Flight Test Project Manager

About Zipline

Do you want to change the world? Zipline is on a mission to transform the way goods move. Our aim is to solve the world’s most urgent and complex access challenges by building, manufacturing and operating the first instant delivery and logistics system that serves all humans equally, wherever they are.

From powering Rwanda’s national blood delivery network and Ghana’s COVID‑19 vaccine distribution, to providing on‑demand home delivery for Walmart, to enabling healthcare providers to bring care directly to U.S. homes, we are transforming the way things move for businesses, governments and consumers.

The technology is complex but the idea is simple: a teleportation service that delivers what you need, when you need it. Using robotics and autonomy, we are decarbonizing delivery, decreasing road congestion, and reducing fossil fuel consumption and air pollution, while providing equitable access to billions of people and building a more resilient global supply chain.

Join Zipline and help us to make good on our promise to build an equitable and more resilient global supply chain for billions of people.

We are seeking a highly organized and proactive Flight Test Project Manager to join our team. This role is critical to ensuring that our flight test organization has the capacity, resources, and infrastructure needed to meet engineering demand and support company‑wide milestones. The Flight Test Project Manager will oversee test capacity planning, forecast demand, and manage execution of projects spanning material flows, aircraft logistics, and test site readiness.

This is a role based out of one of our California facilities in South San Francisco, Half Moon Bay, and Esparto. Ability to travel between sites may be required.

• Test Capacity & Forecasting: Own allocation of test resources, forecast demand from engineering, translate into schedules, and partner with test leads to strategically scale infrastructure.
• Program & Project Management: Lead cross‑functional build projects, manage material and aircraft movement across sites, maintain project plans and risk registers, and drive proactive risk escalation.
• Operational Coordination: Develop repeatable scheduling and resource allocation processes, align engineering/production/test teams on priorities, and report progress while resolving bottlenecks.
• Continuous Improvement: Identify gaps in capacity, infrastructure, and processes, implement scalable solutions, and adopt tools that enhance visibility, predictability, and efficiency.

The ideal candidate is a strategic thinker who can balance long‑term planning with day‑to‑day execution. You thrive in fast‑paced environments, are detail‑oriented, and enjoy working cross‑functionally to bring order to complex technical programs. You’re motivated by building scalable systems that enable teams to move faster and with greater clarity.

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Project Management, or related field, or equivalent practical experience.
• 3+ years of project management experience, preferably in aerospace, hardware, or complex engineering environments.
• Strong skills in demand forecasting, capacity planning, and schedule management.
• Experience coordinating cross‑functional teams and managing multiple concurrent projects.
• Excellent communication, organizational, and problem‑solving skills.

• Background in aerospace, aviation, or hardware product testing environments.
• Familiarity with flight test operations or aircraft development cycles.
• Proficiency with project management tools (e.g., Jira, Smartsheet, MS Project, Asana).
• PMP, PMI‑ACP, or similar certification is a plus.

The starting cash range for this role is $120,000 - $190,000. Please note that this is a target, starting cash range for a candidate who meets the minimum qualifications for this role. The final cash pay for this role will depend on a variety of factors, including a specific candidate’s experience, qualifications, skills, working location, and projected impact. The total compensation package for this role may also include: equity compensation;

overtime…