Voltair (YC W26) Is Hiring a Test Flight Engineer

Voltair builds a distributed network of long-range drones and ground stations to provide on-demand earth observation, initially targeting power-utility inspections to find faults before they cause outages or wildfires. The system is full-stack: Voltair designs and manufactures drones that recharge on power lines, deploys them via regional stations (aiming to cover the U.S. with ~5,000 stations), captures imagery, runs automated analysis, and delivers annotated reports to operators. The company has serviced multiple utilities, is preparing a major multinational deployment, is YC W26-backed, founded in 2025, and currently operates from San Francisco with a small founding team.

The role is Flight Test Engineer (full-time, SF) paying $100-$160k plus 0.50-1.50% equity, requiring 1+ years relevant experience and U.S. work authorization. Responsibilities blend hands-on hardware work and field operations: building and validating test fixtures, soldering and wiring, operating a ~54 lb fixed-wing aircraft, running missions for enterprise customers, and representing the company in the field (about one week of travel per month). Required skills include drone build experience, electrical systems understanding, and familiarity with autopilot firmware (ArduPilot, PX4). Nice-to-haves include manned aviation experience, structured flight-test background, and Part 107 certification. The hire will take over flight-testing from the CEO immediately and is expected to deploy customer missions within 90 days.