Director of Software

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, while our next-generation V3 carries 100 lbs over 1,000+ miles with 20+ hours of endurance. 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

As Director of Software, you will own software execution end to end across autonomy, mission planning (SkyNav), and the internal tooling that supports flight operations and production aircraft. This is a hands-on leadership role: you will set the technical direction and roadmap for software, build and develop the team that delivers it, and stay close enough to the code to take on the hard problems yourself.

You will work closely with flight, hardware, and operations to turn real-world constraints and operator feedback into software that works in the field.

What You'll Do

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• Own software execution and the software roadmap across autonomy, SkyNav, and the internal tools that support aircraft flying today
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• Build, lead, and develop the software team, including hiring, performance, growth, and the tech-lead or management layer as the team scales
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• Own org design for software, and be accountable for delivery, team health, and the software budget
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• Act as a player coach. Write code, review code, and take on hard problems when needed
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• Set technical direction through shipped systems and measurable outcomes
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• Work directly with operators and customers to iterate based on live deployments and field feedback
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• Partner tightly with hardware, flight, and manufacturing to ensure software and aircraft evolve together
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• Improve reliability, performance, and maintainability as the fleet and customer base scale

What You'll Bring

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• Proven experience shipping and supporting complex production software systems
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• Experience leading and developing software teams, including hiring and growing engineers, while staying close to the technical work
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• Experience with autonomy, robotics, or mission planning systems
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• Strong systems thinking across autonomy, frontend, backend, and infrastructure
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• Comfort operating in environments where software meets hardware and real-world constraints
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• Bias toward execution, ownership, and accountability
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• Hands-on experience building with Python, C++, and JavaScript

Bonus Points

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• Experience supporting software on production hardware, flight systems, or safety-critical systems.
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• Startup experience scaling teams and systems while things are still evolving.
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• Hands-on experience building with ROS, ElectronJS, Ardupilot, or Mavlink.