Staff Software Engineer

Skyways designs, builds, and operates fully autonomous long-range cargo aircraft. Founded in 2017, the company has spent the last eight years developing and deploying autonomous logistics systems for real-world operations.

Our V2 aircraft carries 30 lbs up to 500 miles, and V3 has a maximum range of well over 1,000 miles, a maximum useful load of 100 lbs, and a maximum endurance of nearly 20 hours. Both use a hybrid-electric architecture that takes off like a helicopter and cruises like a plane, enabling long-range autonomous delivery without traditional runway infrastructure.

Today, Skyways aircraft operate across three continents in controlled national airspace under FAA oversight and in support of U.S. military operations. We are transitioning from prototype development to full-rate production and scaling toward large autonomous cargo fleets.

Backed by Y Combinator and a $37M AFWERX STRATFI award from the U.S. Air Force, Skyways is creating a new form of transportation to advance our civilization from Austin, Texas.

The Opportunity

Skyways is hiring a Staff Software Engineer to set technical direction for software that flies. You will work across the same stack as the rest of the team, from 3D interfaces in SkyNav, to high throughput Python services, to C++ running in our ArduPilot fork, but at Staff scope: you own the architecture, define the standards, and drive outcomes that span multiple teams. You will identify what needs doing without being told and make every engineer around you more effective. This role is ideal for a deep, hands on engineer who wants their design decisions flying on real aircraft.