Drone pilot jobs: find drone jobs across the U.S., updated weekly
Open jobs flying drones for U.S. companies in delivery, public safety and field work, read every week from the employers' own job boards: where each job is, the pay when it is posted, and whether it asks for the FAA Part 107 certificate.
- Open drone jobs on the board
- 8
- Employers hiring
- 3
- Postings that name Part 107
- 8of 8
- Postings that state the pay
- 7of 8
Open drone pilot jobs in the U.S. this week
Every card is an open posting from an employer actively hiring, read again every week from its own job board. Filter by state, remote work and posted pay; Apply opens the posting on the employer's site, where you apply directly.
8 open jobs at 3 employers. Updated November 15, 2026; refreshed every week.
Field Deployment Specialist
Flock Safety
- Where: Remote (U.S.)
- Pay: $60,000–$80,000 a year
Cinematographer
Zipline
- Where: South San Francisco, CA
- Pay: $155,000–$180,000 a year
Flight Test Operator, Amarillo
Zipline
- Where: Amarillo, TX
- Pay: $31–$36 an hour
Build Development Technician (Engineering Test Technician)
Zipline
- Where: South San Francisco, CA
- Pay: $36–$48 an hour
Flight Test Operator - Esparto,CA
Zipline
- Where: Esparto, CA
- Pay: $35–$40 an hour
Visual Observer (Contract Opportunity)
Zipline
- Where: Austin, TX
- Pay not posted
Flight Test Operator, Half Moon Bay
Zipline
- Where: Half Moon Bay, CA
- Pay: $39–$45 an hour
DFR Installation Technician
BRINC
- Where: Remote (U.S.)
- Pay: $65,000–$95,000 a year
No job on the board matches. Clear a filter to see them all.
The board lists U.S. jobs where flying a drone is the work, or field jobs whose posting asks for Part 107, at the employers named under how this board works. Windhorse is not the employer, never sees your application and is paid by no one for a listing.
Kinds of drone jobs: what drone pilots do across the drone industry
Most drone jobs fly a few kinds of missions: deliveries, public safety calls, inspections, mapping, crop spraying, filming and light shows. Many job titles never say pilot, so search for operator, technician, observer and specialist too.
- Delivery. Delivery companies hire flight operators to launch, watch and land drones carrying food, retail orders and medical supplies, and visual observers who watch the sky around them. Flight test operators fly new aircraft and software at test sites before they go into service.
- Public safety. Police and fire departments send drones to 911 calls before a crew arrives, a program called drone as first responder (DFR). The companies that build these systems hire field technicians and deployment specialists who install the drones and their docks on roofs, fly them in and train each department's officers.
- Inspection. Utilities, telecom, wind and solar operators and their contractors fly close to power lines, towers, turbines, panels and bridges, often with a thermal camera. More in drone inspections.
- Mapping and surveying. Survey, engineering and construction firms fly set patterns over a site for data capture and turn the photos into maps, volumes and 3D models. More in drone mapping.
- Agriculture. Spraying or spreading crops by drone is an agricultural aircraft operation under Part 137: the operator needs an FAA exemption and an operator certificate. More in agriculture drones.
- Film, photos and real estate. Productions, marketing teams and real estate photographers hire pilots and drone cinematographers for aerial footage, and FPV drone pilots fly small, fast first-person-view drones through tight spaces for film and advertising shots (what FPV is). More in aerial photography and real estate drone photography.
- Drone light shows. Show companies hire crews to set out, fly and recover hundreds of lit drones at night under an FAA waiver. More in drone light shows.
- Warehouses. Some companies fly small drones indoors along warehouse aisles to count stock on high shelves, a job done by autonomous drones with people who set up and look after them.
Job titles to search
Drone pilot, drone operator, UAS operator, UAV pilot, remote pilot, flight operator, flight test operator, UAS test pilot, visual observer, drone technician, field deployment specialist and drone cinematographer. UAS (unmanned aircraft system) and UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle) are the formal words for a drone.
Do you need a license to be a drone pilot? The Part 107 certificate
Yes, to fly for work: the FAA remote pilot certificate, called Part 107 after its rule, is required for commercial drone flights. The pilot in command holds it, and anyone else at the controls flies under that pilot's direct supervision. You can earn it at 16 by passing one knowledge test, about $175.
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Who needs it
Anyone flying a drone for a job. The remote pilot in command must hold the certificate. Someone without it may fly the controls only under the direct supervision of a certificated pilot who can take over at once.
RequiredThe exact rule
no person may manipulate the flight controls of a small unmanned aircraft system unless: (1) That person has a remote pilot certificate with a small UAS rating issued pursuant to subpart C of this part and satisfies the requirements of § 107.65; or (2) That person is under the direct supervision of a remote pilot in command and the remote pilot in command has the ability to immediately take direct control of the flight of the small unmanned aircraft.
14 CFR 107.12(a), Requirement for a remote pilot certificate with a small UAS rating (eCFR)What it means: to fly for work you hold the certificate, or you fly beside someone who holds it and can take control. Paragraph (b) adds that no one may act as remote pilot in command without it, which is why most drone job postings ask for Part 107.
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Who can get it
Anyone 16 or older who passes the FAA knowledge test. You must read, speak, write and understand English and know of no physical or mental condition that would make your flying unsafe. There is no medical exam, no flight test and no degree.
Age 16The exact rule
a person must: (a) Be at least 16 years of age; (b) Be able to read, speak, write, and understand the English language. [...] (c) Not know or have reason to know that he or she has a physical or mental condition that would interfere with the safe operation of a small unmanned aircraft system; and (d) Demonstrate aeronautical knowledge
14 CFR 107.61, Eligibility (eCFR)What it means: the knowledge test is the whole exam. A pilot who already holds a Part 61 pilot certificate, other than a student pilot certificate, with a current flight review takes the FAA's free online training instead of the test.
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What it costs
About $175 for the test. It is paid to PSI, the FAA's testing vendor; the FAA does not set the fee, and its study material and courses are free. A drone flown for work is also registered with the FAA, $5 a drone for 3 years. The steps are in the drone license guide.
About $175 -
Keep it current
Free online training every 24 months. The certificate itself does not expire, but to fly as remote pilot in command you must have passed the test or finished the FAA's free recurrent training within the previous 24 calendar months.
Every 2 yearsThe exact rule
A person may not exercise the privileges of a remote pilot in command with small UAS rating unless that person has accomplished one of the following in a manner acceptable to the Administrator within the previous 24 calendar months: (a) Passed an initial aeronautical knowledge test [...]; (b) Completed recurrent training
14 CFR 107.65, Aeronautical knowledge recency (eCFR)What it means: an employer can ask to see that your training is current, not only that you hold the certificate. How to renew: Part 107 renewal.
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Visual observer
No certificate needed. A visual observer watches the drone and the sky and talks to the pilot; the rules ask for a certificate only from whoever flies the controls or commands the flight. Observer jobs are one way in without Part 107.
No licenseThe exact rule
Visual observer means a person who is designated by the remote pilot in command to assist the remote pilot in command and the person manipulating the flight controls of the small UAS to see and avoid other air traffic or objects aloft or on the ground.
14 CFR 107.3, Definitions, and 107.33, Visual observer (eCFR)What it means: an observer keeps the drone in sight and stays in touch with the pilot (107.33); 107.12 asks the certificate only of the person at the controls and the remote pilot in command.
Get the certificate
The test asks 60 questions in 2 hours on the rules, airspace, weather, loading and emergencies. Study with the Part 107 study guide, try the free practice test, and read how the test day works.
What drone pilot jobs pay and ask for, counted from the postings
These figures are counted from the postings on the board this week and change as jobs open and close. The board is small, so read them as what these employers offer now, not as what drone pilots earn.
- 8 of 8 postings name the FAA Part 107 remote pilot certificate.
- 2 of 8 are remote or travel roles anywhere in the U.S.; the rest are at one site.
- 7 of 8 state a pay range; the rest do not.
| Paid | Postings | Median low end | Median high end | Lowest to highest |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| An hour | 4 | $35.50 | $42.50 | $31–$48 |
| A year | 3 | $65,000 | $95,000 | $60,000–$180,000 |
Pay is as the employer states it in the posting, before any interview; an hourly range and a yearly range are counted apart, and a posting without a range is left out of the table. The median low end is the middle of the postings' lowest offers, the median high end the middle of their highest.
For a wider view, the federal wage survey files the title Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Operator under electro-mechanical and mechatronics technologists and technicians, whose median pay was $73,900 a year in May 2025; drone operators are an unknown share of that group. What the federal figures cover is in drone pilot salary.
What these figures are
Counts and ranges taken from job postings, with the number of postings behind each. They are not a forecast for any one pilot, and this page gives no advice on pay or careers and promises no income.
How to find drone jobs: near me, remote, entry level, freelance and pilot networks
Most drone jobs are on site, so look near where you live first; remote drone jobs are usually field roles that travel. Observer and technician jobs are ways in, and freelance work comes through drone service companies and your own clients.
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Near me
Pick your state in the filter above. A job tied to one site shows under its state only; a remote or travel job shows under every state. On-site drone jobs are at delivery hubs, test sites, utilities and survey offices.
By state -
Remote
Remote usually means you travel. A drone is flown where it is, so a remote drone pilot job has no fixed office: you go to sites across a region or the whole country, often by car.
Travel -
Entry level
Observer jobs need no certificate. A visual observer needs no Part 107 under the FAA rules, and anyone may fly the controls under a certificated pilot's direct supervision while learning. Operator and technician postings usually ask for Part 107, which you can earn at 16 with one test.
No experience -
Freelance
Drone service companies pay by the job. Many run a pilot network: they take work from clients such as insurers, builders and property firms and send a local pilot, who brings a drone and a Part 107 certificate. Finding your own clients makes it a business: see start a drone business.
Per job -
Government
Federal drone jobs are on USAJOBS. Search the federal jobs site for unmanned aircraft or drone. State transportation departments, cities and counties post on their own job pages.
USAJOBS -
Big job sites
They match the words, not the work. A search for Part 107 jobs on a general job site finds every posting that mentions it, engineering and sales roles included. This board keeps only the jobs where you fly or work in the field.
Mixed
How this drone jobs board works
Every week the board reads the public job boards of the employers below, keeps the U.S. jobs that fly drones and drops the rest. Nothing is copied by hand, and no employer pays to be listed.
The employers we read
- Zipline. Delivers food, retail orders and medical supplies by autonomous drone. 6 jobs on the board.
- Flock Safety. Builds public safety technology for police and cities, including drones that fly to 911 calls. 1 job on the board.
- BRINC. Builds drones that police and fire departments send to 911 calls before a crew arrives. 1 job on the board.
- Aerodome. Builds software for drone-as-first-responder programs of police departments. No drone flying job open this week.
- Corvus Robotics. Flies autonomous drones inside warehouses to count inventory. No drone flying job open this week.
- Nova Sky Stories. Produces drone light shows for sports leagues, brands and events. No drone flying job open this week.
What stays on the board
- Jobs in the U.S., or remote within the U.S., posted in the last 180 days.
- Jobs where flying is the work (pilot, operator, observer, drone technician), and field jobs whose posting asks for Part 107.
- Left out: engineering, software, sales, marketing, recruiting and office roles, and any defense, military or weapons work.
Why some employers are missing
The board reads only employers that publish their openings through a public feed on Greenhouse, Lever or Ashby, three common hiring systems. Large operators whose openings are not on those systems, such as Amazon Prime Air, are not on it. USAJOBS needs a registered key to read, so federal drone jobs are not on it either: search USAJOBS directly.
Where Apply takes you
Apply opens the posting on the employer's own job page in a new tab, through a short address on this site that first checks the job is still on the board. Windhorse never sees what you send the employer.
Hiring drone pilots?
If your company hires people in the U.S. to fly drones and posts its jobs on Greenhouse, Lever or Ashby, write to support@windhorse.aero to suggest it for the board. Listing is free; defense and weapons work is not listed.
Related guides and tools
The license, the pay and the kinds of drone work, guide by guide.
Questions about drone pilot jobs
How much money does a drone pilot make?
It depends on the job. The postings on this board that state pay are summed up in the table above, with how many postings each figure rests on. The nearest federal wage figure, for the group of workers that includes drone operators, was a median of $73,900 a year in May 2025 (BLS); drone pilot salary explains it.
Is there a demand for drone pilots?
The number of pilots is growing: the FAA had issued over 493,000 remote pilot certificates by December 2025, over 70,000 more than a year earlier, and it forecasts 628,600 remote pilots by 2030. The board counts open drone flying jobs at the employers it reads: 8 this week.
Can you make money as a drone pilot?
Yes: companies pay professional drone pilots to fly for deliveries, public safety, inspections, mapping, farming and filming, and freelance pilots sell work to their own clients. What a job pays is in its posting; this page promises no income and gives no career or pay advice.
Do you need a license to fly a drone for a job?
Yes. Under 14 CFR 107.12 the remote pilot in command of a work flight needs the FAA remote pilot certificate (Part 107), and anyone else at the controls must fly under that pilot's direct supervision. A visual observer needs no certificate.
How old do you have to be to be a drone pilot?
16 for the Part 107 certificate (14 CFR 107.61). An employer can ask for more, such as 18 or 21 and a driver's license for a job that travels; the posting says so.
Can I get a drone pilot job with no experience?
Some jobs are open to beginners: visual observer jobs need no certificate, and companies can train new staff at the controls under a certificated pilot's supervision. Most pilot and operator jobs ask for Part 107, and many ask for flight hours or field experience; each posting says what it asks.
Are there remote drone pilot jobs?
Few jobs fly a drone from home. A remote drone job usually means no fixed office: you travel to job sites across a region, as field deployment and installation jobs do. Tick Remote or travel only in the filter to see them.
How do I find drone pilot jobs near me?
Pick your state in the filter at the top of the board; remote and travel jobs show under every state. Then look at the job pages of utilities, survey and engineering firms, police and fire departments and your state's transportation department, and at USAJOBS for federal jobs.
What does a drone operator do?
Plans each flight, checks the airspace, the weather and the drone, flies the mission while keeping the drone in sight, and lands, logs and looks after the aircraft. Many jobs add the work around the flight: processing the photos or data, installing equipment or training others.
How often is this board updated?
Every week, from each employer's own job board. The date of the last update is above the cards; if it is more than two weeks old, the board says so, because some jobs may have closed since.
Sources
Documents are named, not linked. The rules were read on eCFR on November 15, 2026; the jobs are read from the employers' own job boards every week.
Rules
- 14 CFR 107.3, 107.12, 107.33, 107.61 and 107.65: Part 107 (eCFR, as of November 1, 2026)
- 14 CFR part 137: agricultural aircraft operations, through the agriculture drones guide
- FAA “Become a Certificated Remote Pilot” and PSI “PSI Services for FAA Testing Programs”: the test and its fee, through the drone license guide
Pilots and pay
- FAA, FAA By the Numbers: remote pilot certificates issued
- FAA, Compendium to FAA Aerospace Forecast 2026-2046, Emerging Aviation Entrants: remote pilots forecast
- BLS, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025: occupation 17-3024
Job boards read every week
- Zipline, job board on Greenhouse (the employer checked November 15, 2026)
- Flock Safety, job board on Ashby (the employer checked November 15, 2026)
- BRINC, job board on Ashby (the employer checked November 15, 2026)
- Aerodome, job board on Greenhouse (the employer checked November 15, 2026)
- Corvus Robotics, job board on Ashby (the employer checked November 15, 2026)
- Nova Sky Stories, job board on Greenhouse (the employer checked November 15, 2026)
Photos: DJI press images.