Drone Pilot – Reality Capture - Mission Critical

Alston Construction • Harlingen, TX

1d

About The Position

The Drone Pilot plans, executes, and documents daily drone flights on a hyperscale data center project using Skydio autonomous drone platforms. Working within the Mission Critical division, the role captures progress imagery, site documentation, and reality capture data to support project controls, scheduling, quality, safety, and owner reporting.

The Drone Pilot manages the full flight-to-data workflow: flying scheduled missions safely and in compliance with FAA regulations, then processing, uploading, organizing, and delivering captured data to the project team on time. The position requires a current FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate and experience with commercial drone operations, construction sites, and data management.

Requirements

• Current FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate, with recurrent training maintained throughout employment.
• High school diploma or equivalent.
• At least 2 years of commercial drone operations experience.
• Self-motivated and able to work well with multidisciplinary teams in a deadline-driven environment.

Nice To Haves

• Associate’s or Bachelor’s degree in Construction Management, Surveying, Geomatics, Engineering, or a related field.
• Experience on large commercial, industrial, or mission-critical construction sites.
• Hands-on experience with Skydio drones, such as Skydio X10 or Skydio Dock, and Skydio Cloud.
• Familiarity with photogrammetry and reality capture software such as DroneDeploy, Pix4D, or Autodesk ReCap.
• Familiarity with construction management platforms such as Procore or Autodesk Construction Cloud.
• Experience obtaining LAANC authorizations and working under FAA waivers, such as BVLOS or operations over people.

Responsibilities

• Plan and execute daily drone flights using Skydio drones, including autonomous and scheduled missions, to capture site progress, aerial photography, video, and reality capture data.
• Complete scheduled flights, track completion against the flight plan, and promptly communicate and reschedule missions delayed by weather or other issues.
• Upload, process, and organize flight data daily in Skydio Cloud and designated project platforms, verifying data integrity, completeness, file naming, and folder structure.
• Develop and maintain repeatable flight paths and capture locations for consistent progress imagery throughout the project.
• Perform pre-flight and post-flight inspections, maintain flight logs, and manage batteries, firmware updates, docking stations, and routine equipment maintenance.
• Monitor weather, airspace, NOTAMs, and site conditions before flights; obtain LAANC authorizations and other FAA authorizations or waivers as needed.
• Coordinate daily flight activities with superintendents, the site safety team, crane operators, and other trades to avoid conflicts with lifts, overhead work, and ground personnel.
• Follow owner and client requirements for site security, confidentiality, and imagery handling, and limit capture, storage, and sharing of sensitive areas to authorized uses.
• Provide progress imagery and data for schedule updates, earned value reporting, monthly owner reports, and progress meetings.
• Assist the VDC/BIM team with photogrammetry, orthomosaics, point clouds, and as-built comparisons against design models as required.
• Support quality control, safety, and site logistics teams with on-demand flights for inspections, incident documentation, stockpile and earthwork tracking, and roof and envelope reviews.
• Maintain an organized archive of flight data and prepare periodic flight activity and data delivery reports for project leadership.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, vision, and prescription safety glasses coverage.
• Short-term disability, long-term disability, life insurance/AD&D, HSA, health FSA, dependent daycare FSA, and EAP.
• 401(k), Roth 401(k), and After-Tax Roth In-Plan Conversion.
• Paid vacation and sick time, and paid holidays.
• Tuition reimbursement.
• Tickets at Work.
• Paid Identity Theft Protection with family coverage.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level
• Education Level: High school or GED