is labeled as "Evolving" because AI is being integrated to support and assist rather than replace human controllers. New technology provides better data and alerts, but human judgment and decision-making remain crucial.
Read full analysisContributing Sources
We aggregate scores from multiple models and supplement with employment projections for a more accurate picture of this occupation’s resilience. Expand to view all sources.
AI Resilience
AI Resilience Model v1.0
AI Task Resilience
Evolving52.4%
52.4%
Microsoft's Working with AI
AI Applicability
Evolving42.2%
42.2%
Will Robots Take My Job
Automation Resilience
Evolving49.6%
49.6%
Low Demand
Labor Market Outlook
We use BLS employment projections to complement the AI-focused assessments from other sources.
Learn about this scoreGrowth Rate (2024-34):
1.2%
Growth Percentile:
33.3%
Annual Openings:
2,200
Annual Openings Pct:
23.0%
Analysis of Current AI Resilience
Air Traffic Controllers
Updated Quarterly • Last Update: 2/17/2026
What's changing and what's not
Today’s air traffic control systems already use many digital tools to help controllers. For example, modern radar now uses ADS-B technology so that each airplane “broadcasts their position, speed and other data” to controllers, giving more accurate, real-time views of traffic [1]. New text-based data-link systems let controllers and pilots send messages without radio talk, reducing errors [1].
The U.S. FAA even installed radar/alert systems at major airports that warn controllers if a plane is lined up for the wrong runway [2]. Researchers are also developing AI tools to assist controllers — for example, neural-network programs that analyze many flight paths and flag possible conflicts before collisions [3].
Importantly, these technologies are mostly augmentations, not replacements. They give controllers better information or warnings, but humans still make the final decisions. Air traffic safety experts stress that controllers’ judgment and flexibility are essential.
As one industry leader puts it, controllers have skills “that automated systems currently cannot replicate,” and any automation “should assist and support” the controller in doing their job [1] [4]. In practice, tasks like coordinating a missing-plane search or talking pilots through unexpected weather are still done by people. So far, AI helps by improving data and alerts, but the human controller remains at the center of the system [1] [4].
Sources
AI in the real world
Bringing AI into air traffic work is happening slowly. Major modernization programs like the FAA’s NextGen in the U.S. and Europe’s SESAR have taken decades and billions of dollars [1]. These programs use new tech to boost efficiency, but change is gradual because of safety rules and costs.
Training a new controller is very expensive, but so is designing and certifying fully automated systems. Controllers’ unions and experts are cautious: they emphasize that any AI must be “fail-safe” and keep humans in charge [4] [1].
One reason adoption may grow in time is labor needs. Many airports struggle to hire enough controllers, so tools that ease their workload can help. For example, AI might help controllers manage busy traffic or routine tasks, while humans handle the year-by-year unexpected challenges pilots face.
Overall, analysts expect a supportive role for AI: it can make air travel safer and more efficient, but it won’t replace controllers overnight. Combining smart technology with human skills is seen as the best path forward [1] [4].
Sources
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More Career Info
Career: Air Traffic Controllers
Parent Careers
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Employment & Wage Data
Median Wage
$144,580
Jobs (2024)
24,100
Growth (2024-34)
+1.2%
Annual Openings
2,200
Education
Associate's degree
Experience
None
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2024-2034
Task-Level AI Resilience Scores
AI-generated estimates of task resilience over the next 3 years
1
Alert airport emergency services in cases of emergency or when aircraft are experiencing difficulties.
2
Check conditions and traffic at different altitudes in response to pilots' requests for altitude changes.
3
Conduct pre-flight briefings on weather conditions, suggested routes, altitudes, indications of turbulence, or other flight safety information.
4
Provide flight path changes or directions to emergency landing fields for pilots traveling in bad weather or in emergency situations.
5
Maintain radio or telephone contact with adjacent control towers, terminal control units, or other area control centers to coordinate aircraft movement.
6
Organize flight plans or traffic management plans to prepare for planes about to enter assigned airspace.
7
Analyze factors such as weather reports, fuel requirements, or maps to determine air routes.
Tasks are ranked by their AI resilience, with the most resilient tasks shown first. Core tasks are essential functions of this occupation, while supplemental tasks provide additional context.
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