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Temporary Pilot Jobs in Washington (NOW HIRING)

DC Government Careers

Aircraft Mechanic

Washington, DC · On-site

$70K - $92K/yr

Performs temporary and permanent repairs to airframes and operates ground-handling equipment to ... pilot on test flights of aircraft to make visual and audio checks of the aircraft. Performs ...

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Temporary Pilot information

What is a temporary pilot?

Temporary pilots are licensed aviators who are hired on a short-term or contract basis to operate aircraft. They may fill in for full-time pilots during peak periods, cover for absences, or assist with specific projects or flights. Temporary pilots must meet the same regulatory requirements and certifications as permanent pilots, including holding the appropriate licenses and medical clearances. Their assignments can range from a few days to several months, depending on the employer’s needs. This role is common in commercial aviation, charter services, and corporate flight departments.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a temporary pilot, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Temporary Pilot, you need a commercial or airline transport pilot license, strong knowledge of aviation regulations, and proven flight experience. Familiarity with aircraft-specific systems, flight planning software, and standard navigation tools is crucial. Excellent situational awareness, decision-making, and communication skills help manage dynamic flight environments and coordinate with crew and ground staff. These competencies are essential to ensure passenger safety, regulatory compliance, and operational efficiency during temporary assignments.

What are some common challenges faced by temporary pilots when adapting to new aircraft and operational procedures?

Temporary pilots often need to quickly familiarize themselves with different aircraft models and the specific operational procedures of each airline or company they work with. This can be challenging, as every organization may have unique protocols, safety procedures, and cockpit workflows. Building rapport with new crew members rapidly and adapting to varying schedules are also common challenges. However, strong communication skills, a solid foundation in aviation best practices, and a flexible attitude can help temporary pilots succeed in these dynamic environments.

What is the difference between Temporary Pilot vs Commercial Pilot?

AspectTemporary PilotCommercial Pilot
CredentialsTemporary certification or limited licenseCommercial Pilot Certificate with specific ratings
Work EnvironmentShort-term assignments, varied locationsRegular employment, fixed routes or operations
Employer & IndustryCharter companies, flight schools, seasonal operatorsAirlines, cargo carriers, corporate flight services
Search & Comparison IntentTemporary flying roles, short-term pilot jobsFull-time pilot careers, commercial flying opportunities

Temporary pilots typically hold limited or temporary certifications and work on short-term assignments in various environments. Commercial pilots have full certifications and work in established roles within the airline or cargo industries. The main difference lies in certification level, job stability, and work scope.

What are the most commonly searched types of Pilot jobs in Washington?

The most popular types of Pilot jobs in Washington are:

Temporary Pilot jobs near you
Infographic showing various Temporary Pilot job openings in Washington as of August 2026, with employment types broken down into 87% Full Time, 11% Part Time, and 2% Contract. Highlights an 92% Physical, 2% Hybrid, and 6% Remote job distribution.

Staff Software Engineer, Autonomous Pilot Integration - Expeditionary (R5208)

Shield AI

Washington, DC

$195K - $292K/yr

Full-time

Posted 22 days ago

Job description

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube. 

The Autonomous Pilot Integration team for expeditionary platforms builds autonomy solutions for V-BAT — an unmanned aircraft operating in expeditionary environments for ISR, target acquisition, communications, and multi-agent missions. The team also builds autonomy for X-BAT, a new platform under development by the aircraft team; for X-BAT, the team builds on top of the existing mission autonomy solution from the Strategic Systems (ACP) portfolio and works closely with the aircraft team on the flight-autonomy interface. We combine capabilities from the Autonomy Capabilities team (motion planning, tactics), the Perception team (e.g., ViDAR, ATR), and the HivemindSDK to develop the autonomy software that runs on these platforms, then integrate, validate, and field it on the real hardware — for U.S. and international defense customers. 

 
In this role, you'll lead the technical delivery of complex autonomy capabilities spanning platform integration, mission autonomy, and operational deployment. You'll own some of the team's most challenging technical problems—from defining flight-autonomy interfaces and integrating advanced payloads to driving mission readiness for customer releases. You'll influence technical direction across multiple subsystems while partnering closely with the Aircraft team, Autonomy Capabilities, Perception, GCS, Strategic Systems (ACP), feature crews, and customer stakeholders. 

You'll combine deep technical expertise with systems thinking to drive successful integration across software, hardware, and operations while mentoring engineers and improving engineering practices across the Expeditionary portfolio. 

What You'll Do:

Lead Technical Delivery – Lead the technical execution of complex autonomy capabilities from architecture through field deployment, coordinating work across multiple engineering teams. 

Develop & Field Autonomy – Drive integration of mission autonomy, payloads, flight-control interfaces, executive autonomy, and multi-agent behaviors onto V-BAT and X-BAT. 

Aircraft Team Partnership – Serve as a primary technical partner to the Aircraft team, defining integration approaches, resolving interface issues, and ensuring mission readiness. 

Cross-Team Technical Leadership – Partner across Aircraft, Autonomy Capabilities, Perception, GCS, Strategic Systems (ACP), and feature crews to solve complex systems integration challenges. 

Systems Architecture & Integration – Influence architecture, interface design, and integration strategy across multiple subsystems. 

Design & Engineering Excellence – Lead design reviews, contribute to ICDs, mentor engineers, and improve engineering rigor. 

Mission Readiness & Field Support – Drive release readiness while supporting flight tests, customer demonstrations, and operational deployments. 

Continuous Improvement – Improve integration workflows, testing infrastructure, and engineering productivity. 

C2 Interoperability & Standards – Drive implementation of GCS and C2 interfaces using common open-systems standards. 

Travel Requirement – Members of this team typically travel around 10–20% of the year to different office locations, customer sites, operator training events, flight tests, and integration exercises. 

Required Qualifications:

  • BS/MS in a relevant engineering discipline or equivalent experience.  

  • 7+ years of relevant experience.  

  • Expert C++ and Linux development experience.  

  • Experience leading complex autonomy or embedded software integration efforts.  

  • Experience influencing technical direction across multiple engineering teams.  

  • Experience supporting operational test events or customer deployments.  

  • Ability to obtain a SECRET clearance. 

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Experience with Group 3 UAS or VTOL aircraft.  

  • Experience with custom autopilot integration.  

  • EO/IR or ViDAR integration.  

  • Long-endurance ISR missions.  

  • Docker, ARM embedded systems, and CI/CD experience.  

  • Experience mentoring engineers and leading technical initiatives. 

#LI-ED1
#LD

Full-time regular employee offer package:
Pay within range listed + Bonus + Benefits + Equity
 
Temporary employee offer package:
Pay within range listed above + temporary benefits package (applicable after 60 days of employment)
 
Salary compensation is influenced by a wide array of factors including but not limited to skill set, level of experience, licenses and certifications, and specific work location. All offers are contingent on a cleared background and possible reference check. Military fellows and part-time employees are not eligible for benefits. Please speak to your talent acquisition representative for more information.
 
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Shield AI is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know. 

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses and identifying potential inconsistencies or verification signals in application materials based on available information. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.