mos.directory

Marine Corps MOS · Aviation

7291 Senior Air Traffic Controller

Current service use not established

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

Browse Marine Corps

Overview

Senior Air Traffic Controllers perform branch chief duties as tower chiefs, radar chiefs, or training chiefs and manage air traffic control functions within their branches. They oversee controller credentialing and apply Federal Aviation Administration regulations, NATOPS, and standard operating procedures, while senior grades also advise leaders on operational planning and personnel management.

Minimum clearance: Secret

Core Skills

  • Air traffic controller credentialing oversight
  • FAA and NATOPS procedural compliance
  • Deployed air traffic control planning
  • Unit training and exercise coordination

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

Tower, radar, or training branch leadership, controller credentialing oversight, and application of FAA procedures directly support civilian air traffic control work.

How to prepare: Assemble existing certificates, facility ratings, and dated records of live traffic separation to assess the appropriate hiring route before seeking additional training. The FAA experienced-controller notice requires 52 consecutive weeks of full-time active traffic separation after certification or a facility rating within five years of application at a qualifying FAA, DOD, National Guard, or FAA contract facility, excludes pre-certification military training, allows no educational substitute, and sets age 35 as the maximum for an original appointment, with applicants age 35 or below by the closing date.

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

Applying FAA regulations and operating procedures at Marine Corps air stations provides a foundation for civilian airfield safety and regulatory-compliance work.

How to prepare: Compare your documented air-station responsibilities with airfield inspection and safety-procedure duties in target openings, then seek focused preparation for inspection work not covered by your experience.

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.

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 civilian certificate and facility-rating requirements, addressing only missing elements; Part 65 also recognizes an FAA Credential with a tower rating.

    Eligibility and preparation: Certificate applicants must be at least 18, meet good-moral-character and English communication requirements, pass the written knowledge test, and hold a second-class medical issued within the prior 12 months unless the specified FAA or military exemption applies. Operating positions and facility ratings require practical tests. Facility-rating applications require six months of qualifying tower experience, with a military-member experience provision; work without a facility rating is limited to qualified positions under required supervision and applicable medical qualification.

    For: Air Traffic Controllers

Notes & Sources

  • The separate FAA entry-level route requires applicants to be under 31 and have one year of progressively responsible work experience, a bachelor's degree, or a postsecondary education/work combination totaling one year, plus U.S. citizenship, clear spoken English, medical and security screening, and pre-employment tests including ATSA. It includes FAA Academy and subsequent 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. Previously appointed FAA or DOD civilian 2152 applicants must document their original appointment before the maximum entry age. Selected applicants enter appropriate field training, potentially including Academy courses; this resume repository does not guarantee an opening.
  • FAA appointment age and hiring-route requirements do not establish eligibility for every non-FAA controller job.
Evidence for this guidance (7 documents)
  1. NAVMC 1200.1L (FY26, in force): MOS 7291

    [1] MOS 7291 section "a. Summary"; cached text line 54912; NAVMC 1200.1L signed 2025-03-07, in force until 2026-10-01

    Supports: Air traffic controller credentialing oversight, FAA and NATOPS procedural compliance, Deployed air traffic control planning, Unit training and exercise coordination, Air Traffic Controllers (O*NET 53-2021.00), Airfield Operations Specialists (O*NET 53-2022.00)

    [2]NAVMC 1200.1L MOS 7291: Related SOC titles · MOS 7291 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 2026 experienced Air Traffic Control Specialist direct-hire notice

    [4] 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)

  4. FAA: Air Traffic Controller Qualifications

    [5] 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)

  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] 7291 cached COOL credential feed

    Supports: Air Traffic Control Tower Operator (CTO)

Defense contractor jobs for 7291

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

Report an error on this page