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Drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States
118 open roles for drone engineers and operators in the United States as of Nov 15, 2026. Anduril Industries, Applied, Shield AI, DoorDash USA and AEVEX have the most. 1 is remote and the median advertised salary is $172K.
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Skills asked for in drone engineer and operator roles in the United States
Bars show the share of these 118 roles; one role can count in several rows.
- Lead, UAV Integration TechnicianRainmaker · 🇺🇸El Segundo, CA—Lead and above
- Drone Pilot (part-time)Re:Build Manufacturing · 🇺🇸Englewood, CO—Security clearanceAviation
- Chief Engineer, Air Vehicle Lead - RangerShield AI · 🇺🇸Seattle, WA, US—Lead and aboveSecurity clearanceAviation
- Engineering Manager, Air Vehicle Mechanical Systems (R5391)Shield AI · 🇺🇸San Diego, CA, US—Performance managementAviationGD&T
- Senior Test Pilot, RotorcraftAnduril Industries · 🇺🇸Costa Mesa, California, United States$147K - $196KSeniorComputer VisionSecurity clearanceSensor fusion
- Senior Electrical Engineer, Drone (High-Voltage & Low-Voltage Power Systems)Applied · 🇺🇸Sunnyvale$170K - $240KSeniorPythonMATLABNetwork engineering
- Staff Robotics Software Engineer, CUAS, OmenAnduril Industries · 🇺🇸Costa Mesa, California, United States—Lead and aboveRustPythonC++
- Senior Flight Test Engineer - Mission Autonomy (UAS - Fury)Anduril Industries · 🇺🇸Costa Mesa, California, United States$147K - $196KSeniorPythonC++ROS
- Flight Test Engineer - Mission Autonomy (UAS - Fury)Anduril Industries · 🇺🇸Costa Mesa, California, United States$117K - $154KPythonC++ROS
- Senior Manufacturing Engineer, DronesAnduril Industries · 🇺🇸Santa Ana, California, United States · +1 more location$147K - $196KSeniorComputer VisionSecurity clearanceControl systems
- Autonomy Integration Engineer (Drone Stack)Applied · 🇺🇸Sunnyvale$120K - $175KPythonC++Docker
- Autonomy Integration Engineer - Drone StackApplied · 🇺🇸Freeport, FL$120K - $175KPythonC++Docker
- Senior Engineer, Air Vehicle Fluid Systems (R5203)Shield AI · 🇺🇸Seattle, WA, US—SeniorControl systemsCADFMEA
- Senior Engineer, Air Vehicle Fluid Systems (R4891)Shield AI · 🇺🇸Seattle, WA, US—SeniorSecurity clearanceCADFMEA
- Staff Technician, Air Vehicle Systems (R4892)Shield AI · 🇺🇸Seattle, WA, US—Lead and aboveSecurity clearanceMechatronicsCAD
- Staff Technical Program Manager, Air Vehicle Systems (R6044)Shield AI · 🇺🇸Seattle, WA, US—Lead and aboveJiraSecurity clearanceTDD
- V-BAT Air Vehicle Operator, Deployed OperationsShield AI · 🇺🇸Dallas, TX, US$100K - $150KSecurity clearanceAviationRisk management
- Senior C++ Software Engineer - Drone StackApplied · 🇺🇸Washington, D.C. · +1 more location$135K - $185KSeniorC++DockerLinux
- Ground Loads Engineer, Air VehiclesAnduril Industries · 🇺🇸Costa Mesa, California, United States$132K - $175KPythonMATLABComputer Vision
- Senior Technician, Unmanned System Test Operator (R5413)Shield AI · 🇺🇸San Diego, CA, US—SeniorSecurity clearanceControl systemsAviation
- Drone Operations, Intern - Labs (Summer 2027)DoorDash USA · 🇺🇸San Francisco, CA—Intern
- UAS Pilot/Flight Test & Mission OperatorCHAOS Industries · 🇺🇸El Segundo, California, United States$130K - $180KGoPythonJira
- Staff UAS Flight Test Operator - 5793Shield AI · 🇺🇸San Diego, CA, US$57 - $85 an hourLead and aboveLinuxROSTest planning
- Senior Manager, Electrical Engineering - DroneApplied · 🇺🇸Sunnyvale$258K - $316KSeniorTest equipmentHardware interfacesPCB design
- Head of Drone HardwareApplied · 🇺🇸Sunnyvale$270K - $355KLead and aboveHardware testingPCB designRoot cause analysis
- Hardware Systems Lead, DroneApplied · 🇺🇸Sunnyvale$200K - $270KLead and aboveMechatronicsHardware testingLidar
- Senior Manager, Mechanical Engineering - DroneApplied · 🇺🇸Sunnyvale$225K - $310KSeniorCADAviationCNC machining
- Electromechanical Integration Engineer - Air VehiclesAnduril Industries · 🇺🇸Costa Mesa, California, United States$132K - $175KComputer VisionSecurity clearanceMechatronics
- Senior Mechanical Engineer, DroneApplied · 🇺🇸Sunnyvale$170K - $260KSeniorCADAviationCNC machining
- UAS Operations Specialist - Ground SupportDoorDash USA · 🇺🇸Bay Point, CA; Concord, CA—
- Senior V-BAT Air Vehicle Operator, Demonstration (R5505)Shield AI · 🇺🇸Dallas, TX, US$100K - $150KSeniorSecurity clearanceControl systemsAviation
- Systems Engineer, Army (CUAS)Anduril Industries · 🇺🇸Irvine, California, United States$146K - $194KPythonLinuxComputer Vision
- Tooling Design Engineer, Air VehiclesAnduril Industries · 🇺🇸Costa Mesa, California, United States$129K - $171KComputer VisionSecurity clearanceSensor fusion
- Senior Hardware Systems Engineer – Counter-UAS (Onsite)Axon · 🇺🇸Sterling, Virginia, United States$109K - $174KSenior
- UAS Operations Specialist - PilotDoorDash USA · 🇺🇸Concord, CA; Bay Point, CA—
- UAS Operations Specialist, LabsDoorDash USA · 🇺🇸San Francisco, CA—
- Principal Engineer, cUAS Lead, OmenAnduril Industries · 🇺🇸Costa Mesa, California, United States$220K - $292KLead and abovePythonC++MATLAB
- Air Vehicle Lead, Chief EngineerShield AI · 🇺🇸Seattle, WA, US—Lead and aboveSecurity clearanceAviation
- Senior Propulsion Engineer, Air Vehicles (Ramjet Integration)Anduril Industries · 🇺🇸Costa Mesa, California, United States$167K - $222KSeniorPythonMATLABComputer Vision
- Embedded Software Engineer (Drone Stack)Applied · 🇺🇸Fort Walton Beach, FL$125K - $185KC++DockerLinux
- Senior V-BAT Air Vehicle Operator, Deployed Operations Site LeadShield AI · 🇺🇸Dallas, TX, US—Lead and aboveSecurity clearanceAviationRisk management
- Senior Flight Test Engineer, Unmanned Air VehiclesAnduril Industries · 🇺🇸Las Vegas, Nevada, United States$127K - $170KSeniorComputer VisionSecurity clearanceSensor fusion
- Staff Flight Test Engineer, Unmanned Air VehiclesAnduril Industries · 🇺🇸Victorville, California, United States · +1 more location$166K - $220KLead and aboveGoPythonJavaScript
- UAS / Drone Integration LeadNeros Technologies · 🇺🇸Torrance, California, United States$112K - $158KLead and above
- UAS / Drone Integration SpecialistNeros Technologies · 🇺🇸Torrance, California, United States$98K - $136K
- UAS OperatorHeven AeroTech · 🇺🇸Winchester, Virginia—Security clearanceEnglishVideo editing
- Senior Development Test Engineer - DronesAnduril Industries · 🇺🇸Costa Mesa, California, United States$146K - $194KSeniorPythonMATLABComputer Vision
- Production Associate, DronesAnduril Industries · 🇺🇸Santa Ana, California, United States—Computer VisionDriver's licenseERP
- C++ Software Engineer - Drone StackApplied · 🇺🇸Washington, D.C.$135K - $185KC++DockerLinux
- C++ Embedded Software Engineer - Drone StackApplied · 🇺🇸Sunnyvale$135K - $200KC++DockerLinux
Showing the newest 50. See all 118 in search
Who is hiring for drone engineer and operator roles in the United States
Where drone engineer and operator roles in the United States are
- 🇺🇸United States118
- 🇺🇸California89
- 🇺🇸San Francisco Bay Area12
- 🇺🇸Seattle, WA7
- 🇺🇸Dallas, TX3
- 🇺🇸Texas3
- 🇺🇸San Diego, CA3
- 🇺🇸Los Angeles, CA3
- 🇺🇸Florida3
- 🇺🇸Washington, DC2
A role that lists several places is counted in each of them.
What drone engineer and operator roles in the United States pay, by level
| Level in the title | Median advertised salary | Roles counted |
|---|---|---|
| No level in the title | $154K | 40 |
| Senior | $172K | 29 |
| Lead and above | $222K | 23 |
Medians of the midpoints of advertised yearly US-dollar ranges; a level needs at least 15 such roles. Advertised, not verified pay.
Questions about drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States
- How many drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States are open right now?
- There are 118 open drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States at 17 companies on Jobs Every Hour as of Nov 15, 2026. 6 of them were posted in the last seven days. The list is rebuilt every hour from the employers' own careers pages.
- Which companies have the most drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States?
- Right now the most openings are at Anduril Industries (69), Applied (14), Shield AI (12), DoorDash USA (5) and Neros Technologies (3). The ranking changes as companies open and close roles.
- Are there remote drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States?
- 1 of the 118 open drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States (1%) are listed as remote. Remote roles are often limited to certain countries or time zones, so check the location line of each job.
- What do drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States pay?
- The median advertised salary is $172K, based on 92 open roles that publish a yearly US-dollar range. The middle half of those roles advertise between $154K and $195K. These are advertised ranges, not verified pay. Most employers here are technology companies, so the figures run above the wider market for the same work.
- Is it hard to get one of the drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States?
- 1 of the 118 open drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States (1%) are for beginners: junior roles and internships. Of the 91 postings that state experience, the median asks for 5 years. 17 companies are hiring and 6 roles were posted in the last seven days. Matching your resume to the skills each posting names helps most; the free resume builder shows the match.
- How is AI changing drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States?
- 70 of the 118 open drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States (59%) ask for AI or machine-learning skills, most often Computer Vision, LLM. Employers still list 118 such roles today at 17 companies. Counted from the postings' own text on Nov 15, 2026.
- What skills do drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States ask for?
- Most often Security clearance (70%), Sensor fusion (59%), Computer Vision (58%), Aviation (39%), Python (28%) of the 118 open postings, counted from their own text on Nov 15, 2026.
- Which job titles come up most in drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States?
- Senior Flight Test Engineer (3), Senior Mechanical Engineer (3), UAS Operations Specialist (3), Air Vehicle Lead (3), Senior Propulsion Engineer (3): the most common titles among the 118 open roles, without the level and place notes in brackets.
- Are drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States in demand in 2026?
- 118 drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States are open on Jobs Every Hour today at 17 companies, 0.1% of all 148,162 open jobs here; 6 were posted in the last seven days. The median advertised salary is $172K. 1 (1%) can be done remotely.
- How do I apply for drone engineer and operator jobs in the United States?
- Open a job and press “Apply on company site”. You go straight to the employer's own careers page and apply there. Jobs Every Hour needs no account and charges nothing for applying.


