Non-Destructive Inspection Lead

Swarm Aero is redefining air power, building the largest swarming UAV and the most versatile swarming aircraft network in the world. The company is moving quickly to launch the first aircraft designed specifically for swarming, as well as the Command & Control software to mobilize swarms of thousands of heterogeneous autonomous assets and empower human operators to achieve superhuman results.

The team has created and exited multiple startups, negotiated defense deals worth billions of dollars, and designed and built 30+ novel aircraft, with aerospace experience from Scaled Composites, Airbus, Archer Aviation, Blue Origin, and Boom Supersonic.

We’re building a new kind of aircraft, and we’re building the factories to produce it. We’re hiring a Non-Destructive Inspection (NDI) Engineer to help turn early builds into a repeatable, high-rate manufacturing operation where quality is designed in from the start.

This is a chance to shape the floor while the decisions still matter. You’ll work across design, manufacturing, materials and processes, and operations to define how we inspect composite and metallic structures across the company. There is no legacy inspection system to inherit here. You’ll be building it.

What you’ll do

Define and stand up our NDI capability: select methods, specify equipment, and write the inspection procedures for composite and metallic components

Develop inspection plans, accept/reject criteria, and reference standards in partnership with design and stress engineering

Create quality documentation and control requirements that hold up as we scale from first articles to rate production

Work directly with the people designing and building the aircraft to influence designs for inspectability and catch problems before they become permanent features of the build

Apply Statistical Process Control (SPC) to inspection and manufacturing data so we can see process drift early and act on it

Disposition defects, support material review and root cause investigations, and feed what you learn back into design and process

Identify bottlenecks early, test improvements on the floor, and use production data to improve throughput, quality, and predictability

Lay the groundwork for an NDI team: training, qualification, and certification programs for the inspectors and engineers who follow

What you bring

NDI experience in aerospace, composites, metallics, or another complex hardware manufacturing environment

Hands-on experience establishing new NDI procedures for a program, company, or production line

Working knowledge of composite and metallic materials and processes, and how they affect the capability and limitations of different inspection methods

Depth in one or more methods such as ultrasonic (including phased array), radiography or CT, thermography, eddy current, penetrant, or magnetic particle

Familiarity with NDI qualification and certification standards (NAS 410, ASNT SNT-TC-1A, or equivalent)

The judgment to put structure in place where it helps, without slowing down the team doing the work

Nice to have

NAS 410 Level III certification, or a clear path to it

Experience building or leading an NDI team or written practice from scratch

Background in automated inspection or high-rate composite production

Experience with aerospace quality systems such as AS9100

Requirements

Must be a U.S. person due to ITAR requirements

Able to work on-site in Fayetteville, AR

You’ll have unusual ownership here. The choices you make will shape how we build our first aircraft and the hundreds that follow.

ITAR requirement

To conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicant must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

Swarm Aero is an equal opportunity employer. We value diverse backgrounds and experiences and make employment decisions without regard to race, religion, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, veteran status, or disability.

What We Offer

Meaningful equity in a high-growth defense technology company

Competitive base salary commensurate with experience

Medical, dental, vision, and 401k

PTO and paid sick leave

Monthly wellness stipend

Daily catered lunch (office)

Paid parental leave

Direct impact on a critical national security mission

A world-class team of engineers and operators solving genuinely hard problems