Flight Test Operations Program Manager

Joby Aviation•Marina, CA

11h

About The Position

Joby is developing a piloted electric air taxi and is in the final stages of certifying its aircraft with the FAA as it scales manufacturing and prepares to launch commercial service. The Flight Test Operations Program Manager owns the execution layer of flight testing, translating long-range strategy into daily, weekly, and campaign-level plans that keep the flight test fleet safe, productive, and on schedule. The role works in the hangar, on the flight line, and in the program office. It partners with flight test leadership, pilots, engineering, maintenance, safety, systems program managers, the PMO, design engineering, and certification teams to prepare test events and ensure they are traceable to FAA requirements and supported by the appropriate aircraft configuration, personnel, and range resources.

Requirements

Bachelor's degree in Aerospace, Mechanical, Electrical, or a related engineering field, or equivalent practical experience.
At least 7 years of professional experience in flight test, aircraft development, or flight operations, including at least 3 years in program or project management of flight test activities.
Direct experience planning and executing flight test campaigns on experimental or developmental aircraft.
Working knowledge of flight test safety practices, including hazard analysis, risk assessment, readiness reviews, and SMS principles.
Understanding of FAA certification pathways, including 14 CFR Part 21 and Part 23/27/25 or the powered-lift special class, and how test activities support certification.
Proven ability to build and manage detailed schedules and resource plans in a fast-moving environment.
Strong communication skills and ability to align pilots, engineers, technicians, and executives under schedule pressure.
Willingness to work flexible hours, including early mornings and weekends, and travel to remote test sites.

Nice To Haves

Experience with eVTOL, electric propulsion, fly-by-wire, or other novel aircraft architectures.
Background as a flight test engineer, test conductor, test pilot, or flight test operations lead.
Experience owning an Integrated Master Schedule and preparing PMO-level reporting.
Familiarity with test range operations, telemetry, and real-time data monitoring.
Proficiency with modern scheduling and tracking tools such as Jira or Smartsheet.
PMP or equivalent project management certification.

Responsibilities

Build and maintain near- and mid-term flight test schedules aligned with the Integrated Master Schedule, including aircraft availability, test priorities, crew, range and airspace, and ground resources.
Translate certification and development objectives into executable campaigns with clear entry criteria, resourcing, and success measures.
Drive daily flight operations, including flight planning, pre-flight briefings, post-flight debriefings, and rapid issue turnaround.
Communicate prioritization trade-offs when aircraft, weather, crew, or range availability changes.
Coordinate aircraft configuration, modifications, and instrumentation with Flight Test Maintenance, Flight Test Support Engineering, and Instrumentation teams.
Track squawks, engineering dispositions, and design-change incorporation to ensure fixes are implemented on the appropriate aircraft before test events.
Manage fleet readiness across conforming and non-conforming configurations and flag configuration risks early.
Partner with Flight Test Safety to ensure hazard analyses, risk assessments, and readiness reviews are complete before each test phase.
Enforce go/no-go criteria and support the Flight Test Safety Committee, incident reporting, root-cause investigations, and corrective-action closure.
Reinforce a safety culture in which anyone can stop a test.
Ensure test objectives are traceable to FAA certification requirements and events follow approved plans, procedures, and conformity requirements.
Coordinate with certification and airworthiness teams on FAA witnessing, data submittals, and test authorization milestones.
Connect flight test operations with the PMO and ensure execution status, risks, and resource needs are reflected accurately in program reporting.
Work with the Senior Flight Test Technical Program Manager and Systems Technical Program Managers to align operational plans with long-range strategy.
Support domestic and international demonstration events and the flight test teams conducting them.
Track and report KPIs, including flight hours, test point completion, aircraft availability, turnaround time, schedule adherence, and cost.
Run retrospectives and continuously improve processes, tools, and handoffs as the test fleet and operational tempo grow.
Mentor and coordinate a lean, high-performing team of coordinators and operations staff.