# Will airfield operations specialists be replaced by AI? Updated October 2026 Airfield operations specialists score 42 out of 100 for AI exposure. AI helps with 60% of their task time, and they stay in charge. AI can do another 9%. 31% needs a person. - **9%** AI can do it - **60%** AI helps - **31%** Needs a person Moderate exposure Higher than 56% of the 923 jobs we scored. ## Task by task We graded 27 tasks, most exposed first. AI can do 4 of them, helps with 16 and leaves 7 to people. | Task | AI exposure | | --- | --- | | Receive and post weather information and flight plan data, such as air routes or arrival and departure times. Weather and flight plan data entry is routine and easily automated. | 80% AI can do it | | Maintain flight and event logs, air crew flying records, and flight operations records of incoming and outgoing flights. Log keeping and records management are structured data tasks. | 80% AI can do it | | Receive, transmit, and control message traffic. Message handling is mostly text, so AI can triage, draft, and route. | 65% AI can do it | | Procure, produce, and provide information on the safe operation of aircraft, such as flight planning publications, operations publications, charts and maps, or weather information. Producing charts, publications, and weather summaries is largely information work. | 65% AI can do it | | Relay departure, arrival, delay, aircraft and airfield status, and other pertinent information to upline controlling agencies. Status updates to upline agencies are largely routine messaging. | 55% AI helps | ## How airfield operations specialists compare All jobs (923) Transportation and material moving (52) The dark line is **airfield operations specialists, at 42**. Each dot is a score, and darker dots mean more jobs share it. The short marks are the averages, 37 for all jobs and 25 for transportation and material moving. ## Pay and outlook in the US Median pay $56,850 a year, May 2025 People employed 15,190 in the US, May 2025 Projected change in jobs +7.8% from 2024 to 2034 ## Skills to build - Post weather and flight plan data in SAP and Oracle Database - Hold live air-to-ground radio contact with aircraft commanders - Inspect airfield perimeter and controlled access points on foot - Brief aircrews on airfield status and flight planning data - Verify AI-drafted weather summaries and charts before release - Run airfield emergency response drills with crash rescue crews ## Safer roles nearby 5 related jobs with lower scores. - [Air traffic controllers37 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/air-traffic-controllers/) - [Aircraft cargo handling supervisors35 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/aircraft-cargo-handling-supervisors/) - [Transportation supervisors37 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/transportation-supervisors/) - [Commercial pilots33 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/commercial-pilots/) - [Airline pilots32 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/airline-pilots/) ## Questions about airfield operations specialists and AI Will AI replace airfield operations specialists? Partly. About 3 in 10 working hours go to tasks AI can already do, mostly posting weather and flight plan data and keeping flight and event logs. Live emergency response, perimeter patrols and radio contact with aircraft commanders stay with people because they need a person on site and on the radio. Which airfield operations specialist tasks is AI taking over? Weather and flight plan data entry scores 80 on exposure, the highest in this job, because posting air routes and arrival times is structured data work. Flight and event logs also score 80, since incoming and outgoing flight records follow fixed formats. Message handling scores 65, so AI can triage, draft and route traffic for review. Which airfield operations specialist tasks stay human? Emergency response scores 8 on exposure, the lowest in this job, because aircraft and medical emergencies need people physically present. Perimeter inspections and wildlife management both score 10, since they require someone walking the grounds. Live radio contact with aircraft commanders scores 15 because it happens in real time between people. How can airfield operations specialists stay valuable? Move routine log work into Oracle Database and SAP reports, then spend the freed time on low exposure tasks. Train on live radio procedures and runway inspections, since those stay with people. Lead airfield safety procedures and emergency drills, and check AI-drafted weather summaries in Microsoft Word before they reach upline agencies. ## Related jobs - [Aviation inspectors31 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/aviation-inspectors/) - [Logistics managers51 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/logistics-managers/) - [Railroad conductors32 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/railroad-conductors/) - [Flight attendants30 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/flight-attendants/) ## Next steps for airfield operations specialists - ### Check your job Your job title is a rough guide. Your tasks decide your score. Paste your job description or CV to see which tasks AI can do. [Check your job](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/ai-exposure-checker/) [Check your CV](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/cv-checker/) - ### Estimate team savings The score is per person. Add headcount and salary to see the hours AI can take on in a team of airfield operations specialists, and what they cost. [Estimate what AI saves a team of airfield operations specialists](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/team-ai-audit/?role=airfield-operations-specialists) [Work out the return on automation](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/ai-savings-calculator/) ### Check which roles in your team AI can take on We map your team's tasks, show what AI can do today and build the automations that pay back first. [Book an AI audit](https://www.aigentcy.com/audit/) ## Related topics - [**Jobs AI can't replace**Roustabouts score lowest, at 6.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs-ai-cant-replace/) - [**Jobs most at risk from AI**Proofreaders score highest, at 76.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs-most-exposed-to-ai/) - [**High-paying jobs with low AI exposure**Pediatric surgeons earn a median $559,030 and score 29.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/high-paying-jobs-low-ai-exposure/) - [**Entry-level jobs with low AI exposure**Roustabouts need little prior training and score 6.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/entry-level-jobs-low-ai-exposure/) - [**Jobs AI speeds up the most**AI helps with 98% of the task time for health informatics specialists.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs-ai-speeds-up/) - [**AI and jobs in Malta**15 iGaming roles graded task by task.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/malta/) - [**Skills that keep work human**The skills to build in the jobs AI changes least.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/skills/) - [**Jobs A to Z**Every job we score, by first letter.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs/) - [**AI exposure by industry**Average scores for 22 job groups.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/industries/) - [**Write a CV screening software can read**How applicant tracking systems read a CV, and what to change.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/cv-screening-guide/) - [**AI for businesses**The tasks to automate first in each team and industry.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-for/) - [**How we score AI exposure**The grading, the weights and every source.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/methodology/) Sources and licences Occupation data from the O\*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and modified by Aigentcy. O\*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. Wage, employment and projection data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. EU occupation names from ESCO, European Commission. AI usage signals from the Anthropic Economic Index (CC BY) and Microsoft Research (CC BY 4.0). [Methodology and sources](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/methodology/). Scores © Aigentcy. Quote them with a link to the page.