Senior Field Technician in Portsmouth

Salary: Circa. £70,000

Full Time Permanent

Who we are: SubSea Craft is a fast growing, privately-funded, UK-based innovative maritime technology company specialising in next-generation, high-performance watercraft and systems. We operate at the intersection of advanced engineering, cutting-edge design, and user-centric innovation, delivering safe, effective, and enabling solutions for both commercial and defence applications.

What We Offer:

• Annual Leave – Entitlement to 25 days of annual leave plus bank holidays
• Wellbeing Day - An additional Wellbeing Day each year to focus on personal health and wellbeing.
• Private Healthcare – Access to comprehensive private healthcare coverage to support your physical and mental wellbeing.
• Life Assurance and Critical Illness Cover – Comprehensive protection including Life Assurance (4x salary) and Critical Illness Cover for added financial security.
• Family Leave – Enhanced maternity and paternity pay
• Christmas Leave – A Christmas shutdown is typically observed.
• Professional Development – Commitment to ongoing learning and career growth, supported by training programmes and access to LinkedIn Learning.
• Pension Contribution – pension scheme with the option to contribute via salary sacrifice
• Flexible Working – Opportunities for flexible working arrangements to promote work–life balance.
• Inclusive Culture – A professional environment that values diversity, innovation, and collaboration.

Responsibilities Will Include:

• Ensure end-to-end platform technical readiness prior to deployment, including communications and software, through close coordination with engineering and trials teams
• Support and lead the planning and execution of UK and international platform evaluations, exercises, and customer demonstrations across the full SubSea Craft portfolio
• Prepare, configure, deploy, operate, maintain, fault-find, and recover platforms and supporting systems in operationally relevant maritime environments
• Act as the senior technical authority during operational activity, making time-critical decisions to resolve issues spanning autonomy, software, communications, networking, and hardware
• Operate effectively in high-tempo, expeditionary environments, where reliability, safety, and professional judgement directly impact mission outcomes
• Diagnose and resolve system-level technical issues affecting mission software, command and control, and data links across multi-domain maritime autonomous systems
• Interpret telemetry, logs, and system health data to identify root causes across control systems, sensors, communications, networking, and hardware interfaces
• Configure, and troubleshoot command, control, and data link architectures, including LOS and BLOS communications via RF, cellular, SATCOM, and IP-based networks
• Diagnose latency, bandwidth limitations, packet loss, interference, and link instability affecting real-time control, telemetry, and payload data
• Restore prototype operability safely and efficiently in dynamic maritime environments, minimising downtime and operational risk
• Capture and communicate clear, structured diagnostic findings to product, software, and engineering teams to drive rapid adaptation of prototype and in service platforms
• Act as the primary on-site technical interface between end users, engineers, programme staff, and key customer stakeholders
• Support operator training, system familiarisation, and mission execution for multi-domain maritime autonomous systems.
• Support integration, testing, and refinement of sensors, payloads and effectors
• Close the loop between operational use and technical development, ensuring lessons learned directly influence platform maturity
• Engage confidently with military, government, and industry stakeholders, articulating platform capability, limitations, and technology roadmaps
• Support regional commercial teams with technically credible input during evaluations and acquisition discussions
• Identify emerging customer needs, integration challenges, and follow-on opportunities, feeding insight into commercial strategy and product development
• Lead or contribute to post-activity reporting, customer debriefs, and engagement planning
• Operate independently or under Mission Success leadership during expeditionary deployments.
• Provide technical leadership and mentorship to Field Technicians
• Lead small expeditionary teams where required, setting technical standards and expectations
• Escalate technical, safety, or operational risks clearly and decisively through the reporting chain
• Complement and support the trials team for UK based trials and commissioning phases as required.

Essential Qualifications and Experience:

• Military, maritime, or defence industry background with significant field or operational maritime experience
• Degree-level qualification in Engineering, Robotics, Mechatronics, Computer Science, Systems Engineering, or related STEM discipline, or equivalent industry/military experience
• Experience supporting autonomous or software-enabled platforms in live field, trial, or operational environments
• Experience configuring and troubleshooting communications and networking systems (LOS, BLOS, RF, cellular, SATCOM, IP-based networks)
• Experience operating with unmanned systems (USVs, UAVs, UUVs, or equivalent)
• Proven ability to diagnose and resolve complex, system-level issues under operational pressure
• Experience contributing to customer-facing or business development activities
• Strong understanding of health and safety and safe systems of work
• Clear written and verbal communication skills
• Full UK driving licence
• UK-based, with the willingness and ability to travel internationally
• Eligible to hold UK Security Check (SC) clearance

Desirable:

• Experience operating, configuring and maintaining unmanned maritime platforms.
• Familiarity with autonomy or autopilot frameworks – system agnostic.
• Basic coding literacy (Python, C, or C++) sufficient to support configuration, diagnostics, and fault finding
• Familiarity with mission planning or GCS software (e.g. QGroundControl, Mission Planner, or equivalents)
• Exposure to ROS / ROS2, embedded systems, CAN bus, or sensor fusion at an integration level
• MASS qualification or equivalent experience
• RPAS/UAV experience (GVC or equivalent)
• Commercially endorsed (or eligible) RYA Advanced Powerboat or higher
• Experience supporting diving or subsea operations

Note: Due to the nature of work undertaken at SubSea Craft, the selected candidate must be capable of meeting the security requirements of the position, which would include as a minimum existing right to live and work in the UK, Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS), with UK National security clearance required for certain roles.

Values: Our people are our greatest asset, we continually strive to provide an excellent working environment to enable our team to do their best work. We have an agile professional workforce: we are founded on the belief that our people are valued and our business is trusted, inclusive and commercially-adept.

What We Expect From You:

• Teamwork, mutual respect and collaboration
• Initiative and independent working
• Honesty and integrity
• Business and commercial awareness
• Agility, adaptability and continuous development

We are committed to building an inclusive, diverse workplace where everyone can thrive. If you require any support or adjustments to interact with us, please let us know.

Please note that all offers of employment are conditional and subject to satisfactory DBS, driving licence and reference checks. A criminal record will not automatically disqualify candidates from employment. We will consider criminal record information alongside the wider range of evidence gathered at the application, interview, and pre-employment checking stages.

Due to the high volume of applications, we are unable to respond to everyone. If you are shortlisted, we will aim to contact you within 14 days of your application or the closing date (if stated). We may retain your details for future suitable roles unless you advise us otherwise.

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