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Sensor Payload Operator Jobs (NOW HIRING)

KBR

Radar Payload Systems Engineer

Chantilly, VA · On-site

Analyze project requirements and provide information and instruction for designing, operating ... Knowledge of remote sensing technologies including active and passive sensor systems which operate ...

KBR, Inc.

Radar Payload Systems Engineer

Chantilly, VA · On-site

Analyze project requirements and provide information and instruction for designing, operating ... Knowledge of remote sensing technologies including active and passive sensor systems which operate ...

Albers Aerospace

Sr Electrical Engineer

Mckinney, TX · On-site

$99K - $129K/yr

... sensor payloads, and mission‑critical electronics. This role emphasizes end‑to‑end system ... Evaluate power budgets and ensure system stability across all operating conditions * Integrate ...

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Sensor Payload Operator information

What is a sensor payload operator?

A Sensor Payload Operator is a specialist responsible for operating and managing advanced sensor systems on unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) or other platforms. Their duties include controlling cameras, radars, and other sensor payloads to collect and analyze data for surveillance, reconnaissance, or research missions. They interpret sensor data, ensure equipment functionality, and support mission objectives by delivering accurate and timely information. This role is commonly found in military, defense, and scientific exploration settings.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a sensor payload operator?

To thrive as a Sensor Payload Operator, you need a strong understanding of sensor systems, data analysis, and operational procedures, often supported by relevant technical training or military experience. Familiarity with remote sensing platforms, imagery analysis software, and mission control systems is typically required. Attention to detail, problem-solving skills, and effective communication are crucial soft skills for interpreting data and coordinating with mission teams. These competencies ensure accurate data collection, mission success, and reliable support for intelligence or surveillance operations.

What are some common challenges sensor payload operators face when managing multiple sensor systems simultaneously?

Sensor Payload Operators often work with several complex sensors and data streams at once, which requires strong multitasking and situational awareness skills. A key challenge is quickly interpreting real-time data while maintaining accuracy, especially during high-pressure missions or rapid environmental changes. Operators must also collaborate closely with mission controllers, pilots, and analysis teams to ensure seamless data collection and timely responses. Regular training and familiarity with evolving sensor technology help address these challenges and support professional growth in this dynamic field.

What is the difference between Sensor Payload Operator vs Drone Pilot?

AspectSensor Payload OperatorDrone Pilot
CredentialsFAA Part 107 certification, technical training in sensor systemsFAA Part 107 certification, drone operation training
Work EnvironmentControlled environments, field sites, industrial settingsOpen outdoor areas, aerial operation sites
Industry UsageSurveying, environmental monitoring, securityAerial photography, inspection, mapping

The Sensor Payload Operator specializes in managing and operating sensor systems on various platforms, focusing on data collection and analysis. In contrast, the Drone Pilot primarily controls the drone itself for flight operations. While both roles require FAA certification and technical knowledge, the Sensor Payload Operator emphasizes sensor management, whereas the Drone Pilot focuses on piloting skills.

What are popular job titles related to Sensor Payload Operator jobs?

For Sensor Payload Operator jobs, the most frequently searched job titles are:

Infographic showing various Sensor Payload Operator job openings in the United States as of September 2026, with employment types broken down into 47% Full Time, 51% Part Time, 1% Contract, and 1% Nights. Highlights an 99% Physical, and 1% Remote job distribution.

Software Engineer, Robotics Data Foundation (Cloud)

Seattle, WA • On-site

Anduril Industries
Guided Missile and Space Vehicle Manufacturing • 501 - 1,000 employees
Learn more about Anduril Industriesexternal

$130K - $156K/yr

Full-time

Re-posted 28 days ago

Anduril rating

9.1

Company rating: 9.1 out of 10

Anduril

Based on 17 frontline employees who took The Breakroom Quiz

Job description

ABOUT THE TEAM

The Robotics Data Foundation (RDF) team builds Anduril's vehicle telemetry backbone, from onboard systems to cloud. This includes onboard data recording and backhaul, ingestion into our cloud data platform, normalizing data across flight controllers and vehicle management systems, mission systems, and sensor payloads, and making it available to a range of downstream 1st and 3rd-party analysis tools. Our vehicle telemetry platform powers software and hardware development, T&E workflows, production incident response, and contractual customer reporting today, and underpins new product development, fleet-wide analysis, simulation, and machine learning workflows. Anduril sits on the world's largest defense robotics data asset, and the RDF team is working to operationalize that across the board.

ABOUT THE JOB

As an engineer on the Robotics Data Foundation team, you will design and build the Anduril-wide cloud systems that host our ingestion pipelines, storage systems, and tooling that carry vehicle telemetry from onboard systems to the cloud and make it discoverable, searchable, and analyzable across the fleet. You'll normalize data across flight controllers, vehicle management systems, mission systems, and sensor payloads, and expose it to downstream 1st- and 3rd-party analysis tools, and build infrastructure that supports large-scale batch ingestion of recorded telemetry, as well as low-latency streaming.

  • Build reliable and performant cloud data systems: Our software ingests high volumes of telemetry across Anduril, so the systems we ship must be high-availability and stable when processing high-scale vehicle telemetry.
  • Design extensible telemetry and data architectures: Robotics teams have diverse data sources that are often unique to a platform or sensor. Our architecture must enable easy integration of bespoke data sources into our standardized ingestion framework.
  • Enable data-driven engineering in real-time: We own the software that delivers live telemetry streams and recorded data to cloud destinations and analysis tools so engineers, operators, and test teams across locations can understand their systems in real-time.
  • Build and develop cloud-native systems that are also edge-compatible: While we are responsible for delivering an excellent cloud data platform experience for all teams across Anduril, we also deliver a subset of capabilities to edge nodes to facilitate telemetry capture in offline / air-gapped settings. You will also be responsible for fielding data systems to classified environments.
  • Eagerly engage with our customers: We partner closely with business line engineering teams to understand their specific data requirements and iteratively deliver solutions that meet their particular needs and constraints.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
  • Experience with modern lakehouse architectures (Iceberg, Delta Lake), ETL systems (Flyte, Dagster, Airflow, Argo Workflows), and distributed data processing engines (Spark, Trino, etc.).
  • Experience developing and operating high-throughput streaming data pipelines (leveraging systems like Spark Streaming, Flink, Kafka).
  • Strong proficiency in Python, Java, Rust, and/or Go (the team predominantly uses Python & Rust for core backend services and pipelines).
  • Experience building and operating cloud systems, including common containerization and deployability technologies (Docker, Kubernetes, GitOps systems like FluxCD / ArgoCD).
  • U.S. Person status is required as this position needs to access export controlled data. Eligibility to obtain/maintain a US Top Secret clearance is also desirable.

Working at Anduril

About Anduril, in their own words

From Anduril

As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril delivers cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the warfighter in months, not years.

What Anduril employees say

Pay

Benefits

Hours and flexibility

Workplace

Get the full story on Breakroom

Anduril Industries logo

About Anduril Industries

Sourced by ZipRecruiter

Anduril Industries is a trailblazer in the technology industry based in Costa Mesa, CA, US. Founded in 2017 by Palmer Luckey, the creator of Oculus VR, the company focuses on developing innovative technology to equip and empower those in the defense sector. Its primary products include cutting-edge autonomous systems and AI software that assist in combating threats to national and global security. The mission of Anduril Industries is to integrate technology and defense by building transformative, scalable solutions that ensure a safer world.

Industry

Guided missile and space vehicle manufacturing

Company size

501 - 1,000 Employees

Headquarters location

Costa Mesa, CA, US

Year founded

2017

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