Flight Ops Technician

The role

Build, maintain, repair and test prototype unmanned aircraft and test systems, including avionics, wiring, HIL rigs and aircraft inspections. Support flight operations, launch and recovery, and field deployments, and work with hardware, software and flight-test engineers.

What you will do

• Build, modify, assemble, maintain, and repair prototype unmanned aircraft and related test systems.
• Install and integrate avionics, sensors, compute hardware, radios, antennas, payloads, and wiring.
• Fabricate prototype and replacement components using 3D printing, hand and power tools, and rapid-prototyping methods.
• Build, wire, configure, maintain, and troubleshoot HIL rigs, test fixtures, and engineering test infrastructure.
• Diagnose mechanical, electrical, avionics, communications, and system-level issues across aircraft and test equipment.
• Support SIL, HIL, VIL, bench, ground, and live-flight testing.
• Perform aircraft inspections, maintenance, repairs, and pre- and post-flight activities.
• Support flight operations, including aircraft setup, launch and recovery, and test-site setup and teardown.
• Maintain aircraft, test-system, configuration, inventory, and technical documentation.
• Mentor less-experienced technicians and maintain high standards for workmanship, configuration control, and safety.

Required qualifications

• 5+ years of hands-on experience in UAS, aviation, aerospace, robotics, electronics, manufacturing, test support, or a related technical field.
• Strong mechanical and electrical aptitude with experience building, modifying, maintaining, or repairing complex electromechanical systems.
• Experience integrating hardware into aircraft, robotics, prototypes, test systems, or comparable platforms.
• Hands-on electrical experience, including wiring, connectors, soldering, crimping, cable fabrication, and electrical troubleshooting.
• Experience building, maintaining, or troubleshooting HIL rigs, test stands, test fixtures, or similar environments.
• Ability to read and work from mechanical drawings, wiring diagrams, schematics, and engineering documentation.
• Experience with rapid prototyping, fabrication, and iterative hardware development.
• Ability to systematically troubleshoot mechanical, electrical, communications, and system-level problems.
• Experience using common mechanical and electrical tools and test equipment.
• Experience supporting engineering, ground, flight, or field testing.
• Strong attention to detail, workmanship, safety, and configuration control.
• Ability to work independently and solve technical problems in workshop, laboratory, flight-line, and field environments.

Nice to have

• Experience maintaining or integrating fixed-wing and multirotor UAS.
• Experience with autonomous or experimental aircraft and Group 1 or Group 2 UAS.
• Experience building or maintaining HIL environments for aircraft, robotics, or autonomous systems.
• Experience with 3D printing, CAD, and prototype part fabrication.
• Experience integrating avionics, flight computers, sensors, actuators, radios, antennas, or payload systems.
• Experience with PX4, ArduPilot, or similar flight-control systems.
• Familiarity with Ground Control Stations, telemetry, RF systems, datalinks, and networking.
• Familiarity with Linux, command-line tools, scripting, or basic software troubleshooting.
• Experience using oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, power supplies, or similar electrical test equipment.
• Experience establishing or maintaining an engineering lab, prototype shop, HIL lab, or flight-operations facility.

Benefits

• Comprehensive total rewards package aligned to your country office location.

Before you apply

• Ability to travel within Ukraine as required is a stated requirement.

About the company

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company that builds intelligent systems to protect service members and civilians. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation technologies.