The Flight Program Manager will drive the operational delivery and field readiness of Swarmer's Flight and Lab teams, bridging R&D, hardware manufacturing, and real-world mission deployment. This hands-on role involves owning the operational lifecycle of flight assets, turning engineering requirements into executable schedules, managing supply chain dependencies for drones and components, and ensuring teams are unblocked for field testing. The manager will coordinate stakeholders, drive syncs and reviews, and maintain rigorous status, risk, and resource tracking to ensure mission readiness.

Responsibilities

Help teams clarify scope, success criteria, acceptance criteria, delivery risks, and readiness for field testing or release.
Manage and own the end-to-end delivery of Flight and Lab team missions.
Drive regular syncs, reviews, and escalation routines for critical initiatives.
Lead the planning, scheduling, and execution of R&D flight tasks, including documenting and tracking ad hoc priority activities.
Coordinate all stakeholders involved in flight operations to ensure alignment with company and team priorities.
Oversee the end-to-end lifecycle of flight equipment: coordinate the manufacturing, retrofitting, and procurement of drones, and ensure the availability and readiness of all required ground infrastructure components.
Maintain rigorous status, risk, and resource tracking specifically for flight and lab team throughput.
Drive the operational readiness of all flight and lab assets for field testing and mission deployment.
Help leadership see the real picture: what is on track, what is blocked, what is unclear, and where decisions are required.

Requirements

4+ years of experience in project management, program management, delivery management, technical program management, or similar roles.
Proven ability to manage the end-to-end delivery cycle—from R&D prototyping to field readiness and mission deployment.
Strong capability to manage resource dependencies, including equipment procurement, manufacturing coordination, and supply chain tracking for field assets.
Ability to work closely with engineering teams to bridge the gap between lab-based R&D and real-world performance.
Ability to create clear, action-oriented reporting for leadership, focusing specifically on operational blockers, equipment availability, and field mission status.
Good written and verbal communication in English, excellent Ukrainian.
Ability to create clear executive-level reporting without hiding complexity or overloading people with noise.
Comfortable working in high-uncertainty environments where requirements, priorities, and constraints can change quickly.
High ownership, persistence, and operational discipline.
Strong risk-management mindset: you naturally ask what can fail, what is blocked, what is unverified, and what decision is missing.
Readiness to work with sensitive defense-related information and follow strict operational security practices.

Nice to have

Experience in drone/UAV operations, robotics, aerospace, or embedded systems development.
Experience in startups or fast-scaling product companies.
Experience with field testing, pilot programs, demo preparation, customer trials, or production-readiness processes.
Experience working with military, government, security, or regulated customers.
Background in engineering, product management, operations, or business analysis.

Benefits

A dynamic environment with a unique opportunity to directly influence and see the impact of your work.
A mission-driven role in a company building technology that directly supports Ukrainian and global defense capabilities.
The opportunity to work on one of the most advanced and practically tested autonomy products in the defense-tech market.
Direct exposure to real users, real operational constraints, and real product impact — not abstract corporate roadmaps.
A high-ownership culture where initiative, clarity, and execution matter more than bureaucracy.
Close collaboration with experienced founders, engineers, product leaders, and field teams.
Space to shape program management practices from the ground up as the company scales.
Competitive salary and a comprehensive benefits package, including insurance, paid sick leave, and 20 paid days off per year.
Flexible remote work options where possible.