ORD

Chicago O'Hare Tower

FAA Control Tower Franklin Park, Illinois

Facility Information

Facility Overview
Identifier ORD
Facility Name Chicago O'Hare Tower
Airport Name Chicago O'Hare Intl
Type Tower
Leveli Level 12
Core 30 Airporti Yes
Airspace & Operations
Hours of Operationi 0000-2359 (always open)
Airspace Class Class B
Approach/Departure C90
Overlying ARTCC ZAU
Airport Diagram View Airport Diagram (PDF)
Location & Contact
Address Control Tower
Franklin Park, IL 60131
Phone Number 773-601-7601

Salary Information

2026 Pay for Chicago O'Hare Tower

Career Leveli Hourly Min. Hourly Max. Salary Min. Salary Max.i
CPC $88.76 $117.75 $185,250 $245,754
D3 $74.51 $88.76 $155,498 $185,250
D2 $60.25 $74.51 $125,750 $155,498
D1 $46.00 $60.25 $95,994 $125,750
AG $31.74 $31.74 $66,241 $66,241
Includes everything except premium pay.
Pay Factors
Facility Leveli Level 12
Locality Area Chicago
Locality Payi 30.86%
Controller Incentive Pay (CIP)i 10.00%
Local Affordability
Cost of Living Indexi 103.6 (3.6% above avg)
Cost-Adjusted CPC Mini $178,813

ATC pay has stalled over the past decade. Marangos & Brown are on a mission to increase pay.

Staffing and Training

Staffing Information, April 2026
CPCs on Boardi 57 CPCs
2026 TRB Targeti 88 CPCs
2026 TRB Staffingi 65%
CRWG Targeti 73 CPCs
↳ CPC-IT 0 (Transfer)4
↳ CPC-IT 1 (Transfer)4
↳ CPC-IT 3 (Transfer)4
Current CRWG Staffingi 78%
↳ Est. Trainee Certifications+ 7
↳ Committed Inbounds+ 2
↳ Committed Outbounds- 1
↳ Projected Retirements/Losses- 6.4
Training Information, April 2026
Training Time (Avg)i 1.76 years
↳ New Hires 1.88 years
↳ Transfers (CPC-IT) 1.74 years
Training Success Rate (Avg)i 58%
↳ New Hires 75%
↳ Transfers (CPC-IT) 57%
Travel Days from Academyi 2 days

Historical Trends

ORD Staffing Percentages

ORD Personnel Counts

ORD Training Metrics

Traffic

April 2025 - March 2026 (12 Months)
Tower Operations 878,673 operations/year
Average Daily Operations 2,407 operations/day

Traffic History

NCEPT

Current NCEPT Metrics
Possible Lossesi
Apr 2026
0
Expected Staffing (12-Month)i
Apr 2026
79.3%
Possible Gains to National Avgi
Apr 2026
9
Priority / Draft Orderi
Mar 2026
#25
Inbound ERRs on Filei
Feb 2026
12
Employees with Outbound ERRsi
Feb 2026
0 (0%)

NCEPT is the centralized system for managing controller-requested transfers between facilities. Transfer requests are only approved based upon a set of complex metrics that attempt to balance the distribution of the workforce.

Demand Trends

NCEPT Priority

Administration

Organizational Structure
Service Area Central
District Chicago
HR Region Great Lakes