FPV Drone Operator

eyesAtop; New York (NY); On-site; USD 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Dental Insurance

Health Insurance

Paid time off

Vision Insurance

Job summary

eyesAtop is seeking a hands-on FPV pilot to test and demonstrate our multi-drone warfare platform. Based at our Northern New Jersey test facility, you will fly 5-inch quads in manual/acro mode, prototype builds, and integrate new hardware and software with the engineering team.

You will travel to field sites for tests and live demonstrations, while also contributing to R&D at the facility. FAA Cert or willingness to obtain is required; U.S. citizenship is essential.

Qualifications

• 2+ years of hands-on FPV experience with manual/acro flying.
• FAA Part 107 cert or willingness to obtain within 90 days (company support).
• U.S. citizenship required for this role.
• Experience building/repairing 5-inch-class quads is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Fly FPV aircraft (manual/acro) for test flights, integration, and demos.
• Execute structured flight tests and document results, noting issues.
• Contribute to R&D at NJ facility: builds, hardware/software integration.
• Repair and tune quads, soldering and firmware configuration as needed.
• Review flight logs and DVR footage to support engineering feedback.
• Support field operations and customer demonstrations on-site.

Skills

FPV flight experience

Hands-on testing

Soldering/electronics

Field/demonstrations

Willingness to travel

Tools

INAV

ExpressLRS

DVR review

Job description

eyesAtop is building the operating platform for multi-drone warfare, a battle-proven system that augments, deploys, and orchestrates autonomous drone fleets across any mission, any environment, and any vendor. With over 500,000 hours of frontline operational use and TRL-9 validation, our software is not a prototype. It runs in combat, every day, shaping outcomes in some of the most contested and complex environments on earth.

We unify drone control, edge-AI processing, and mission execution into a single operational loop, from detection to decision to strike. Our platform gives a single operator the ability to command and coordinate an entire fleet in real time: persistent aerial surveillance, automated target recognition, shared tactical picture, and seamless handoff from ISR to kinetic response, without manual delay.

We are expanding our US engineering team in the New York metropolitan area. Our office is easily accessible from New York City. If you want to work on technology that matters, not in a lab, but validated in the field, this is the role for you.

The Role

This is a hands-on flying position: piloting FPV aircraft in manual/acro mode for testing, integration, and live demonstrations; putting new airframes, payloads, and software builds through their paces; and telling our engineers exactly what the aircraft is doing and why.

You will be based at our New Jersey test facility with regular travel to field and flight sites. On non-testing days, you will work R&D at the facility alongside the engineering team, building and tuning aircraft, integrating new hardware and software, and turning what you learned in the air into product improvements.

What You’ll Do

• Fly FPV aircraft (manual / acro mode) for test flights, system integration, and customer demonstrations
• Execute structured flight test plans and document results; notice and report subtle performance issues in aircraft, radio links, and video systems
• On non-testing days, contribute to R&D at our NJ test facility: prototype builds, hardware / software integration, bench testing, and iterating with engineering on findings from flight tests
• Build, repair, and maintain quads: soldering, component swaps, firmware configuration, and tuning
• Review your own DVR footage and flight logs to support engineering feedback
• Support field operations and demos, including travel to off-site locations

Requirements:

• Expert FPV flying in full manual / acro mode (goggles + line-of-sight); this is a hands-on testing and R&D role, not a cinematic or GPS-assisted camera drone position
• 2+ years of hands-on FPV experience (professional or serious hobbyist / competitive racing / freestyle counts)
• Comfortable building and repairing 5-inch-class and similar quads
• FAA Part 107 certificate, or willingness to obtain within 90 days (we'll cover it)
• U.S. citizenship - required for this position
• Willingness to travel to field / test sites

Strong fit if

• You have military experience, especially UAS operations (Army 15W, SUAS operator, Raven / Puma / Switchblade, or Group 1-2 UAS platforms)
• You have experience flying in degraded conditions: no GPS, contested RF, and night operations
• You have soldering and electronics troubleshooting skills, with INAV / ExpressLRS familiarity
• You have instruction or demo experience - you can teach others to fly and represent the product live

Benefits:

• Dental Insurance
• Health Insurance
• Paid time off
• Vision Insurance

Compensation:

$80,000 – $100,000 base salary

Location:

Northern New Jersey test facility (field travel required)