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Marine Corps MOS · Aviation

7257 Air Traffic Controller

Current service use not established

This code is listed in the directory. Inclusion alone does not confirm current service use.

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Overview

Air Traffic Controllers control air traffic and vehicles within designated airport control zones, expeditionary airfields, and remote area landing sites. They perform these duties from control towers and radar facilities and through expeditionary air traffic control equipment.

Minimum clearance: Secret, often with SCI exposure

Minimum ASVAB: CL 110 or GT 110

ASVAB policy: Not policy-reviewed · coverage unknown · as of 2026-10-19

Program scope has not been reviewed.

Policy applicability and coverage of the program's score routes have not been reviewed. Shown-route arithmetic is not an eligibility decision.

Source: navmc-1200-1l-fy26 (source date 2025-03). Policy applicability has not been established.

See if you would hit this score: free ASVAB practice test

Core Skills

  • Expeditionary and remote landing-site traffic control
  • Vehicle movement control within airport zones
  • Tower and radar facility traffic control

Civilian Career Paths

Career associations are editorial assessments of the cited evidence, not an official crosswalk unless the evidence explicitly says so. O*NET supplies civilian occupation information, not proof of a military match. Related experience does not confer civilian qualifications. Tasks and tools below describe civilian work, not military training.

Air Traffic Controllers

Military control of air traffic in towers, radar facilities, and expeditionary settings directly overlaps civilian air traffic control work.

How to prepare: Compare existing certificates, facility ratings, and dated post-certification traffic-separation records with the applicable hiring route before choosing additional training. The FAA experienced-controller notice sets an original-appointment maximum age of 35 and requires 52 consecutive weeks of full-time active traffic separation after certification or facility rating within five years of application, excluding pre-certification military training and allowing no educational substitute; FAA entry-level rules instead require applicants to be under 31 with one year of progressively responsible work, a bachelor's degree, or combined post-secondary education and work totaling one year.

What the civilian work involves
  • Issue landing and take-off authorizations or instructions.
  • Transfer control of departing flights to traffic control centers and accept control of arriving flights.
  • Inform pilots about nearby planes or potentially hazardous conditions, such as weather, speed and direction of wind, or visibility problems.

Airfield Operations Specialists

Controlling aircraft and vehicles within military airport zones provides relevant operating-area experience for civilian airfield safety work.

How to prepare: Compare your documented airfield experience with a target airport's inspection and safety procedures, then seek supervised exposure to airfield-condition inspections to address that gap.

What the civilian work involves
  • Inspect airfield conditions to ensure compliance with federal regulatory requirements.
  • Implement airfield safety procedures to ensure a safe operating environment for personnel and aircraft operation.
  • Assist in responding to aircraft and medical emergencies.

Training & Development

Choose credentials for your target role. COOL funding markers describe program listings, not a guarantee of eligibility or funding.

Getting Started

  • Air Traffic Control Tower Operator (CTO)

    Assess existing tower qualifications against the civilian certificate and facility-rating route, addressing only missing requirements.

    Eligibility and preparation: Certificate requirements include age 18, good moral character, adequate English reading, writing, understanding and speech, a written knowledge test, and a second-class medical issued within the prior 12 months unless the specified FAA or military exemption applies. Operating-position and facility ratings require practical tests; a facility-rating application requires six months of qualifying tower experience, subject to the military-member experience provision. Tower operation requires an FAA Credential with a tower rating or a CTO certificate, plus a facility rating or qualified-position work under required supervision and applicable medical qualification.

    For: Air Traffic Controllers

Notes & Sources

  • FAA appointment age limits above are route-specific, not universal limits for non-FAA controller jobs. Previously appointed FAA or DOD civilian 2152 applicants must document their original appointment under the experienced-controller notice.
  • FAA entry-level selection also requires U.S. citizenship, clear spoken English, medical and security screening, and pre-employment tests including ATSA, followed by Academy and facility training; controllers must requalify medically each year.
  • The cited FAA experienced-controller notice requires U.S. citizenship, a pre-employment physical, drug testing, Secret clearance, and willingness to work at any FAA facility. Appointees enter the appropriate field-training phase, potentially including Academy courses; this resume repository does not guarantee an opening.
Evidence for this guidance (7 documents)
  1. NAVMC 1200.1L (FY26, in force): MOS 7257

    [1] MOS 7257 section "a. Summary"; cached text line 54761; NAVMC 1200.1L signed 2025-03-07, in force until 2026-10-01

    Supports: Expeditionary and remote landing-site traffic control, Vehicle movement control within airport zones, Tower and radar facility traffic control, Air Traffic Controllers (O*NET 53-2021.00), Airfield Operations Specialists (O*NET 53-2022.00)

    [2]NAVMC 1200.1L MOS 7257: Related SOC titles · MOS 7257 section "e. Related Standard Occupational Classification"

    Supports: Air Traffic Controllers (O*NET 53-2021.00)

  2. O*NET: Air Traffic Controllers

    [3] O*NET 30.3 occupational data

    Supports: Air Traffic Controllers (O*NET 53-2021.00)

  3. FAA: Air Traffic Controller Qualifications

    [4] Minimum qualifications and training requirements; official page updated 2025-02-27, checked 2026-09-24. Current entry-level threshold is one year, not the older three-year wording.

    Supports: Air Traffic Controllers (O*NET 53-2021.00)

  4. FAA 2026 experienced Air Traffic Control Specialist direct-hire notice

    [5] FAA-FAA-26-PUB NOT-96466: Duties, Conditions of employment, Qualifications, Education. Checked 2026-09-24; a resume repository, not a guarantee of an opening or appointment.

    Supports: Air Traffic Controllers (O*NET 53-2021.00)

  5. FAA: Air Traffic Control Tower Operator certificate and facility-rating requirements

    [6] 14 CFR 65.31, 65.33, 65.35, 65.37, 65.39 and 65.41; official eCFR XML API as of 21 September 2026

    Supports: Air Traffic Controllers (O*NET 53-2021.00), Air Traffic Control Tower Operator (CTO)

  6. O*NET: Airfield Operations Specialists

    [7] O*NET 30.3 occupational data

    Supports: Airfield Operations Specialists (O*NET 53-2022.00)

  7. COOL credential mapping: Air Traffic Control Tower Operator (CTO)

    [8] 7257 cached COOL credential feed

    Supports: Air Traffic Control Tower Operator (CTO)

Defense contractor jobs for 7257

Descriptions may be summarized for clarity. Verify all information with your branch career counselor or official military documentation before making career decisions.

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