Lead Flight Test Engineer in Bournemouth

Be at the forefront of airborne Electronic Warfare training with Draken. Draken is seeking an exceptional Lead Flight Test Engineer to join our growing team at Bournemouth International Airport. This is a rare opportunity to play a critical role at the cutting edge of Electronic Warfare (EW) and Operational Readiness Training, supporting the UK Ministry of Defence and NATO allies worldwide. At Draken, we don’t just operate aircraft — we deliver mission‑critical capability. Our work directly enables military aircrew and ground radar operators to train as they will fight, using some of the most advanced and representative airborne EW effects available today.

Our Lead Flight Test Engineer will report directly to the Flight Test Manager and will lead the definition, planning, execution and reporting of flight test activity across Draken Europe’s diverse and unique fleet. Your work will directly support the continued evolution of next‑generation EW training systems, ensuring Draken remains the partner of choice for complex, high‑end defence training. Working hand‑in‑hand with our Design Office, maintenance teams, and test pilots, you will lead flight test programmes from concept through to delivery, both in the UK and across global deployment locations. You will also play a key role in navigating regulatory and certification landscapes, securing the approvals required to conduct safe, effective, and compliant flight testing. The Lead Flight Test Engineer role is a flying role. When not conducting flight test duties and depending on previous qualifications, opportunities to conduct Operational Readiness Training as a rear crew may be available in a variety of aircraft and roles. The role requires international travel, with deployments across Europe, the Middle East, and the Far East.

Why Draken? Draken Europe combines advanced technology, a highly capable fleet, and exceptional people to deliver aviation solutions that matter. Our teams operate at the intersection of engineering excellence, operational realism, and global defence collaboration. Joining Draken means:

• Direct impact on front‑line military readiness
• Exposure to complex flight test programmes
• Opportunities to work across a wide range of aircraft platforms
• A culture built on Integrity, Service, Excellence, and Team Working alongside some of the most experienced EW and aviation specialists in the industry
• A genuinely global aviation career

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead the safe and effective delivery of flight test activities in the UK and at deployed locations worldwide
• Plan and conduct airborne and ground flight testing as a Lead Flight Test Engineer
• Develop and own test strategies, test plans, and test procedures
• Maintain close collaboration with the Design Office, including participation in design and technical safety reviews
• Develop and manage certification plans in support of flight test requirements
• Produce clear, high‑quality flight test reports
• Actively manage flight test risk to ALARP and tolerable levels
• Ensure full regulatory compliance, cultivating trusted relationships with the UK CAA and other regulatory authorities

Essential Experience & Qualifications:

• Proven experience as a Lead Flight Test Engineer across multiple air vehicle types
• Qualification as a Flight Test Engineer from a recognised and approved Flight Test Training Organisation
• Hold, or be eligible to obtain, UK Security Clearance (SC)
• Hold, or be able to meet, a minimum CAA Class 2 medical standard

Desirable Experience & Qualifications:

• Cat 1 Flight Test Engineer qualification
• Military or civil aviation experience as flight crew or engineer
• Degree (BSc / BEng or higher) in an engineering or science‑related discipline
• Knowledge of UK, US and European civil and military regulatory frameworks
• Experience with COTS or bespoke flight test instrumentation and data acquisition systems
• Background in military EW / RF jamming, or specialist EW roles supporting the RAF or RN
• Previous UAS / RPAS experience

Our Commitment to You: Draken is committed to the highest standards of ethics, integrity, and professionalism. We value diversity of thought, experience, and background — because better teams deliver better outcomes. We are proud to be an Armed Forces‑friendly organisation and actively welcome applications from veterans, service spouses, and partners. We are a Disability Confident employer and will provide reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process. We are unequivocal in our stance: intolerance has no place at Draken. Every team member deserves respect, fairness, and the opportunity to succeed.

Our employee values: Draken is committed to eliminating unlawful and unfair discrimination and we celebrate the differences that a diverse workforce brings. A range of perspective and talent supports our values and drives our success, with a mix of voices generating better discussions, business decisions and outcomes for all. To us, diversity means bringing your own perspective to the conversation; inclusion means having a voice - and equality means that your voice is heard. At all our sites internationally, every member of the Draken team is accountable to ensure that we are all treated fairly and with respect. Intolerance has no place in our Company. We condemn it outright. Instead, we strive to create a culture where each person who joins our team feels they have the opportunity to succeed, to grow, and to work within an environment where they can be themselves. We are also an Armed Forces friendly organisation, and as part of our commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant, welcome applications from veterans and services spouses and partners who met the criteria in our job specifications. In line with our Disability Confident Commitments, we provide reasonable adjustments to facilitate our interview process, please liaise with us if any reasonable adjustments are required.

About You: Whether it is adversarial support, electronic attack or customised rotary-wing training, we offer the most accurate and advanced readiness training in the industry. Our vast, differentiated fleet, cutting edge hardware and experienced instructors are engaged to help your mission take off. Being ready is not only a matter of when. But where. We provide services in the UK, US and across the NATO countries. Making sure that our allies can manoeuvre around defeat and prepare to prevail.