Air Transport Services Workers

How to become a Drone Pilot

Official Chinese title (2022 occupational classification): 无人机驾驶员

Also called: Crop Spraying Drone Pilot

Flies drones by remote control to carry out planned flight tasks.

Main tasks

Installing and tuning drone motors, power units, propellers and payloads
Planning flight routes for each task
Checking flight settings against the flying environment and weather
Flying drones to carry out tasks
Organising and analysing data collected in flight
Evaluating flight results and how well the work went
Checking, maintaining and organising drones and payloads

Ways in

Vocational majors: Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Air Logistics Management (530803). Vocational major 530803 Air Logistics Management (航空物流管理), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Logistics Management; Civil Aviation Cargo Transport.; Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Drone Surveying and Mapping Technology (420307). Vocational major 420307 Drone Surveying and Mapping Technology (无人机测绘技术), 3 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Drone Piloting; Drone Photogrammetry; Drone Operation Applications.; Vocational bachelor (职业本科) major: Drone Systems Application Technology (260604). Vocational major 260604 Drone Systems Application Technology (无人机系统应用技术), 4 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Drone Assembly and Testing; Drone Operation Applications.; Vocational bachelor (职业本科) major: Smart Airport Operations and Management (300403). Vocational major 300403 Smart Airport Operations and Management (智慧机场运行与管理), 4 years. The Ministry of Education's 2022 major profiles list this occupation among those the major prepares students for (职业面向). Example certificates: Airport Operations Controller.

Pay · AI and this job

Median pay in China: CN¥63,600 a year (2025).
Middle half: CN¥47,800 to CN¥89,000. One in ten earn less than CN¥36,000 and one in ten more than CN¥121,300.
This is the figure for the mid group Transport, Warehousing, Logistics and Postal Services Workers, not for this job alone.
National figure: wage prices of enterprise employees from the Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS) enterprise pay survey. The public sector and the self-employed are not covered.
Guangzhou only: median CN¥76,938 a year (2025), middle half CN¥56,236 to CN¥104,449.
This is the figure for the mid group Transport, Warehousing, Logistics and Postal Services Workers, not for this job alone.
Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Who does this work

The census group Transport, Warehousing, Logistics and Postal Services Workers holds 6.05% of everyone employed in China; 14.2% of its workers are women (2020 Census).
32.9% are under 35, 58.1% are 35 to 54 and 9% are 55 or older. The middle age band is 40 to 44.
Census figures for the whole mid group (2020 long-form sample), not for this job alone.

Questions people ask

How do I become a Drone Pilot?

Ways in include: Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Air Logistics Management (530803); Higher vocational college (高职专科) major: Drone Surveying and Mapping Technology (420307).

How much does a Drone Pilot earn in China?

Across China, the median pay of enterprise employees is CN¥63,600 a year (Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS), 2025). The public sector and the self-employed are not covered. It is the figure for the mid group Transport, Warehousing, Logistics and Postal Services Workers. In Guangzhou alone it is CN¥76,938 a year (2025).

Will AI change the work of a Drone Pilot?

Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Sources

Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security (MOHRSS): 2025 enterprise pay survey information: wage prices of enterprise employees by occupation mid group, and digital occupations (P10 to P90 annual CNY) (2025 (published 2026-07-08)), retrieved 5 October 2026
Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau: Guangzhou 2025 labour market wage prices (P10 to P90 annual CNY by occupation) (2025 (enterprise pay survey)), retrieved 4 October 2026
National Bureau of Statistics of China: China Population Census Yearbook 2020, long-form tables 4-6 and 4-7 (employed by occupation mid group, sex, age) (2020 Census long form (10% sample)), retrieved 4 October 2026
International Labour Organization, Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure (ILO Working Paper 140, Gmyrek et al.) (ILO Working Paper 140, May 2025, Annex Table A1), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026

Sources: Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition, public consultation draft), Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, State Administration for Market Regulation and National Bureau of Statistics; Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, 2025 enterprise pay survey information; Guangzhou Human Resources and Social Security Bureau, 2025 labour market wage prices; National Bureau of Statistics of China (www.stats.gov.cn), 2020 Population Census yearbook; Ministry of Education, vocational education major profiles (2022 revision) and undergraduate major catalogue (2025); Ministry of Human Resources and Social Security, national vocational qualifications catalogue (2021); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Figures processed by Peernovo. English text, translations and the matching of occupations to ISCO-08, majors, degree fields and qualifications by Peernovo.

Descriptions and tasks are Peernovo's own words, written from the facts in the Occupational Classification of the People's Republic of China (2022 edition). Job titles and work types are the classification's own.

Updated 5 October 2026