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Flight Test Pilot Jobs in Atlanta, GA (NOW HIRING)

Pilot a diverse fleet ranging from multirotor to fixed-wing, including manual FPV , line-of-sight flying, and autonomous mission planning. * Test Planning & Cadence: Anticipate flight-test needs ...

Achieving required test scores for your program, such as the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude ... Pilots and Naval Flight Officers. Strong academic performance, especially in technical or ...

Achieving required test scores for your program, such as the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude ... Pilots and Naval Flight Officers. Strong academic performance, especially in technical or ...

Achieving required test scores for your program, such as the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude ... Pilots and Naval Flight Officers. Strong academic performance, especially in technical or ...

Achieving required test scores for your program, such as the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude ... Pilots and Naval Flight Officers. Strong academic performance, especially in technical or ...

Achieving required test scores for your program, such as the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude ... Pilots and Naval Flight Officers. Strong academic performance, especially in technical or ...

Achieving required test scores for your program, such as the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude ... Pilots and Naval Flight Officers. Strong academic performance, especially in technical or ...

Achieving required test scores for your program, such as the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude ... Pilots and Naval Flight Officers. Strong academic performance, especially in technical or ...

Achieving required test scores for your program, such as the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude ... Pilots and Naval Flight Officers. Strong academic performance, especially in technical or ...

Achieving required test scores for your program, such as the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude ... Pilots and Naval Flight Officers. Strong academic performance, especially in technical or ...

Achieving required test scores for your program, such as the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude ... Pilots and Naval Flight Officers. Strong academic performance, especially in technical or ...

Achieving required test scores for your program, such as the Armed Services Vocational Aptitude ... Pilots and Naval Flight Officers. Strong academic performance, especially in technical or ...

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Flight Test Pilot information

See Atlanta, GA salary details

$78.4K

$101.1K

$169.3K

How much do flight test pilot jobs pay per year?

As of Sep 4, 2026, the average yearly pay for flight test pilot in Atlanta, GA is $101,079.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $81,300.00 and $103,400.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is a flight test pilot?

A Flight Test Pilot is responsible for flying and evaluating new or modified aircraft to assess their performance, safety, and compliance with regulations. They work closely with engineers to test systems, aerodynamics, and handling characteristics under various conditions. Their role involves executing test plans, documenting results, and providing critical feedback for aircraft development. Flight Test Pilots often have extensive experience in aviation, advanced training in aerodynamics and flight testing, and may hold military or engineering backgrounds.

What does a flight test pilot do?

A typical day for a Flight Test Pilot involves thorough pre-flight briefings with engineers and technicians, reviewing test objectives, meticulously planning flight profiles, and conducting test flights to evaluate aircraft performance, systems, and safety features. After each flight, the pilot collaborates with a multidisciplinary team to debrief, document results, and discuss any anomalies or findings. Besides flying, significant time is spent analyzing data, preparing reports, and refining test procedures. The role often requires adaptability and close teamwork, as flight test schedules and objectives can evolve based on weather, technical readiness, or program priorities.

What skills and qualifications are needed to be a flight test pilot?

To thrive as a Flight Test Pilot, you need exceptional piloting skills, in-depth knowledge of aeronautical engineering, and a degree in a related field, often supplemented by military or advanced civilian test pilot school training. Familiarity with specialized flight data recording equipment, flight test instrumentation, and certification from organizations like the FAA or EASA is often required. Outstanding problem-solving abilities, communication skills, and meticulous attention to detail distinguish top performers in this role. These qualifications are critical for safely conducting complex test flights, analyzing results, and ensuring new or modified aircraft meet rigorous safety and performance standards.

Infographic showing various Flight Test Pilot job openings in Atlanta, GA as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 73% Full Time, and 27% Part Time. Highlights an 82% In-person, and 18% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $101,079 per year, or $48.6 per hour.

Flight Test Operations

Askari Defense

Atlanta, GA • On-site

Full-time

Re-posted 12 days ago


Job description

About Askari Defense
Modern warfare is dictated by robotics. Autonomous bombing drones and robotic ground systems are reshaping every battlefield on Earth. Any nation that cannot stop them loses.
Askari develops high-performance, fully-autonomous kinetic intercept systems that counter unmanned aerial and robotic threats in the world's most demanding operational environments. We build deployable systems for real-world constraints, urgent missions, and operators who cannot wait years for capability, and are continuously evolving our systems because the robotic threat evolves daily.
We are a tight team of top engineers and scientists from Skydio, Hermeus, Near Earth Autonomy, Area-I/Anduril, Raytheon, Sandia National Laboratories, and GTRI. We work directly with elite end-users, turning emerging battlefield requirements into rugged, scalable, mission-ready defenses.
Come build alongside elite engineers on a generational mission to defend the Western world. Candidly, we hold ourselves to an exceptionally high bar: the work is demanding, the pace is intense, and the mission requires people willing to go all in. For the right person, it will be more rewarding than any previous job. Askari is a place for builders serious about mastery, ownership, exponential growth, and delivering capability when it matters most.
As warfare becomes increasingly robotic, distributed, and fast-moving, the defense industrial base needs a new model: Askari is defining that model.
If protecting humanity from the coming age of robotic warfare is the mission you have been waiting for, this is where you do it.
About the role
This role is designed for a hands-on flight test operations individual who is motivated by building, maintaining, and flying real systems in demanding test environments.
Askari is building our Flight Operations team, and we are looking for someone who can blend shop work, field work, aircraft ownership, and test execution. You will repair, maintain, and build interceptors alongside a diverse fleet of target aircraft, help keep Askari aligned with federal aviation policy, and support the relationships with people, ranges, and test sites that let us move fast.
Day to day, you will own the full lifecycle of the target fleet, from selection, design, and build through flight, maintenance, repair, and readiness. You will support a rapid, high-cadence test program across a diverse and evolving set of cUAS intercept missions.
Flight testing in our domain is challenging. You will be a key link between the test line and everything that enables it, from securing ranges and airspace to capturing clean telemetry and keeping campaigns safe and on schedule.
We are looking for evidence-driven individuals who prioritize physical reality over opinion, treat safety as a central responsibility, and act independently to fix what is broken and improve processes across the board.
What you'll do
You will own the design, build, and flight of the aircraft that make interceptor testing possible, from raw airframe fabrication through field-ready, flight-proven hardware. You will work in close partnership with the autonomy, data, and test teams, but the aircraft, the fleet, and their readiness on the flight line are yours to drive.
You will focus on problems in all of the following areas:
  • Aircraft Design & Fabrication: Design, build, and assemble multirotor, eVTOL, and fixed-wing UAS for interceptor flight testing. Fabricate and modify airframes, integrate propulsion, power, and avionics, and wire and solder electronics to spec, drawing on 3D printing, CAD, CNC machining, foam and lightweight fabrication, and composites.
  • Fleet Lifecycle & Maintenance: Own the aircraft fleet from selection and build through ongoing maintenance, keeping spares, batteries, and field-replaceable components ready. Perform pre-flight inspections, range checks, post-flight diagnostics, and repair to keep every aircraft test-ready.
  • Flight Operations & Piloting: Configure flight controllers, radios, GPS, and autopilot systems for repeatable, mission-specific target profiles. Pilot a diverse fleet ranging from multirotor to fixed-wing, including manual FPV, line-of-sight flying, and autonomous mission planning.
  • Test Planning & Cadence: Anticipate flight-test needs across multiple horizons and find flight operations solutions that keep a fast-paced test cadence moving. Log build configurations, flight data, and test results, and advise on aircraft capabilities and limitations to support test planning.
  • Regulatory & Range Access: Support relationships with test ranges, bases, and airspace, and help keep flight testing compliant, safe, and properly authorized with the FAA and other regulatory bodies.
  • Safety & Incident Response: Uphold pre-flight risk analysis and go/no-go discipline, support incident response and reporting, and help ensure the safety and health of the team on the test site.
  • Logistics & Campaign Support: Coordinate travel, logistics, equipment, and gear for flight-test campaigns and demos. Manage fleet components and test equipment with clear inventory and storage practices, keeping the shop and flight-test areas clean, orderly, and FOD-free.
  • Cross-Team Collaboration: Interface with the autonomy and data teams to ensure consistent, clean telemetry capture, and work with videography to capture compelling artifacts from test events.

Basic Qualifications
  • UAS Build & Repair: Hands-on experience building and repairing multirotor and/or fixed-wing UAS.
  • Piloting: Demonstrated piloting skill, including manual FPV, line-of-sight flying, and autonomous mission planning for both multirotor and fixed-wing systems.
  • Avionics & Electronics: Proficiency with flight controllers, ESCs, motors, batteries, RF/telemetry, and soldering/wiring.
  • Safety: Safety-first mindset with strict adherence to flight, range, and shop safety protocols.
  • Troubleshooting: Strong troubleshooting skills and the ability to work in fast-paced field-test conditions.
  • Certification: FAA Part 107 Remote Pilot Certificate.
  • Test Environments: Willingness to support live-fire/interception test environments.
  • Travel: Willingness and ability to travel up to 25% of the time.
  • Operational Initiative: History of seeing operational issues and acting independently to improve processes.

Preferred Qualifications
Experience in any of the following areas is a plus:
  • Multirotor & eVTOL Experience: 3+ years flying multirotors and/or eVTOL UAS.
  • Fixed-Wing Experience: 3+ years flying fixed-wing UAS.
  • Interceptor Testing: Background testing kinematic interceptors or other ground-to-air defense systems.
  • Industry Relationships: Existing relationships with the FAA, NTSB, or large UAS/cUAS test ranges or facilities.
  • Test Infrastructure & V&V: Experience contributing to test infrastructure and V&V campaigns.
  • Regulatory Authorizations: Experience obtaining waivers and airspace authorizations, or writing COAs and working with public organizations to acquire them.
  • Leadership Growth: Interest in or experience growing into a leadership role.
  • Hands-On Background: Machining experience and personal RC aircraft projects.
  • Pilot Certification: Private pilot's license.

This position may involve access to technology, material, technical data, defense articles, or information subject to U.S. export-control laws, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), the Export Administration Regulations (EAR), and applicable contract requirements. Assignment to covered work is contingent upon the company's ability to verify that the candidate is authorized to receive access to such items or information, including by qualifying as a "U.S. person" as defined in 22 C.F.R. § 120.62, or through any required export-control authorization, notice, approval, or access-control process.