by Jen Mallia
Last updated: 3:50 PM ET, Thu March 26, 2026
Air traffic controllers are widely recognized as having a stressful job. A study by Collegiate Aviation Review International describes the role as having a “complex work environment” requiring the need to “remain focused while responding to ever-changing conditions, often with little notice.”
There are long hours, shift work and sometimes inadequate recovery time, the study states.
The intricacies and importance of the job were thrown into the spotlight this week, with a communication breakdown on the runways of LaGuardia appearing to have led to a fatal crash.
It goes to follow that burnout rates are high, and despite a salary range of $101,221 to $201,407 plus shift premiums, Nav Canada is reporting a shortage of approximately 200 air traffic controllers.
The shortages have already led to periodic closures of control towers in both Kelowna, B.C., and Winnipeg last year, reports CTV News.
Nav Canada and the federal government are working to fill the shortage. “We are actively addressing staffing through a comprehensive, multi-year strategy focused on recruitment, training and retention,” Nav Canada said in a statement, adding that in 2024-2025, staffing growth exceeded attrition by 26 per cent, and that since 2023, more than 600 air traffic service professionals have received their licenses.
The training is intensive — up to 36 months long — and demand is high, despite the difficulties of the job. Of the 50,000 applications Nav Canada received last year, just 500 were hired into their training programs.
CTV reports that Steve MacKinnon, the federal minister of transport, has said he is working with Nav Canada to address the shortage, reiterating that in the meantime, air travel in Canada remains safe.
“I do want to be very reassuring that we take every precautionary measure and make sure that Canada continues to perform at the highest level of security,” MacKinnon said Tuesday.
Nav Canada is also working to dispel some of the myths about the high stakes profession. On its website it works to reassure potential air traffic controllers that the times of stress are tempered by quieter times. “One of the biggest misconceptions about our work is that it’s super stressful. While there are stressful periods, overall the level of training we receive provides us with skills and abilities to make otherwise stressful events nearly routine," Chris Wonnacott, an Air Traffic Controller based at NAV CANADA’s Moncton Area Control Centre says. “My short answer when people ask, ‘isn't it stressful all the time?’ is ‘not if you're good at it, and we are.’ There definitely are peaks and valleys in traffic volume and complexity or both. Quiet times still require attention, but it is a relaxing environment where friendly conversation on the floor fills the time."
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