Originally Posted by kalyx522

"Air traffic controllers rank No. 1 on this list with the top 10% earning $141,860 a year.

Perched in a tower overlooking the airport, the air traffic controller regulates and controls commercial airline flights to ensure flight safety. The average annual salary is $107,780, while the median annual salary is $112,930. Illinois is the highest-paying state for this occupation. O'Hare International Airport, based in Chicago, Ill., is one of the busiest airports in the world."

This is very misleading as well. The controllers earning 140k are old timers on the older contract... and even then you'd have to be in some kind of supervisory position in a level 12 center, after many years of service. I don't believe new controllers will ever see that kind of money with the new payscale. As far as being perched on a tower overlooking the airport, few towers across the country are level 11, the vast majority are lower paying levels, and thus most tower controllers could never see 6 figures.