Aviation Operations Manager Jobs in California (NOW HIRING)

Anduril's Test & Evaluation organization is seeking an experienced Operations Manager to lead the day-to-day execution of flight and hardware test operations across our test site network. This role integrates not only the Scheduling & Coordination team, which runs the end-to-end intake, planning, and scheduling of test events; but also, the Site Operations team, which delivers on-the-ground range operations, airspace management, and test-site support.
As the Test Sites Operations Manager, you will manage two team leads and be accountable for the throughput, safety, and quality of test execution across all Anduril Hardware Test Operations sites.The Test & Evaluation (T&E) team at Anduril operates across all product lines and business units. We manage flight operations at test ranges, conducting full system development testing, production acceptance testing, sub-component qualification testing, and more. If it involves testing, we support it.
This is a high-impact leadership role at the intersection of program management, range operations, and safety. You will set the operating cadence that allows Anduril's product teams to conduct test site operations more efficiently, effectively, and safely. Your contributions will directly enable the fielding of next-generation defense technology.
WHAT YOU'LL DO

• Lead Scheduling & Coordination and Site Operations - including but not limited to: combined team performance, headcount planning, hiring, development, and career progression.
• Manage the end-to-end operating model for test execution: intake, prioritization, scheduling, resourcing, range setup, execution, and after-action closeout across all internal and external test sites.
• Serve as the single accountable operations leader for test-site throughput; balancing competing program demands and resolving resource conflicts, in a safe and efficient manner.
• Partner with Hardware Test Operations leadership, Safety and Standards, hardware product managers, test engineering, EH&S, and facilities to align test-site capacity with product roadmaps and program/business line milestones.
• Build and maintain the metrics, dashboards, and operating reviews that make test-site performance visible to leadership.
• Establish and enforce a consistent operating model so that intake, scheduling, safety reviews, and site operations are standardized across all Anduril test sites.
• Manage the external relationships and serve as operational point of contact to organizations that support test site operations such as: DoD and DoE test range counterparts, FAA and airspace coordinators, frequency coordinators, site directors, and military units.
• Partner with the Safety & Standards team to ensure test-site operations comply with the Hardware Test Operations documented policies.
• Support incident response and post-event reviews ensuring lessons learned feed back into scheduling, site ops, and training.
• Travel: up to 50% between internal test sites and external partner ranges.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• 7+ years of progressive experience in test operations, flight test, range operations, or a closely related operational leadership field.
• 3+ years of direct people-management experience, including managing other managers or team leads.
• Demonstrated experience running or leading operations at a flight test range, DoD/DoE test range, or comparable operational environment (UAS, cUAS, manned aviation, or autonomous systems).
• Strong program and project management foundation - able to run intake, prioritization, scheduling, and execution across multiple concurrent programs and sites.
• Track record of building and enforcing operating cadence that drive team performance and leadership visibility (metric tracking, executive presentations, etc.).
• Experience partnering with safety and standards functions to run operations safely in high-tempo, high-risk environments.
• Proficiency with modern business and operations tooling: Airtable, Asana, Microsoft Office, Smartsheet, and equivalent scheduling / workflow systems.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills - able to translate operational details into executive-level updates.
• Eligible to obtain and maintain an active U.S. Top Secret security clearance.
• BS degree, or high school diploma with 10 years of relevant operational experience.
• Capable of travelling up to 50%

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Prior experience leading operations at a USG test range.
• Background in aviation operations - military aviation, ATC, JTAC, test pilot support, or FAA-regulated UAS operations.
• Experience standing up or scaling operations at multiple geographically distributed sites.
• FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate.
• Active U.S. Top Secret security clearance.
• Experience integrating operations across manned and unmanned aircraft systems.