You have a tower shift to cover. Maybe a TRACON seat, an airfield ops desk, or a drone airspace coordinator role. The req has been open for months. Most local applicants have no rating and no live traffic time.

There is a trained pool many companies never search. The military runs its own air traffic control system. Every year, controllers with tower and radar time leave the service. They already speak the phraseology. They already work rotating shifts. Many already hold an FAA certificate or can get one fast.

This guide shows how to hire veterans for air traffic control and airspace roles. You will get the job codes to search. You will learn which certificates carry over and which ones do not. And you will learn when to reach out.

It is written for midsize employers. That means contract tower operators, airport authorities, aviation services firms, defense contractors, and drone companies. If you need someone who can hold a picture of moving aircraft in their head, keep reading.

This guide sits under our broader piece on how to hire veterans for aviation and aerospace roles. That piece covers the whole sector. This one stays in the controller and airspace lane.

Why are air traffic and airspace roles so hard to fill?

The supply of rated controllers is small. It also grows slowly. You cannot train one in a quarter. Certification takes classroom time plus a long stretch of live traffic hours.

The FAA Contract Tower Program covers more than 260 towers. Private companies staff them, not FAA employees. Together they hold just over half of all federal air traffic control towers in the country.

A 2026 report from the DOT Office of Inspector General looked at staffing at contract towers. Shortages still linger. So every operator in the market fishes in the same small pond.

The FAA is also hiring hard for its own facilities. When the agency runs a big push, contract operators feel it. Your pay band now competes with a federal pay band.

The military side is the pool many employers skip. Four services train and certify their own controllers. Those people separate every single month.

What does a military air traffic controller actually bring?

Start with what the person has done. The job title the service gave them matters less.

• Live traffic time: military controllers work real aircraft in a live pattern.
• Standard phraseology: most military towers run FAA procedures and FAA phrasing.
• Mixed traffic: fighters, heavies, rotary wing, and student pilots in one pattern.
• Shift work: nights, weekends, and holidays are already normal to them.
• Emergency handling: in flight emergencies and field closures get drilled often.

The mental model matters more than the resume wording. A controller holds a moving picture and talks at the same time. That skill does not fade in a year.

It also transfers sideways. The same trait shows up in 911 dispatch and public safety comms roles. If your airspace req stalls, that adjacent pool is worth a look.

One more point to weigh. Military controllers work under heavy oversight and written standards. They are used to tapes, reviews, and check rides. That habit fits a safety culture well.

They also come with a paper trail you can check. The services document training records, position certifications, and evaluation dates. Ask for them. A controller will usually have the dates handy.

Which military job codes map to your airspace roles?

Search by job code. Titles vary a lot across services. Codes do not.

The four core controller codes are the place to start. Navy controllers hold the AC rating. The Army uses 15Q Air Traffic Control Operator. The Air Force uses 1C1X1 Air Traffic Control. The Marine Corps uses 7257 Air Traffic Controller. Marines still training for 7257 hold 7251.

Do not stop at the code. Ask what facility they worked and how busy it was. A controller from a high volume training field sees a lot of traffic. Some small towers see less in a month.

How does the FAA control tower operator certificate work for a veteran hire?

Most civil tower jobs need an FAA Control Tower Operator certificate. Part 65 of the federal aviation regulations sets the rules for it.

Under 14 CFR 65.33, an applicant must be at least 18 years old. They must read, write, and speak clear English. They also need a second class medical certificate from the past 12 months.

That medical rule has a carve out. People on active duty with the Department of the Air Force, Army, or Navy are exempt. The Coast Guard and FAA employees are exempt too. Marines count under the Department of the Navy.

The carve out ends when your candidate separates. So build medical exam time into the start date. Ask about it during screening, not after you send the offer.

Experience is the easier half. 14 CFR 65.39 covers the practical experience rule for a facility rating. Armed forces service can meet it. A member needs six months of satisfactory service as a tower operator.

Age is the other question employers ask us about. The FAA sets a maximum entry age for its own controller positions. Contract towers are staffed by private companies, so that federal rule does not govern those jobs. A 38 year old retiring controller may be closed out of a direct FAA seat. That person can still be a strong hire for you.

Which airspace roles beyond the tower cab should you open to veterans?

Controller reqs get all the attention. But the airspace side of your business has other seats. Many of them fit a veteran faster than a tower seat does.

Drone airspace work is worth a note. A remote pilot certificate under 14 CFR 107.61 usually means passing an FAA knowledge test. Military drone hours do not issue that certificate on their own.

What a veteran controller does bring to drone work is the airspace read. They know class of airspace, letters of agreement, NOTAMs, and how to talk to a facility. That is the part new hires often get wrong.

Defense work has its own version of this. Range control, airspace scheduling, and deconfliction desks all need the same read. A veteran controller has usually sat in those meetings already.

The ramp side matters too. Does your scope include the movement area? Read our guide on hiring veterans for airport operations and ground handling. Many airfield ops veterans cross over cleanly.

How should you write and screen the req?

Most airspace job posts read like a certificate list. A veteran controller scans it, sees no match to their own words, and moves on. Fix the post first.

Name the military codes right in the qualifications block. Add a line like this one. Navy AC, Army 15Q, Air Force 1C1X1, or Marine Corps 7257 experience welcome. That single line pulls people who would have skipped you. Our guide on writing a job description that attracts veterans walks through the rest.

Then screen for four points. Facility and traffic type. Ratings held and dates held. Last day on live traffic. Current status of the FAA medical and the CTO certificate.

Those four answers tell you how fast the person can sit a position. They also tell you what training you will have to fund.

Air traffic is a safety sensitive role. That changes how you run background and fitness checks. Our guide on screening a veteran candidate for a safety sensitive role covers the details.

Score the interview the same way for every candidate. A structured sheet keeps a strong talker from beating a strong controller. Build one with our structured interview scorecard for veterans.

When should you start talking to a controller still in uniform?

Earlier than you think. Controllers plan their separation far out because they know the certificate math. By the time they hit a job board, they usually have offers.

Reach out six to twelve months before their separation date. Ask what facility they want and what shift they want. Those two answers close more candidates than pay alone.

DoD SkillBridge is another route. It lets some members train with a civilian company near the end of service. To host, a business usually must have been established for at least three years. A newer firm cannot apply yet. Federal, state, and local government offices are exempt from that three year rule.

SkillBridge is a training period. The member stays on military pay. Nobody goes on your payroll. Read how to become a SkillBridge host company before you commit to it.

Interviewing someone still on active duty has its own rules. Duty hours, leave, and location all limit the schedule. Our guide on interviewing a service member still on active duty covers the logistics.

Guard and Reserve controllers are a second lane. Many hold a civil job and a drill seat at the same time. Their rights are set by USERRA, so plan coverage around drill weekends and annual training.

How do you keep a veteran controller past year one?

Turnover in this field is expensive. You paid for training, currency, and a facility rating. Losing that in month ten hurts twice.

Shift work is the top reason people leave. Post the real rota during the interview, not after. Our guide on recruiting veterans for shift and overnight work shows how to talk about it honestly.

Show the upgrade path in writing. Controllers think in ratings and facility levels. A vague "growth opportunity" line does not land with them.

Set up the first 90 days on purpose. Assign a training partner. Book the medical and the certificate steps before day one. Our 90 day onboarding plan for veteran employees lays it out.

One warning from the retention side. Veterans often will not ask for help early. Some will absorb a bad schedule quietly and then resign without notice. Check in at 30 and 60 days on purpose.

What should you do this week?

You do not need a veteran hiring program to make progress. You need a better search string and an earlier phone call.

For pay bands and outlook on the role family, the federal Occupational Outlook Handbook is a clean reference. The Department of Labor VETS employer page covers hiring rules and support programs.

Best Military Resume runs the candidate side of this. More than 1,000 new profiles come in every month. Over 65,000 resumes have been built on the platform. Aviation is one of the deeper fields in that pool.

Do you have an airspace req open right now? Reach out through our hire page to get access. Tell us the job codes you need. We will point you at people who already hold the rating.