Fleet Ops Lead: 24/7 Flight Control & Incident Response

Zipline; South San Francisco (CA); On-site; USD 55,104 - 66,124; Full time

Job summary

Zipline, the world's leading autonomous drone logistics company, seeks a Fleet Ops Lead to manage remote flight operations from our South San Francisco facility. You will oversee live flights, make rapid decisions, and support the Flight Operations Manager while performing RPIC duties.

The role requires FAA Remote Pilot Certification (Part 107), 2+ years in aviation or UAS operations, leadership experience, and a solid grasp of safety and regulatory standards.

Qualifications

• FAA Remote Pilot Certificate (Part 107) required.
• 2+ years of experience in aviation, UAS operations, or a mission-critical control room environment.
• At least six months of leadership, supervisory, or mentorship experience within an operations organization.
• Working knowledge of operational procedures, safety management systems, and regulatory compliance.

Responsibilities

• Oversee live flight operations and serve as RPIC or Ops Assist for ~25% of time.
• Make delegated, time-sensitive decisions independently when Fleet Ops Manager is off shift.
• Coordinate off-nominal events and route issues to safety, maintenance, engineering, or operations stakeholders.
• Lead end-of-shift reviews and provide operational forecasts for next-day readiness.
• Coach Controllers and Ops Assists; identify performance gaps and share observations with Flight Ops Manager.
• Ensure missions follow OpSpecs, manuals, safety standards, and FAA program requirements.
• Turn feedback into playbooks, tools and documentation to improve service continuity.

Skills

FAA Remote Pilot Certificate (Part 107

2+ years in aviation/UAS ops

Leadership experience

Regulatory compliance knowledge

Job description

Zipline, the world's leading autonomous drone logistics company, seeks a Fleet Ops Lead to manage remote flight operations from our South San Francisco facility. You will oversee live flights, make rapid decisions, and support the Flight Operations Manager while performing RPIC duties.

The role requires FAA Remote Pilot Certification (Part 107), 2+ years in aviation or UAS operations, leadership experience, and a solid grasp of safety and regulatory standards.