Air and sea transport

How to become an air traffic controller

Official title: Air traffic controller

Also called: Radar controller, Tower controller

Air traffic controllers direct and control air traffic movement at airports and the surrounding airspace.

Main tasks

Manage and direct air traffic
Instruct pilots to taxi, take off and land
Inform pilots of weather, facilities and airports
Monitor radars for aircraft movement
Analyse radar, pilot and flight plan data
Direct airport ground staff movement
Coordinate rescue services in emergency situations
Write incident reports

How to become one

You need to train on the job and get qualifications to become an air traffic controller. You usually need NCEA Level 2 to do the study or training for this job. Required: to complete a training course; a New Zealand Air Traffic Controller licence; to be over 20 years old; to be a New Zealand or Australian citizen or permanent resident; to pass a police check; to pass ability and personality tests; to pass a drug test and a Class 3 medical assessment; to pass an English language test. Other requirements: a New Zealand Diploma in Air Traffic Services (Level 6); a Bachelor of Aviation Management.

See the full Tahatū profile

Ways in

Certificates and diplomas: Advanced certificates and diplomas in air traffic control. TEC links this job to study in aerospace engineering and technology. Qualifications: NZ Cert in Air Traffic Services (Air Traffic Services Theory), NZ Dip in Air Traffic Services. Usually 11 months to 1 year. Graduates of these qualifications earn a median $74,000 a year one year after study; 80% are employed one year after (TEC, from Stats NZ IDI data).
Registration or licence: A New Zealand Air Traffic Controller licence.

Pay · Past change · AI and this job

Most common pay: $115,000 to $233,000 a year (median $198,000), a TEC estimate before tax.
Lower: $66,000 a year · Upper: $253,000 a year
TEC's pay figures are estimates only. TEC says they must not be used to set pay, in pay negotiations or in visa applications.
Change in the number of people doing this job between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses: Steady (TEC). This is past change, not a forecast.
People employed in the group Air Transport Professionals: 4,332 at the 2018 Census and 4,587 at the 2023 Census (+5.9%). Past change, not a forecast.
Generative AI can do relatively little of this work, by the ILO's global estimate.

Who does this work

About 450 people did this job at the 2023 Census (TEC).
In the group Air Transport Professionals, 20% of workers are female (sex at birth, 2023 Census).
Where people in the group Air Transport Professionals work (2023 Census): Auckland 30.5%, Canterbury 17.9%, and Wellington 7.8%.

Questions people ask

How do I become an air traffic controller?

How much does an air traffic controller earn in New Zealand?

The Tertiary Education Commission estimates median pay at $198,000 a year, before tax. Most common pay is $115,000 to $233,000 a year.

Has the number of people working as an air traffic controller grown in New Zealand?

It has held steady: TEC records the number of people doing this job as steady between the 2018 and 2023 Censuses. This is past change, not a forecast.

Will AI change the work of an air traffic controller?

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

Sources

Tertiary Education Commission (Tahatu Career Navigator): Tahatu career ideas: descriptions, tasks, pay estimates, people employed, employment change 2018 to 2023, entry requirements, registration, interest scores (Site scrape 2026-10 (816 career ideas, sitemap lastmod 2026-10-01)), CC BY 4.0, retrieved 4 October 2026
Stats NZ (via Figure.NZ): Census totals by topic for individuals 2013, 2018, 2023 (CEN23_TBT_004): employed by occupation, ANZSCO V1.3, summed to unit group (2023 Census (CEN23_TBT_004)), CC BY 4.0 (Stats NZ), CC BY 3.0 NZ (Figure.NZ), retrieved 4 October 2026
Stats NZ (via Figure.NZ): Census 2023: employed by regional council, occupation (ANZSCO V1.3 unit group) and sex at birth (2023 Census), CC BY 4.0 (Stats NZ), CC BY 3.0 NZ (Figure.NZ), 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

This content is sourced from the Tertiary Education Commission through the Tahatū Career Navigator website (www.tahatu.govt.nz) and used under the CC BY 4.0 licence. All or some of the information has been modified by Peernovo. TEC has not approved, endorsed or tested these modifications. TEC will not be held accountable for any errors within this content.

Qualification information from NZQA, used under CC BY 3.0 NZ.

This work is based on/includes Stats NZ's data which are licensed by Stats NZ for reuse under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International licence. Census data via Figure.NZ.

Includes information from O*NET OnLine by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

Sources: Tertiary Education Commission, Tahatū Career Navigator (career ideas, pay estimates, entry requirements and study options, CC BY 4.0, modified by Peernovo); Stats NZ, 2023 Census (via Figure.NZ) and the National Occupation List (CC BY 4.0); NZQA qualification information (CC BY 3.0 NZ); O*NET interest scores (CC BY 4.0); ILO global generative AI exposure index (CC BY 4.0). Links between career ideas and ANZSCO groups, degree fields and broad job groups are Peernovo's.

These results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.

Graduate outcomes: these results are not official statistics. They have been created for research purposes from the Integrated Data Infrastructure (IDI), which is carefully managed by Stats NZ.

Updated 4 October 2026