UAV Pilot / Drone Operator

Location: Near Berkshire
Salary: £30,000–£40,000 + Benefits
Job Type: Permanent
Working Arrangement: Predominantly on-site but some flexibilty
Hours: Monday–Friday, 9:00am–5:30pm
Travel: UK and international travel required

Must be eligible for SC clearance

Summary

We are recruiting an experienced UAV Pilot to join a growing aerospace and technology organisation operating across commercial and defence-related environments.

This is a varied, hands-on position involving UAV flight testing, trials, customer demonstrations and operational deployments. It would suit a commercially experienced drone pilot who is confident flying non-DJI platforms and has practical knowledge of ArduPilotPilotPilot, Mission Planner or QGroundControl.

Responsibilities

• Conduct production acceptance and test flights
• Support research and development flight trials
• Operate UAV systems during customer demonstrations
• Deliver customer training and system handovers
• Support UK and international deployments
• Assist engineering and production teams with UAV testing
• Complete flight documentation and operational records
• Ensure operations comply with company procedures and UK CAA regulations
• Support general flight, trials and operational activities

Essential experience

• Commercial UAV or drone flying experience
• Experience operating multirotor UAVs outside the DJI product family
• Practical experience with ArduPilot-based platforms
• Experience using Mission Planner or QGroundControl
• GVC or RPL-1 qualification
• A2 Certificate of Competency
• Valid Operator ID and Flyer ID
• Good understanding of UK CAA rules and UAV operating requirements
• Full UK driving licence
• Willingness to travel within the UK and internationally

Desirable experience

• FPV or fixed-wing flying experience
• Military, defence or commercial trials experience
• Customer demonstrations or UAV training
• Flight-test or research and development environments
• Field Engineer or Field Service Engineer experience
• Personal interest in UAVs, robotics, autonomy or engineering

The successful candidate will be safety-conscious, technically curious and comfortable working independently as well as part of a multidisciplinary team.

This is an excellent opportunity to work with advanced UAV technology across production, research, trials and customer operations.

Apply with your CV or contact us confidentially for further information.