Flight Operations Manager - Drone Services

flight Operations Manager
- Drone Services

Job Title :
Flight Operations Manager, UK

Location:
Westcott, Aylesbury
- Travel Required
Department:
Drone Services, Flight Operations
Type:
Full-time, Permanent

About Us:

Founded in 2018, Skyports is at the forefront of the Advanced Air Mobility revolution, developing and operating cutting-edge infrastructure for electric air taxis and leveraging drone technology to transform business operations across industries.

Our business is split into two key areas:

• Skyports Drone Services uses drones to streamline logistics, capture data, and enhance operational efficiency, with a focus on rural deliveries, surveying, surveillance, and maritime services.
• Skyports Infrastructure plays a vital role in the Urban Air Mobility ecosystem, designing, building, owning, and operating vertiports that enable eVTOL operators to take off and land in cities around the world.

With our presence in this dynamic, high-growth industry, there has never been a more exciting time to be part of our mission to reshape the future of air mobility.

The Role:

You will lead Skyports’ flight operations, based from our operations facility in Westcott, Aylesbury.

The role covers people leadership, operational delivery, safety, regulatory compliance, and resource planning across our global operations. You will be responsible for Remote Pilots and Team Leaders, ensuring that operations are delivered safely, efficiently, and in accordance with regulatory requirements, internal procedures, and customer commitments.

The role is suited to an experienced aviation or drone operations leader who is comfortable overseeing BVLOS and VLOS operations, inspection, delivery and other complex UAS missions, while managing a growing operational team across multiple locations.

Operational Delivery

• Lead the day-to-day delivery of flight operations.
• Oversee mission planning, pre-flight preparation, flight execution, and operational close-out.
• Ensure all missions are conducted in accordance with approved SOPs, Con Ops, operational authorisations, and Skyports’.

Flight Operations Directive.

• Manage aircraft and platform readiness, engineering authorisations, maintenance requirements, and serviceability.
• Own operational resourcing plans across people, aircraft, ground equipment, and Remote Operations Centres (ROCs).
• Ensure the Westcott operation is appropriately resourced and ready to support current and future programmes.

Safety and Compliance

• Maintain and promote a strong safety culture across the Flight Operations team.
• Ensure Remote Pilots maintain the required competency, currency, qualifications, and engineering authorisations.
• Support and lead operational safety reviews, occurrence and incident reporting, investigations, and corrective actions.
• Ensure operations remain compliant with applicable aviation regulations and Skyports’ internal operating standards.
• Liaise with the relevant authorities, airspace stakeholders, aerodromes, landowners, and other relevant authorities in support of operational approvals and permissions.
• Work closely with the Safety and Regulatory teams to maintain and develop operational authorisations as Skyports’ capabilities expand.
• Line manage Remote Pilots and Team Leaders.
• Run regular 1:1s, performance reviews, and technical development plans.
• Drive the Flight Operations training and competency pathway, ensuring Remote Pilots progress through the appropriate qualification levels.
• Support recruitment, onboarding, standardisation, recurrent training, and skills development.
• Build a strong operational culture centred on safety, professionalism, accountability, and continuous improvement.

Stakeholder Management

• Represent Skyports Drone Services with customers, partners, aviation stakeholders, and operational suppliers.
• Work closely with Business Development, Technology, Engineering, Safety, Regulatory, and Project teams.
• Support customer onboarding, demonstrations, trials, operational readiness activities, and contract delivery milestones.
• Ensure clear communication between operational teams and programme stakeholders, particularly when managing competing operational priorities.

Operational Growth

• Build operational…