Maintenance Operations Engineering Technician

About You and The Role 

Zipline builds autonomous delivery systems that move essential goods. As a Maintenance Operations Engineering Technician in Half Moon Bay, California, you will keep prototype flight vehicles, ground infrastructure, and test equipment safe, configured, and ready for engineering development and field operations.

You will own hands-on maintenance and test execution: replacing components, preparing vehicles and test setups, running endurance campaigns, and isolating first-order issues. Your work enables safe test execution, reliable data capture, accurate configuration records, and evidence engineers use for design and vehicle-readiness decisions.

This role is based on site in Half Moon Bay, California, with flexibility required to support testing operations at other locations across the United States.

What You'll Do 

• Maintain prototype aircraft, ground infrastructure, and test equipment to keep approved test campaigns executable and vehicles available for engineering work.
• Replace vehicle components, perform checkouts, and maintain complete maintenance documentation and configuration records.
• Execute semi-automated vehicle checkouts, reliability campaigns, and endurance tests using documented procedures and repeatable setups.
• Prepare test articles, equipment, instrumentation, and data-acquisition systems so test specifications can be executed as written.
• Verify completed maintenance and test setups meet documented configuration, safety-check, instrumentation, and data-capture requirements before test execution.
• Independently isolate and document first-order test-system or test-article faults; surface deviations and escalate root-cause resolution to engineers.
• Produce test reports that connect observations and data to reliability improvements, design iterations, and vehicle-readiness decisions.
• Travel to support testing, maintenance, and operational needs at other Zipline locations across the United States.

What You'll Bring

• Experience operating common machine-shop equipment and building mechanical assemblies, fixtures, jigs, or test hardware.
• Hands-on experience with electrical and electronic assemblies across different power levels and component sizes.
• Experience setting up, instrumenting, executing, and documenting hardware or hardware/software tests alongside engineers.
• Ability to independently troubleshoot test issues to a first-order diagnosis and communicate clear evidence for engineering follow-up.
• Ability to interpret electrical specifications, mechanical drawings, test procedures, diagrams, and incomplete work instructions.
• Discipline in organizing test data, maintaining configuration records, and communicating findings clearly in writing and verbally.
• Ability to work rotating shifts, including nights and weekends, on site in Half Moon Bay, California.
• Ability to travel approximately 20% of the time, including trips of up to two weeks, to support testing operations across the United States.
• Eligible to work in the United States without sponsorship now or in the future.

What Else You Need To Know

The hourly rate for this position is $35 - $42. Zipline is an equal opportunity employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws or our own sensibilities.

We value diversity at Zipline and welcome applications from those who are traditionally underrepresented in tech. If you like the sound of this position but are not sure if you are the perfect fit, please apply!