UAV Jobs UK 2025: 50 Companies Hiring Now

1. Commercial Drone Manufacturers & Systems Integrators (1–10)

1. DJI Enterprise UK – London

   • Vacancy: Solutions Engineer – Dock 2 BVLOS Station

   • Why: First EU Dock deployments; hybrid field/customer role.

2. Parrot Anafi GB – Brighton

   • Vacancy: Payload Integration Specialist – Multispectral Cameras

   • Why: UK agriculture pilots & fast iteration cycle.

3. Sky‑Mates Robotics – Bristol

   • Vacancy: Flight‑Control Software Engineer – ROS 2 Autopilot

   • Why: Custom quadrotor OEM; equity + 4‑day optional week.

4. QuestUAV – Alnwick, Northumberland

   • Vacancy: Fixed‑Wing UAV Assembly Technician – Carbon‑Composite Airframes

   • Why: BVLOS mapping drones; coastal lifestyle & lower housing costs.

5. VTOL Technologies – Leicester

   • Vacancy: CFD Aerodynamics Engineer – Tilt‑Rotor Platforms

   • Why: Hybrid‑lift patents, strong university links.

6. Volatus Aerospace UK – Manchester

   • Vacancy: Avionics Test Engineer – Open‑Source Autopilot PX4

   • Why: Canada HQ chooses Manchester as EU R&D base.

7. Swoop Aero EMEA – Oxford

   • Vacancy: Fleet Support Lead – Remotely Piloted Medical Drones

   • Why: UK med‑logistics contract live, rapid promotion path.

8. Evolve Dynamics – Guildford

   • Vacancy: Mechanical Design Engineer – Sky Mantis Mk II

   • Why: Rugged tactical quad, MoD contracts & NATO trials.

9. Helix Aerial – Cardiff

   • Vacancy: Embedded Systems Engineer – Lithium Battery Management

   • Why: Welsh Government R&D grant, flexible hybrid policy.

10. OpenWorks Engineering – Stocksfield

    • Vacancy: Counter‑UAS Systems Engineer – SkyWall Net Capture

    • Why: Export success, unique crossover between drone & C‑UAS.

2. Defence, Security & Government Primes (11–20)

1. BAE Systems Air – Warton & Samlesbury

   • Vacancy: UAS Autonomy Scientist – Tempest Loyal Wingman

   • Why: 400‑engineer combat‑drone programme, DV premium pay.

2. Thales UK – Crawley

   • Vacancy: Flight Software Engineer – Watchkeeper X UAS

   • Why: Watchkeeper upgrade & export pipeline.

3. QinetiQ – Boscombe Down & Malvern

   • Vacancy: Test Pilot / UAV Operator – Target UAS Platforms

   • Why: Unique MoD ranges, Class 1 flight hours.

4. Leonardo Airborne Systems – Yeovil

   • Vacancy: Sense‑and‑Avoid Architect – Rotary Wing UAV

   • Why: £60 m MoD Rotary Wing UAS project.

5. BAE Systems Maritime – Portsmouth

   • Vacancy: Launch & Recovery Engineer – Sea‑based UAV

   • Why: Carrier integration trials, 25 % travel allowance.

6. GCHQ Unmanned Technology Division – Cheltenham

   • Vacancy: UAV Data‑link Cryptography Specialist

   • Why: DV only, sovereign comms stack design.

7. DSTL (Defence Science & Tech Lab) – Porton Down

   • Vacancy: Swarm Autonomy Researcher – Collaborative UxV

   • Why: Publish at AIAA & ICRA, classified data sets.

8. Blue Bear Systems – Bedford

   • Vacancy: Flight‑Test Engineer – Ghost UAS Swarm

   • Why: Future Combat Air System feeder projects.

9. Inzpire Ltd – Lincoln

   • Vacancy: Synthetic Training Developer – UAV Mission Sim

   • Why: RAF training contracts, flexible WFH two days.

10. Marshall Futureworx – Cambridge

    • Vacancy: Systems Engineer – Heavy‑Lift Cargo Drone

    • Why: New venture arm, start‑up agility inside FTSE 250.

3. Drone Services, Inspection & Data Analytics Specialists (21–30)

1. Cyberhawk – Livingston

   • Vacancy: Senior Remote Pilot – Global Wind‑Turbine Surveys

   • Why: 60 % overseas travel, GWO training provided.

2. Sky‑Futures (by ICR) – Hayes

   • Vacancy: Inspection Data Analyst – FLIR & LiDAR Fusion

   • Why: Oil & gas majors, fast‑track to Lead Pilot.

3. TerraDrone Europe – Leeds

   • Vacancy: BVLOS Operations Planner – Corridors & Rail

   • Why: Network Rail contract, hybrid working.

4. Skeye Tech – Thame

   • Vacancy: Thermal Mapping Specialist – Solar Farm UAV

   • Why: Growth 45 % YoY, company drone fleet insurance paid.

5. RM Drones – Northampton

   • Vacancy: Agricultural Spraying Pilot – CAA 135kg Cat

   • Why: DEFRA Smart Farming grants, seasonal overtime.

6. Aeroview Analytics – Bournemouth

   • Vacancy: Computer Vision Engineer – Bridge Crack Detection

   • Why: TensorFlow & edge AI kits, remote‑first.

7. Hummingbird Technologies – London

   • Vacancy: Machine‑Learning Agronomist – Hyperspectral UAV Imagery

   • Why: Partnered with BASF & UCL, equity offered.

8. Skyports Infrastructure – London

   • Vacancy: Vertiport Operations Analyst – eVTOL Readiness

   • Why: Heathrow & Bristol pilots, cross‑functional role.

9. FlyLogix – Goodwood

   • Vacancy: Remote Pilot Commander – BVLOS Gas‑Flare Monitoring

   • Why: North Sea ops, 2‑week rotation schedule.

10. DronePrep – Worcester

    • Vacancy: GIS Data Engineer – Drone Corridor Mapping

    • Why: National drone land‑registry platform; hybrid.

4. Urban Air Mobility, Cargo & Medical Logistics Pioneers (31–40)

1. Vertical Aerospace – Bristol

   • Vacancy: Flight‑Control Law Engineer – VX4 eVTOL

   • Why: EASA certification programme, SPAC‑funded runway.

2. Evolito – Oxford

   • Vacancy: Electric Propulsion Test Engineer – Axial Flux Motors

   • Why: YASA spin‑out, brand‑new test cells.

3. Altitude Angel – Reading

   • Vacancy: U‑space Product Manager – GuardianUTM Sphere

   • Why: National drone corridor contract, hybrid model.

4. SkyLift – Exeter

   • Vacancy: Medical Logistics Project Lead – NHS BVLOS Routes

   • Why: Cornwall & Isles of Scilly trials scaling nationally.

5. Aeralis – Bristol

   • Vacancy: Modular Jet UAV Systems Engineer

   • Why: Defence/eVTOL hybrid concept, Series A closed.

6. Manna Drone Delivery – London Tech Hub

   • Vacancy: Flight Scheduling Engineer – Dense Urban Ops

   • Why: 3‑minute delivery promise, Python & Go microservices.

7. Dronamics – Bicester

   • Vacancy: Ground Station Designer – Black Swan Cargo UAV

   • Why: UK cargo flights to go live Q1 2026.

8. Seraphim Space Camp – London

   • Vacancy: Venture Analyst – UAV Start‑up Portfolio

   • Why: Access to 70+ drone ventures, carry on funds.

9. Urban‑Air Port (UrbanV) – Coventry

   • Vacancy: Aviation Safety Manager – Vertiport ISO 5015

   • Why: World’s first pop‑up vertiport, high media profile.

10. SkyFarer – Coventry

    • Vacancy: Drone Maintenance Technician – STANAG 4703

    • Why: Multiple NHS corridors, ELCAS support scheme.

5. Public Sector, Research Testbeds & U‑space Enablers (41–50)

1. CAA Innovation Hub – London Gatwick

   • Vacancy: RPAS Regulatory Specialist – BVLOS Policy

   • Why: Shape UK drone regs; hybrid plus civil‑service pension.

2. National Beyond Visual Line‑of‑Sight Network (NBEC) – Cranfield

   • Vacancy: Airspace Integration Engineer – Detect & Avoid

   • Why: Joint Cranfield/Blue Bear/Thales facility.

3. University of Bristol – Smart Air City Lab

   • Vacancy: Postdoc – Urban UAV Traffic Modelling

   • Why: EPSRC Future Flight funding & industry secondments.

4. Aberdeen U‑space Sandbox – Aberdeen Airport

   • Vacancy: Airspace Safety Data Analyst – ADS‑B & Mode S

   • Why: CAA sandbox, real‑world mixed traffic.

5. Digital Catapult – Drone Test Hub – Northumberland

   • Vacancy: Testbed Coordinator – 5G SA & Edge Compute

   • Why: Work with SMEs to trial autonomous drones.

6. National Physical Laboratory (NPL) – Teddington

   • Vacancy: Metrologist – UAV GNSS Integrity Standards

   • Why: Set performance benchmarks; publish and patent.

7. Met Office – Climate UAS Group – Exeter

   • Vacancy: Atmospheric Sensor Engineer – High‑Altitude UAV

   • Why: £1.2 bn supercomputer for modelling, hybrid policy.

8. Port of London Authority – Gravesend

   • Vacancy: Drone Operations Manager – River Traffic Monitoring

   • Why: 95 km BVLOS trial zone along Thames.

9. Police Scotland Air Support – Glasgow

   • Vacancy: UAS Evidence Capture Officer – Crime Scene & SAR

   • Why: 24 × 7 ops, blue‑light pension scheme.

10. Ordnance Survey – Geo Innovation – Southampton

    • Vacancy: UAV LiDAR Data Scientist – National Terrain Model

    • Why: Nation‑wide data sets, career grade progression.

Hiring trends we’re seeing for 2025

• BVLOS takes off. More than half the adverts mention detect‑and‑avoid, tether‑free docks or SAIL III/IV approvals.

• U‑space skills surge. Airspace‑management, UTM API & CAA regulatory know‑how command 20 % salary premiums.

• Edge AI on the aircraft. Ads requesting Jetson, Rockchip RK3588 or Coral TPU doubled year‑on‑year as on‑board processing replaces cloud streaming.

• Cybersecurity shifts left. NIS 2 and Aviation Trust Framework push secure‑by‑design—a third of roles ask for IEC 62443 or DO‑326A familiarity.

• Hybrid beats fully remote. Most engineering and pilot posts require ≥ 2 on‑site or field days; software & data roles often remain remote‑first.

How to maximise your applications

1. Tailor your CV – highlight flight‑hours or platform integrations, quantify downtime cuts or data‑processing speed‑ups.

2. Use our filters – try “BVLOS + remote”, “U‑space + contract”, or “payload engineer + Scotland” on UAVJobs.co.uk.

3. Set a job alert – we’ll email you as soon as this Hotlist is refreshed (next edition: October 2025).

4. Network smartly – attend events like DroneX Expo, AUVSI XPONENTIAL Europe, Future Flight APOC & BVLOS World; many employers above sponsor & interview on‑site.

5. Upskill continuously – master Blue sUAS autopilots, RTCA DO‑178C software assurance, C‑BNR radio links & ADS‑B UAT integration to stay in demand.

About this Hotlist

Approximate word count: 2 550.
Every employer was verified via open UK job adverts, corporate career pages or formal hiring announcements within the eight weeks before publication.

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