Staff Reliability Engineer

Skyways designs, builds, and operates fully autonomous long-range cargo aircraft. Founded in 2017, the company has spent the last eight years developing and deploying autonomous logistics systems for real-world operations.

Our V2 aircraft carries 30 lbs up to 500 miles, and V3 has a maximum range of well over 1,000 miles, a maximum useful load of 100 lbs, and a maximum endurance of nearly 20 hours. Both use a hybrid-electric architecture that takes off like a helicopter and cruises like a plane, enabling long-range autonomous delivery without traditional runway infrastructure.

Today, Skyways aircraft operate across three continents in controlled national airspace under FAA oversight and in support of U.S. military operations. We are transitioning from prototype development to full-rate production and scaling toward large autonomous cargo fleets.

Backed by Y Combinator and a $37M AFWERX STRATFI award from the U.S. Air Force, Skyways is creating a new form of transportation to advance our civilization from Austin, Texas.

The Opportunity

Skyways is hiring a Staff Reliability Engineer to build and drive the reliability program across our V2 fleet flying commercial revenue missions and our V3 aircraft in active flight test. This role is based onsite in Austin, Texas.

You will set the reliability strategy for the company and lead the work hands on: in the hangar, in the flight logs, and on the bench, finding root cause and building the fix. The work spans software, electrical, mechanical, and controls, and you will drive corrective actions to closure with Flight Test, Systems Engineering, Manufacturing, and Flight Operations.

What You'll Do:

• Build and own the Skyways reliability program end to end: failure reporting, root cause analysis, corrective action, and fleet reliability metrics

• Lead hands on investigations into aircraft failures across avionics, flight software, power and propulsion, structures, and flight controls

• Troubleshoot problems yourself and develop the fix, partnering with design engineers where the change lands in their system

• Analyze flight logs, telemetry, maintenance, and manufacturing data to find recurring failure modes and rank them by impact on the fleet

• Run FMEA and fault tree analysis on V3 critical systems and turn the findings into design changes

• Set inspection intervals and life limits, and revise them as fleet hours accumulate

• Drive corrective actions through design, manufacturing, and flight operations to permanent closure

• Report fleet reliability trends to engineering and company leadership

What You'll Bring:

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Aerospace, Mechanical, Electrical, or Systems Engineering, or a related engineering field

• 10+ years of engineering experience, including 5+ years of hands on reliability work on UAV or aviation programs

• Clear, measurable evidence of improving reliability on a UAV or aviation program, such as lower failure rates, higher MTBF, or better fleet availability

• Experience building or driving a reliability program, including failure reporting and corrective action systems (FRACAS)

• Broad, hands on troubleshooting across software, electrical, mechanical, and controls, with a track record of finding root cause and implementing the fix yourself

• Working knowledge of reliability methods such as FMEA, fault tree analysis, 8D, Weibull analysis, and reliability growth tracking

• Proficiency with Python, SQL, or similar tools for flight data analysis

• Clear technical writing and communication with engineers and leadership

Bonus Points:

• 15+ years of engineering experience with reliability at the core of your career

• Experience with ArduPilot, PX4, MAVLink, DroneCAN, or comparable flight control ecosystems

• Experience with hybrid electric propulsion, battery, or engine reliability

• Experience setting maintenance intervals and life limits for a flying fleet

• Experience working in startup or rapid hardware development environments

In addition to base salary, offers include stock options, so you own part of what you build. Benefits include medical, dental, and vision coverage, paid time off, paid holidays, a 401k, and life insurance.

Relocation assistance is available for candidates moving to Austin.

Want to join our mission? Apply to learn more!

Due to U.S. government contract requirements, this role is limited to U.S. citizens, U.S. permanent residents, or candidates from specific countries authorized under applicable export control regulations.

Skyways is an Equal Opportunity employer committed to diversity in the workplace. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, age, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, disability, protected veteran status or any other factor protected by applicable local, state or federal laws.