Coxswain / Operator

Instant Teams; Greater London; On-site; GBP 65,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

UFORCE, headquartered in London, is expanding its UK maritime operations and seeks an experienced USV Operator / Coxswain to support safe, credible activity including demonstrations, trials and training for foreign users.

You will join engineering and training teams to translate operational plans into safe outcomes, bringing strong maritime credibility and Coxswain judgement, with autonomy in a sensitive defence environment. On-site work is required.

Qualifications

• Credible military or comparable high-reliability experience, maritime context.
• Proven Coxswain judgement and safe boat-handling experience.
• Experience with USVs, UAS, robotics or autonomy systems.
• Ability to plan, brief and deliver outcomes with limited direction.
• Experience training or coaching military, government or mixed-experience users.
• Must work regularly on site.

Responsibilities

• Plan and execute maritime activity, including briefings, launch and recovery, communications, debriefs and post-run checks.
• Act as Coxswain / USV operator during demonstrations, trials, training and internal testing.
• Support safe USV operations, including operating envelopes, handovers, emergency procedures and coordination with crewed vessels.
• Train military, government, partner-force and customer users.
• Work with engineering and systems teams to prepare activity, capture defects and improve operational readiness.
• Brief plans, risks, limitations and tactical considerations to internal leaders, customers and senior stakeholders.
• Maintain high standards of security, export-control awareness and customer sensitivity.
• Develop practical SOPs, checklists, risk controls and training materials.
• Lead small teams during operational and training activity.

Skills

Coxswain judgement

Maritime operations

Safety awareness

Military/defence background

Training and coaching

C2 systems and autonomy

Education

RYA / MCA Powerboat

STCW

Yachtmaster

VHF/First aid

Job description

UFORCE exists to make aggression unaffordable.

Founded in Ukraine and headquartered in London, UFORCE is a defence-technology company with operations across Europe, the United States and Asia.

UFORCE builds uncrewed vessels, ground robotics and aircraft, autonomy software, and the command-and-control layer that operates them together. Each platform is deployable on its own, and stronger as part of the system. Its product lines include the MAGURA family of uncrewed surface vessels, the NEMESIS family of strike platforms, the LIUT family of ground robotic platforms, and counter-UAS systems.

About the role

UFORCE is building its UK maritime operations capability and is looking for an experienced USV Operator / Coxswain to support safe, credible operational activity.

This hands-on role covers crewed vessels, USV operations, customer demonstrations, trials and foreign-user training. You’ll work across programme delivery, engineering, systems and training teams to turn operational plans into safe, assured outcomes.

You’ll bring strong maritime credibility, practical Coxswain judgement and the discipline to operate with limited direction in a sensitive defence technology environment.

What you’ll do

• Plan and execute maritime activity, including briefings, launch and recovery, communications, debriefs and post-run checks.
• Act as Coxswain / USV operator during demonstrations, trials, training and internal testing.
• Support safe USV operations, including operating envelopes, handovers, emergency procedures and coordination with crewed vessels.
• Train military, government, partner-force and customer users.
• Work with engineering and systems teams to prepare activity, capture defects and improve operational readiness.
• Brief plans, risks, limitations and tactical considerations to internal leaders, customers and senior stakeholders.
• Maintain high standards of security, export-control awareness and customer sensitivity.
• Develop practical SOPs, checklists, risk controls and training materials.
• Lead small teams during operational and training activity.

Required Skills

• Credible military or comparable high-reliability operational experience, ideally in a maritime or littoral environment.
• Relevant maritime or equivalent military qualifications, such as RYA / MCA Powerboat, Advanced Powerboat, Yachtmaster, STCW, VHF, first aid or sea survival.
• Proven Coxswain judgement and safe boat-handling experience—not certificate ownership alone.
• Experience working where safety, mission delivery, coordination and clear communication are critical.
• USVs, UAS, robotics, autonomy, C2, sensors or similar operational technology experience and the ability to learn quickly.
• Experience training, coaching or assessing military, government, commercial or mixed-experience users.
• Strong security awareness and confidence handling controlled information on a need-to-know basis.
• Ability to plan, manage risk, brief and deliver practical outcomes with limited direction.
• Ability to work regularly on site.

Nice to have

• Experience supporting trials, demonstrations, deployments or exercises.
• Basic engineering or maintenance awareness, including checks, defect capture and fault reporting.
• A local maritime network or experience in defence, government, security-cleared or export-controlled environments.
• Experience with wider multi-domain systems, including UAS, ISTAR, sensors or payloads.

The nature of combat has changed.

Tomorrow’s battlefield success depends on autonomy, speed, and adaptability.

And UFORCE is ready.

Are You?