Chief Engineer L159 (SWORD IDT)

The Role

Draken offer exciting careers that matter.

We believe that mission success does not start with the mission itself. It begins with our people.

Draken also believes in fair reward and recognition for our employees. As such, we offer competitive salaries and a comprehensive benefits package including up to 12% matching pension contributions, bonus incentives, discounted PMI, electric car scheme, tech vouchers, wellbeing programmes and much more.

The Role

We are currently recruiting for a Chief Engineer L159 reports to the Operations Manager Aircraft Maintenance (OMAM) and is accountable for transforming the L159 Line and Base (Phase and Depot) Maintenance organisation into a safe, compliant, disciplined and consistently high-performing aircraft-delivery operation.

Key Responsibilities

Lead the transformation of the L159 maintenance organisation into a disciplined, accountable and high-performing delivery function.

Conduct an early diagnostic of leadership, organisation, competence, workflow, planning maturity, productivity, culture and delivery constraints.

Develop and implement a prioritised transformation roadmap focused on safety, aircraft availability, delivery predictability, productivity, quality and workforce capability.

Define the target operating model, including clear decision rights, accountabilities, interfaces and escalation routes across Line, and Base.

Challenge legacy practices and remove organisational, procedural and behavioural barriers while remaining within approved safety, regulatory and technical boundaries.

Deliver visible early improvements and embed the leadership routines, controls and behaviours required to sustain performance.

Leadership, Culture and Organisational Capability

Provide visible, decisive and credible leadership to Crew Chiefs, Team Leaders and the wider maintenance workforce.

Set clear standards, priorities and performance expectations, and hold leaders and teams fairly accountable for delivery and behaviour.

Build a strong subordinate leadership team capable of sustaining performance without excessive senior intervention.

Create a culture in which high standards are recognised, weak performance is addressed constructively and colleagues are supported to succeed.

Experience / skills / qualifications

Significant senior engineering leadership experience within military fast-jet aviation or an equivalently complex and regulated military air-system environment.

Proven success leading the transformation, turnaround or performance recovery of a complex engineering or maintenance organisation.

Evidence of delivering measurable improvement in aircraft availability, operational readiness, maintenance throughput, productivity, schedule adherence, quality or cost.

Experience diagnosing systemic performance issues and converting findings into practical, prioritised and time-bound interventions.

Demonstrated success establishing production-control routines, performance measures, workforce plans and leadership accountability.

UK CAA Part-66 B1 or B2 Licensed Aircraft Engineer, or equivalent military engineering experience.

Practical application-level knowledge of UK CAA, UK MAA and EASA requirements, with particular focus on BCAR A8-23.

Practical knowledge of Safety Management System principles and relevant quality, environmental, occupational health and safety, and information-security management systems.

Strong practical understanding of integrated aircraft fault diagnosis and rectification across mechanical and avionic systems.

Demonstrable people, cultural and organisational change-management experience.

Able to obtain and maintain SC-level security clearance.

Our employee values

Draken is committed to eliminating unlawful and unfair discrimination and we celebrate the differences that a diverse workforce brings. A range of perspective and talent supports our values and drives our success, with a mix of voices generating better discussions, business decisions and outcomes for all.

At all our sites internationally, every member of the Draken team is accountable to ensure that we are all treated fairly and with respect.

We are also an Armed Forces friendly organisation, and as part of our commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant, welcome applications from veterans and services spouses and partners who met the criteria in our job specifications.

In line with our Disability Confident Commitments, we provide reasonable adjustments to facilitate our interview process, please liaise with us if any reasonable adjustments are required.

About You

About Us

Whether it is adversarial support, electronic attack or customised rotary-wing training, we offer the most accurate and advanced readiness training in the industry. Our vast, differentiated fleet, cutting edge hardware and experienced instructors are engaged to help your mission take off.

Being ready is not only a matter of when. But where. We provide services in the UK, US and across the NATO countries. Making sure that our allies can manoeuvre around defeat and prepare to prevail.

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