UAV Pilot

Ideal Aerosmith•Rockville, MD

9h•Onsite

About The Position

Ideal Aerosmith is a leading supplier of precision inertial guidance test systems, flight motion simulators, and a premier provider of aerospace test engineering services, ATE system engineering, and quality contract manufacturing services to the aerospace industry. They are experts in innovative engineering, manufacturing, and sustainment of world-class motion and electric test solutions and services. The company fosters a lean culture through continuous improvement, aiming to reduce waste and boost efficiency, customer service, and performance. The Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) Pilot role is a hands-on opportunity to operate and advance next-generation Group 2 and Group 3 Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS). This position is crucial for the safe execution of missions, testing, and demonstrations supporting research, development, test and evaluation (RDT&E), production acceptance, and operational deployments. The role ensures mission readiness, adherence to FAA and DoD flight safety standards, and contributes to the evolution and success of Ideal Aerosmith’s UAS programs as they scale into full operations. This position offers the opportunity to be at the forefront of next-generation Group 3 UAS development, contributing directly to national defense missions, operating a cutting-edge attritable platform, gaining exposure to RDT&E and production test environments, and supporting the company’s transition into scaled unmanned aircraft manufacturing. This is a part time role located near Rockville, MD, with a dynamic schedule that may range from short test flights to long endurance missions (up to 20 hours), with an average of ~50 hours per month; pilots will also support increased mission planning and test preparation activities between flight operations.

Requirements

5+ years of experience operating unmanned aircraft systems.
1,000+ flight hours combined on Group 2 and Group 3 UAS.
Group 2 / Group 3 fixed-wing operations experience required.
Ability to travel (domestic and internationally) and obtain a passport.
Due to federal contract requirements, candidates must be U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents, or protected individuals as defined by 8 U.S.C. §1324b(a)(3).
Experience with embedded systems prototyping using Arduino or similar microcontroller platforms.
Demonstrated technical work experience in unmanned systems operations, avionics, or flight test.
Strong knowledge of FAA regulations, military range operations, and UAS safety protocols.
Experience supporting developmental and operational test events for DoD programs.
Familiarity with TAK-based mission control systems and/or autonomous waypoint-driven operations.
Prior experience mentoring or training UAS operators.
Ability to work in a fast-paced, high-tempo test and production environment.

Nice To Haves

Private Pilot or Sport Pilot Certificate preferred
Technical degree in engineering, aviation, or related discipline preferred

Responsibilities

Plan, brief, and execute UAS flight operations for R&D, developmental test, and operational test missions.
Safely operate Group 2 and Group 3 UAS in both line-of-sight and beyond-visual-line-of-sight (BVLOS) environments.
Conduct pre-flight and post-flight inspections, ground checks, and mission readiness assessments.
Execute missions in accordance with FAA Certificates of Waiver/Authorization (COA), Range Safety requirements, and DoD test protocols.
Provide input to mission planning, flight test cards, and operational CONOPS development.
Support data collection, analysis, and reporting of flight test results.
Assist with training and mentoring of additional operators as the program scales.
Work closely with engineers, maintainers, and program management to ensure successful sortie generation and compliance with safety standards.
Contribute to operational test readiness reviews and government customer demonstrations.
Travel may be required to test ranges, customer sites, or operational demonstrations.
Role includes field operations under varied weather conditions in support of extended endurance UAS missions (up to 24 hours).