Aviation and Safety Manager

Bridger Photonics is a Montana-based industry leader in aerial detection of methane emissions. We use aircraft-mounted scanning laser systems to detect, locate, and quantify methane emissions for oil and gas operators across the United States and internationally. Our work is at the intersection of cutting-edge technology, environmental impact, and operational excellence — and it depends on safe, reliable, and compliant aerial operations every day.

Bridger Photonics is seeking an experienced and aviation-minded Aviation and Safety Manager to join our Legal department. This role serves as the company's central point of ownership for the procurement, qualification, compliance, and ongoing oversight of all aerial flight providers engaged by Bridger — including fixed-wing, rotary, quad copter, and Beyond Visual Line of Sight (BVOS) UAV operators — around the world.

Bridger's Gas Mapping Emissions scans are flown by a network of third-party flight providers operating across the United States and internationally. The Aviation and Safety Manager serves as the company's subject matter expert and primary steward for ensuring that every flight provider Bridger engages is properly qualified, certified, insured, and operating safely and in compliance with applicable regulations. This role also leads the procurement process for new flight providers, partnering with Operations and other departments to build a rigorous and consistent vetting framework.

• Own the end-to-end process for identifying, evaluating, and qualifying new aerial flight providers across all aircraft types (fixed-wing, rotary, drone/UAS, and unmanned platforms).
• Enhance and maintain standardized vetting frameworks for each flight provider category, in close partnership with Legal and Operations — including minimum qualification criteria, documentation requirements, safety program standards, and insurance thresholds.
• Lead due diligence on prospective providers: review FAA operating certificates (or equivalent), maintenance programs, pilot qualifications, safety records, incident/accident history, and insurance documentation. Facilitate structured provider comparisons and present findings to Legal, Operations, and leadership to support informed selection decisions.
• Maintain a qualified provider registry to streamline future engagements and capture institutional knowledge about vetted operators.
• Track and maintain vendor performance metrics to ensure vendors meet agreed standards. Address deficiencies, maintain action item registries and ensure closure of remedial actions.

• Maintain current knowledge of FAA regulations and relevant federal, state, and international rules applicable to Bridger's flight provider network, including commercial on-demand, general aviation, drone, and unmanned operations, as well as any applicable BVLOS, waiver, or international operating authority requirements.
• Ensure all active flight providers hold and maintain current, appropriate certifications, operating specifications, and regulatory authorizations for the missions they perform on Bridger's behalf.
• Track certificate and authorization expiration dates, renewal requirements, and any FAA or regulatory enforcement actions affecting Bridger's providers.
• Monitor forthcoming aviation regulations and UAS/BVLOS rule making at the federal and state level; analyze proposed rules for operational and commercial impact and prepare timely internal briefings for the CLO and leadership team.
• Identify opportunities for Bridger to participate in the regulatory process — including public comment periods, industry working groups, and trade association engagement — and recommend where advocacy or lobbying efforts would best protect and advance Bridger's operational interests.
• Coordinate with outside counsel, government affairs resources, and industry associations to support Bridger's positions on key rule making matters, particularly around BVLOS operations, UAS integration, and commercial drone standards.

• Establish and maintain minimum aviation insurance…