Program Manager, Flight Test

What you’ll do: 

• As the Program Manager for Flight Test you will be responsible and accountable for the program performance of the flight testing of the planned production eVTOL aircraft (Midnight). 
• Your primary responsibility will be to lead and manage the planning, scheduling, coordination, and program risk management of the Midnight flight test program.  You will be responsible and accountable for development and management of the overall flight test program plan for the Midnight flight test program as well as the technical performance to program requirements and milestones.  This will include open collaboration with Engineering, Certification, Integrated Test, Supply Chain, Manufacturing, Quality, and other functions within Archer to support the flight test program.
• Your additional responsibilities will include supporting the Integrated Test Labs team in prioritization, coordination and risk management of the integrated labs testing activities for integration of aircraft systems.
• The Program Manager will 
• Openly collaborate with the Head of Flight Test and Head of Integrated Test to ensure the successful development, test, and certification of the Midnight eVTOL.
• Collaborate with engineering teams to define integrated lab and flight test requirements, objectives, and test plans for eVTOL aircraft development and certification.
• Coordinate and facilitate the execution of flight test activities, including ground and flight test preparation, instrumentation design and installation, data collection and analysis.
• Define, launch, and drive mission-critical technical and business initiatives to ensure program success 
• Resolve a wide range of issues in practical as well as imaginative ways.
• Develop strong relationships across Archer, inclusive of flight test crews, suppliers, and lead a multidisciplinary team to execute complex development programs within schedule and budget. 
• Build program task-based schedules, track milestone progress against the program management plan.
• Identify and manage program Risks, Issues, and Opportunities to closure. 
• Manage flight test risks and champion safe operations by identifying potential hazards, developing risk mitigation strategies, and ensuring safety protocols are followed.
• Utilize configuration control and change management to maintain technical discipline of the program. 
• Liaise with regulatory authorities and certification teams to ensure compliance with applicable aviation regulations and certification standards.
• Work with flight test analysts and assist  with investigation of flight test anomalies and participate in root cause analysis to drive continuous improvement.
• Provide regular updates and reports on the status of flight test programs to company leadership and project stakeholders.

What you need: 

• Understanding of aircraft development, test and production.
• Prior experience in a flight test engineering department or company working in a leadership capacity in the execution of an aircraft development or certification project
• Experience as a program manager and knowledge of the program management best practices. 
• Demonstrated experience in planning, coordinating, and executing flight test programs from development to certification. 
• Strong knowledge of flight test techniques, methodologies and regulations.
• Experience in one or more aviation engineering disciplines.
• General experience with aircraft civil certification programs.
• Working knowledge of how program management interacts and collaborates with finance, supply chain, quality, engineering.
• Experience managing program scope (technical, budgets, schedules).
• Bachelor Degree in Engineering, Computers, Mathematics, Physics or a related field. 
• A minimum of 10 years related experience in aviation including technical product and program leadership and management roles.
• Strong interpersonal skills especially in team building/maintenance and customer relationships.
• Must be able to act independently and make decisions on administrative / operational issues affecting the success of this organization.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Must be willing to travel 25% of the time within 100 miles of the SF Bay Area

Bonus Qualifications: 

• Master's Degree in one of the identified academic disciplines is preferred
• Familiarity with EVTOL aircraft systems, performance characteristics, and certification requirements.
• Direct experience as a program manager of a flight test program.
• Prior experience working in a leadership capacity in the flight test execution of a Part 23 or Part 25 aircraft certification program. 

This position reports directly to the Vice President of Program Management. 

This position may require exposure to information which is subject to US export control regulations, i.e. the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) or the Export Administration Regulations (EAR). All applicants must be U.S. persons within the meaning of U.S. regulations.

At Archer we aim to attract, retain, and motivate talent that possess the skills and leadership necessary to grow our business. We drive a pay-for-performance culture and reward performance that supports the Company’s business strategy. For this position we are targeting a base pay between $188,000 - $235,000. Actual compensation offered will be determined by factors such as job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.