Operations Manager - Flight Test (all genders)

STARK

ABOUT US STARK is a new kind of defence technology company, revolutionizing the way autonomous systems are deployed across multiple domains. We design, develop and manufacture high-performance unmanned systems that are software-defined, mass-scalable, and cost-effective. This provides our operators with a decisive edge in highly contested environments. We’re focused on delivering deployable, high-performance systems. In a time of rising threats, STARK is bolstering the technological edge of NATO Allies and their Partners to deter aggression and defend Europe. YOUR MISSION As the Lead Flight Test Operations Manager at STARK, you are responsible for the successful execution of complex flight test campaigns across multiple platforms and international test ranges. You lead the operational planning and on-site execution of deployments, ensuring that crews, logistics, approvals, and field operations are fully aligned under demanding conditions. You act as the central interface between internal teams, military authorities, customers, and host-nation agencies, while leading Operations Managers, Coordinators, and Field Operations Crews. From inert-flight to live-fire campaigns, you ensure safe, efficient, and reliable operations at every stage. RESPONSIBILITIES * Ownership of campaign execution across all platforms (Virtus, OWE-V), including range coordination, NOTAMs, EASA operational approvals, logistics, dangerous goods transportation, and crew planning. * Leadership of the three operational sub-tracks: Operations Managers, Coordinators, and Field Operations Crew. * Primary interface to WTD 61, WTD 91, TDW Range, customer program offices, and host-nation authorities for deployments in Kenya, Ukraine, and Sweden. * Responsibility for the operational transition between inert-flight, static-fire, and end-to-end live-fire campaign phases. QUALIFICATIONS * 8+ years of experience in flight test, military aviation, or aerospace operations, including 3+ years in a leadership role. * Proven responsibility for multi-week field campaigns conducted on military or restricted ranges. * Business-fluent German and English at C1 level or higher. * Project management experience. NICE TO HAVE * Former German Armed Forces (Bundeswehr) background. * ADR / IATA DGR certification.

STARK

ABOUT US STARK is a new kind of defence technology company revolutionizing the way autonomous systems are deployed across multiple domains. We design, develop and manufacture high performance unmanned systems that are software-defined, mass-scalable, and cost effective. This provides our operators with a decisive edge in highly contested environments.    We’re focused on delivering deployable, high-performance systems—not future promises. In a time of rising threats, STARK is bolstering the technological edge of NATO Allies and their Partners to deter aggression and defend Europe—today. YOUR MISSION As Flight Test Operations Coordinator at STARK, you are the person who keeps the machine running at home while the team is in the field. You make sure equipment is packed and ready before a campaign begins, that travel is sorted before anyone has to ask, and that the team on-site can focus on flying rather than logistics problems back at base. You are the reliable home-base anchor for our Flight Test Operations Manager and a critical enabler of every campaign we run. This is a broad, execution-oriented role that requires someone who is proactive, highly organised, and comfortable switching between tasks quickly. You will not regularly be deployed to test locations. Your strength is the steady, reliable support you provide from our home base. RESPONSIBILITIES Equipment & Stock Management * Maintain inventory of flight test equipment, tools, and consumables held at home base, with clear visibility of what is available, where it is, and what condition it is in. * Manage battery stock: tracking charge cycles, maintenance status, and coordinating timely shipments to active test locations. * Prepare and package equipment kits ahead of campaign deployments, following defined checklists and verifying readiness before despatch. * Monitor stock levels proactively and reorder or escalate shortfalls before they can impact an active or upcoming campaign. * Troubleshoot and resolve equipment availability issues raised by the onsite team, coordinating solutions quickly and keeping the Manager informed. Travel & Logistics * Book and manage all travel arrangements for the Flight Test team in line with campaign schedules and company policy: e.g. flights, hotels, ground transport, and rental vehicles  * Maintain a clear and up-to-date picture of who is travelling where and when across all active and upcoming campaigns. * Handle last-minute changes, rebookings, and travel escalations calmly and efficiently, resolving issues before they reach the team on-site. * Track travel spend and keep accurate records in line with internal processes. Remote Support to the Onsite Team * Serve as the primary home-base contact for the travelling team: e.g. fielding requests, solving problems, and coordinating solutions at pace. * Coordinate urgent shipping of equipment or materials to test locations when needed, managing suppliers and couriers to meet tight deadlines. * Support the onboarding of team members into new campaign locations by preparing and sharing relevant local information, facility details, and access arrangements. Campaign Preparation * Assist in the logistical preparation of upcoming flight test campaigns: e.g. readiness checklists, equipment packing lists, vendor coordination, and timeline tracking. * Maintain shared planning documents and status trackers so that the Flight Test Operations Manager has a clear picture of preparedness at all times. * Flag risks or gaps in campaign readiness early, giving the team time to resolve issues before deployment. Communications & Coordination * Support internal communications between the home team and onsite crews, ensuring information flows clearly and nothing falls through the gaps. * Help draft and distribute campaign updates, logistics briefings, and equipment status reports as directed by the Flight Test Operations Manager. * Maintain contact lists, distribution lists, and shared information resources for the Flight Test team. Your First 12 Months Timeframe Focus What This Looks Like Month 0–1 Onboard & Orient Complete STARK safety induction and team onboarding. Learn the equipment inventory, understand the campaign calendar, and get familiar with travel booking systems and supplier contacts. Shadow the Flight Test Operations Manager to understand how campaigns are prepared and what the team needs from home base. Month 1–3 Own the Basics Take full ownership of travel bookings and equipment stock management for active campaigns. Begin building your own processes and checklists. Handle your first urgent requests from the onsite team and resolve them independently. Establish yourself as a reliable and responsive home-base contact. Month 3–6 Raise the Bar Proactively identify gaps in campaign preparation and propose improvements. Formalise stock management processes and reduce reactive scrambles. Support logistics planning for multiple campaigns running in parallel or quick succession. Month 6–12 Drive Continuous Improvement Own the home-base function end-to-end with minimal supervision. Contribute to the improvement of campaign preparation templates and logistics playbooks. Become the institutional memory for equipment, suppliers, and travel arrangements across the team. QUALIFICATIONS Required * 2–4 years of experience in an operations coordinator, logistics, or administrative support role, ideally in a technical, aviation, or fast-moving operational environment. * Demonstrated ability to manage multiple concurrent tasks and priorities under time pressure without dropping the ball. * Experience booking and managing business travel arrangements, including handling last-minute changes. * Organised and process-driven: you keep accurate records, maintain clear trackers, and build checklists that others can rely on. * Excellent communication skills in English (business-fluent required). German is a strong advantage for supplier and vendor interactions. Preferred * Experience working in a support or coordination role within aerospace, defence, UAS operations, or a similarly regulated technical environment. * Familiarity with inventory or equipment management, including tracking consumables and coordinating shipments. * Experience supporting field teams or deployed personnel from a home-base or operational hub. Mindset * Reliable Under Pressure: When the team is on the range and something goes wrong at home base, they need to know you will sort it.  * Proactively Organised: You do not wait to be asked. You spot what is coming and have it ready before anyone notices it was needed. * Clear Communicator: You give the team exactly the information they need, when they need it, without noise or ambiguity. * Service-Oriented: You understand that your job is to make the field team's job easier. Their success is your success.

STARK

ABOUT US STARK is a new kind of defence technology company. We design, develop, and manufacture high-performance unmanned systems that are software-defined, mass-scalable, and cost-effective, changing how autonomous systems are deployed across multiple domains. This gives our operators a decisive edge in highly contested environments. As threats rise, STARK is strengthening the technological edge of NATO Allies and their Partners to deter aggression and defend Europe. YOUR MISSION As Head of Flight Test, you own STARK’s flight test organisation end to end: the pilots and operators who fly the aircraft, the flight test engineers who design the tests and run the instrumentation, the operations managers who deliver production, experimental, and customer-facing campaigns, and the staff responsible for flight test safety and operating permits. You will start in Germany, turning a fast-growing team into a mature flight test capability of roughly 40+ people that can execute operations in multiple locations, with requisite Operator permits (civil and military) as needed for the different classes of loitering munition and drones in STARK’s growing portfolio.  From there you build outward to 2028: a global organisation with local units in the UK, Ukraine, and Greece, each running common STARK processes under its own national authority. You are accountable for how fast STARK tests and how safely it does so. When those two pull against each other, you make the decision and take ownership. RESPONSIBILITIES ORGANISATION & LEADERSHIP * Own the full flight test organisation across four pillars: Pilots & Operators, Flight Test Engineering, Flight Test Operations, and Safety & Compliance. * Hire and develop the pillar leads, and build the career ladders and competency standards that take the German organisation to its ~40+-person target and beyond. * Carry budget, headcount, schedule, and tempo accountability for flight test as a whole. FLIGHT TEST STRATEGY & METHODOLOGY * Define STARK’s flight test strategy across all platforms (Virtus, Cascade, Gambit and the small to large scale effectors that follow). * Own the envelope-expansion and build-up philosophy: how a test point moves from simulation to flying testbed (for example a Twin Otter-class surrogate) to the air vehicle, de-risking at each step. * Own the master Flight Test Operations Manual (FTOM), the test-planning methodology (test cards, Flight and Test Readiness Reviews), and the flight test engineering (FTE) and instrumentation (FTI) standards. * Own the data lifecycle: quality, traceability, and results that stand up as cerification evidence. Flight safety & airworthiness * Hold the independent flight test safety function: Safety Review Boards, hazard analysis, risk acceptance, abort criteria, and emergency response at every test site. * Keep flight test activity inside approved limits (Permit-to-Fly, operational authorisations) and drive STARK toward its LUC and DOA-grade airworthiness posture. * Give safety dissent a hard, codified path to the Accountable Manager that schedule pressure cannot override. CAMPAIGN DELIVERY * Deliver three campaign types through the Operations pillar: production-acceptance flights at volume, developmental flight tests  for engineering, and customer-facing demonstration and qualification  flights. * Stand up a high-throughput production-acceptance regime as delivery contracts convert to volume, and run it as its own discipline, in parallel to the engineering flight tests. * Be responsible for flight operations, from obtaining permits, ensuring team and equipment logistics, and crew resource management  and training across German and international test locations. REGULATORY INTERFACE & THE 2028 BUILD * Act as STARK’s senior flight test interface to LBA, LufABw, BAAINBw / WTD, and EASA in Germany. * Decide which global processes shall apply  (methodology, safety framework, FTE/FTI standards, data tooling, competency standards) and what is owned by local flight test teams  (authority interface, named postholders, operational approvals). * Stand up local flight test organisations in the UK, Ukraine, and Greece that report into the global function and run national procedures on top of the common baseline. * Appoint the accountable safety and airworthiness postholders each national authority requires, for example, the MAA / CFAOS Accountable Manager (Military Flying) in the UK. YOUR FIRST 12 MONTHS Timeframe Focus What this looks like Month 0–2 Assess & take command Complete STARK safety and flight operations induction. Map the current organisation, campaigns, platforms, and authority relationships. Meet the function leads, and identify the immediate gaps in safety, staffing, and process. Take operational ownership of the running campaign calendar. Month 2–4 Set the German baseline Publish the master FTOM and safety framework. Stand up the independent Safety Review Board. Lay out the roadmap to EASA LUC approval. Close the most urgent senior hires. Month 4–8 Build the organisation Fill the pillar-lead and senior roles. Standardise test-planning, instrumentation, and data processes across all three campaign types. Bring production-acceptance up to a volume-ready standard.  Month 8–12 Extend beyond Germany Define the global-versus-local operating model. Stand up the first local flight test organisation (UK or Ukraine) with its named postholders and authority interface. Set the 2027–2028 plan for the remaining countries. QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED * 12+ years in flight test, military aviation, or aerospace test and evaluation, including 5+ years leading flight test  teams or organisations. * A track record of building or running a flight test capability, with end-to-end accountability for campaigns from test plan to certification evidence. * Working knowledge of UAV operating permits (EASA  "specific" category, and/or military airworthiness DEMAR / EMAR). * A grounding in flight test engineering, and data analysis. * Business-fluent English (C1+); German at working level for the authority interface, or a credible plan to get there. * NATO member-state citizen, eligible for German security clearance (Ü2/Ü3), and willing to build teams on the ground in the UK, Ukraine, and Greece. PREFERRED * Graduate of a recognised test pilot school (ETPS, EPNER, USNTPS, NTPS) or a flight test engineering long course. * UAS, loitering-munitions, or eVTOL flight test background. * Prior Design Organisation experience and named postholder / Form 4 acceptance. * Experience standing up flight test operations in more than one country. * Working knowledge of STANAG 4586 and STANAG 4671. MINDSET * Safety authority first: You hold the line when the schedule pushes against it, and people trust the call because you have earned it. * Builder by instinct: You have written the processes and stood up the teams before, and you would rather build an organisation than inherit one. * Regulator-credible: Colonels, certification inspectors, and junior technicians all get what they need from you, in the right register. * Comfortable with tempo: STARK tests fast and fails forward on purpose, and you keep that pace without letting safety slip.