Back to jobs

Senior UAS Training & Standardization Specialist

Pendleton, OR

Kraus Hamdani Aerospace (KHA) is an aerospace company specializing in long-endurance unmanned aerial platforms for a wide variety of industries. KHA supports a number of customers to carry out missions involving aerial reconnaissance, survey, communication relay and communications provisioning. Endurance, enabled by effective design, is key to these applications and KHA aircraft utilize cutting-edge aircraft design together with on-board intelligence to deliver value for these customers.

 

This position reports directly to the Manager of Training and Standardization .

The ideal person for this role possesses a deep operational expertise in (s)UAS flight operations, standardization, curriculum development and project management.What

This role serves as a senior pilot for operational procedures, flight area oversight, and technical integration.

The ideal candidate would be experienced in cross-functional engagement, engineering collaboration, flight test support, procedural standardization, interpersonal communication, fundamentals of instruction, team leadership principals, and in creating safe, compliant, mission-ready, staff and operations.

 

CORE COMPETENCIES

  • UAS Flight Operations Leadership

  • Operational Standardization & Audits

  • Risk Management & Safety Programs

  • Site Management & Flight Area Oversight

  • Engineering & Flight Test Coordination

  • Mission Planning & Briefing

  • Technical Publications Review

  • Knowledge of Emerging UAS Technologies and current market landscape

 

RESPONSIBILITIES

The following job functions are a basic requirement but are not limited to and may be assigned other duties.

 

UAS Operations

  • Maintain proficiency and currency with all of KHA's emerging UAS technologies, regulatory changes, and operational best practices.

  • Hold and maintain all required certifications

  • Adhere to FAA regulations and guidelines, ensuring compliance during UAS operations and activities. Including but not limited to FAA Part 107, DOE Orders, restricted airspace protocols, and site procedures.

  • Support demonstrations, field missions, customer operations, collaborative experimentation and equipment testing. Examples of UAS operational duties include. Delivering near real-time aerial intelligence, integrating UAS data into customer systems,  flight operations drills, and emergencies.

  • Assist with flight planning, pre/post-flight checks, risk assessments, and maintaining accurate maintenance and flight logs.

  • Perform routine maintenance, diagnostics, and software updates on UAS platforms and ground control systems.

  • Maintenance of your own personal flight records, active participation in training exercises, and maintain individual currency requirements.

  • Adhere to Integrated Safety Management (including SP 1-3100), attend required meetings, and maintain a clean, organized UAS hangar.

  • Travel up to 70%.

 

Standardization & Evaluation Support

  • Serve as a senior pilot authority for operational standards, flight procedures, and safety compliance.

  • Conduct periodic audits of flight areas to ensure adherence to company and regulatory requirements.

  • Develop, maintain, and standardize operational documentation and mission procedures.

  • Manage revision control for risk assessments, mission briefs, and operations guidance.

  • Lead or support updates to training content, instructional methods, and delivery standards.

  • Provide data-driven recommendations to the Standardization & Training Manager to enhance operational performance

Subject Matter Expert Support

  • Work cross-departmentally with key stakeholders to stay current on emerging technologies and configuration updates.

  • Act as pilot subject matter expert for engineering, providing operational insight on new technologies and system capabilities.

  • Serve as lead liaison for engineering flight test requests, coordinating operational support and risk mitigation.

  • Collaborate with technical publications teams to assist in accuracy and operational relevance of pilot-facing documentation.

  • Assumes all other responsibilities as assigned

 

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

  • Minimum 4 years of directly related experience

  • Deep understanding and proficiency Defense related UAS products

  • Strong attention to detail with strict adherence to operational and safety protocols

  • Experience in conducting demonstrations, field operations, Initial qualification training and evaluations, curriculum development, and equipment testing

  • Knowledge of UAS technology, airspace regulations, and industry best practices

  • Excellent communication and instructional skills, with the ability to effectively convey complex concepts to trainees

  • Strong troubleshooting and problem‑solving skills in UAS operations

  • Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a dynamic team environment

 

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

  • Military Experience

  • FAA Part 107 SUAS Remote Pilot

  • FAA Part 61 Pilot

  • 5+ years of directly related experience

  • Secret Clearance (or eligible)

 

Kraus Hamdani Aerospace, Inc. (“Company”) collects and uses Personal Information (as defined by the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (“CCPA”)) for human resources, employment, health and safety, and business-related purposes and to be in legal compliance. For more information, please read the full notice.

If you are an EU applicant, by sharing your personal information with Kraus Hamdani Aerospace, Inc. you hereby (a) acknowledge and consent to the international transfer of your personal information to the United States, despite the risks associated due to the absence of an adequacy decision and appropriate safeguards, and (b) acknowledge that you have carefully read and understood this notice.

 

EEO Statement

Kraus Hamdani Aerospace is committed to providing Equal Opportunity in Employment, to all applicants and employees regardless of, race, color, religion, gender, age, national origin, military status, veteran status, handicap, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information or any other characteristic protected by law.

Create a Job Alert

Interested in building your career at KH Aerospace? Get future opportunities sent straight to your email.

Apply for this job

*

indicates a required field

Resume/CV*

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, txt, rtf

Cover Letter

Accepted file types: pdf, doc, docx, txt, rtf

Select...
Select...
Select...

Voluntary Self-Identification

For government reporting purposes, we ask candidates to respond to the below self-identification survey. Completion of the form is entirely voluntary. Whatever your decision, it will not be considered in the hiring process or thereafter. Any information that you do provide will be recorded and maintained in a confidential file.

As set forth in KH Aerospace’s Equal Employment Opportunity policy, we do not discriminate on the basis of any protected group status under any applicable law.

Select...
Select...
Race & Ethnicity Definitions

If you believe you belong to any of the categories of protected veterans listed below, please indicate by making the appropriate selection. As a government contractor subject to the Vietnam Era Veterans Readjustment Assistance Act (VEVRAA), we request this information in order to measure the effectiveness of the outreach and positive recruitment efforts we undertake pursuant to VEVRAA. Classification of protected categories is as follows:

A "disabled veteran" is one of the following: a veteran of the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service who is entitled to compensation (or who but for the receipt of military retired pay would be entitled to compensation) under laws administered by the Secretary of Veterans Affairs; or a person who was discharged or released from active duty because of a service-connected disability.

A "recently separated veteran" means any veteran during the three-year period beginning on the date of such veteran's discharge or release from active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval, or air service.

An "active duty wartime or campaign badge veteran" means a veteran who served on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service during a war, or in a campaign or expedition for which a campaign badge has been authorized under the laws administered by the Department of Defense.

An "Armed forces service medal veteran" means a veteran who, while serving on active duty in the U.S. military, ground, naval or air service, participated in a United States military operation for which an Armed Forces service medal was awarded pursuant to Executive Order 12985.

Select...