How many airplanes are in the air right now?

According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, there are 5,000 planes flying in U.S. airspace at any given time as of 2014. NOAA also estimates that at least 87,000 airplanes fly over the United States every day, and only one-third of them are commercial flights.

Air traffic controllers have one of the most stressful jobs in the world, as they have to make sure over 64 million flights land and take off safely every year. On an average day in the United States, air traffic controllers assist with over 28,000 commercial airplane flights, over 27,000 private airplane flights and over 24,000 flights from airplanes for hire.