News

Career Opportunities in Unmanned Aerial Systems

POSTED ON January 4, 2026

Building Australia’s Defence Future – Autonomous Aerial Systems

Autonomous aerial systems have over recent years become a critical capability for modern defence – and Australia is actively developing sovereign systems that reduce reliance on overseas suppliers while delivering real operational outcomes.

At Innovaero, that challenge is our core focus.

We are an Australian-owned aeronautical products OEM designing and manufacturing affordable, attritable unmanned aerial systems for defence missions. Our platforms are rapidly designed/developed to be built, deployed and sustained at scale – a deep magazine of deterrence.

From Concept to Capability

What makes Innovaero different is the speed and scope of what our engineers work on.

We don’t just design (small) aircraft or write software in isolation. Our teams are involved end-to-end:
• system design and architecture
• autonomy, guidance, navigation and control
• sensor and payload integration
• electronics and embedded systems
• propulsion: electric, turbojet and internal combustion engines
• mechatronics and software driven systems integration
• prototyping, test, and field evaluation
• transition into manufacturing at scale.
• ground control systems
• launch systems
• operator training and sustainment.

Engineers at Innovaero see their designs built, flown, tested, refined and then produced.

This is not a highly siloed environment. We value engineers who understand how their decisions affect the entire system: performance, cost, reliability, manufacturability, and operational effectiveness.

Moving Into Manufacturing at Scale

With development contracts awarded and growing interest from both Australian and overseas defence stakeholders,

Innovaero is entering a significant growth phase in 2026.

Alongside ongoing R&D, we are:
• expanding production capability
• establishing manufacturing processes
• designing for reliability, cost, and scale
• building systems intended for real-world deployment
• working on next generation attritable UAS.

That means opportunities not only in advanced design and autonomy, but also in production engineering, manufacturing systems, and industrialisation.

Who We’re Interested In

We expect to formally advertise roles soon, but ahead of that we’re opening the door to early conversations.

We’re interested in engineers and across a range of disciplines:
• Mechatronics,
• Mechanical,
• Electrical/Electronic,
• Robotics
• Aerospace/Aeronautical
• Systems Engineering
• Software & Embedded Systems
• Manufacturing & Production Engineering
• Project management

Also, technicians, across:
• Electrical
• Mechanical

More than academic qualifications, we’re looking for people who:
• can work collaboratively in a fast paced environment
• enjoy solving complex, multidisciplinary problems in cost effective ways
• are comfortable moving between theory and hands-on work
• care about outcomes, not just concepts
• want their engineering effort to genuinely matter

Register Interest

If you’re exploring what’s next in your career -or simply curious about working in unmanned systems and autonomous defence technology -we’d like to hear from you.

By registering your interest now, you’ll:
• be among the first to hear about upcoming roles
• start a confidential conversation before formal recruitment begins
• gain insight into the type of engineering challenges we’re tackling