Lead Frontend Engineer - Ground Control Systems

Join Us in Shaping the Future of UAVs

Griff Aviation is a pioneer in heavy-lift unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), developing aircraft that aim to replace traditional helicopters with safer, smarter, and more sustainable solutions. From our headquarters in scenic Sykkylven, Norway, our international team designs and builds the majority of our core technology in-house – from motors and electronics to embedded systems.

Help build a world-leading operator experience for heavy-lift UAVs

Griff Aviation designs and builds heavy-lift UAVs, owning nearly the entire technology stack, from motors and electronics to embedded systems. As we scale our products commercially, we are now taking a major step forward in the software experience that surrounds our aircraft — software that operators rely on in real missions, under real operational constraints.

We are looking for a Lead Frontend Engineer – Ground Control Systems who will take hands-on responsibility for shaping and building our next-generation ground control frontend, while collaborating closely with internal teams and selected external specialists.

The primary responsibility of this role is the development and evolution of Griff’s ground control station — a safety-critical, operator-facing system used in real operational environments.

This is not a traditional frontend role. It sits at the intersection of system architecture, operational UX, and practical software engineering.

Lead Frontend Engineer – Ground Control Systems

As a Lead Frontend Engineer – Ground Control Systems at Griff Aviation, you will play a key role in shaping and developing our next-generation ground control station and system-facing frontend software. The role is hands-on and central to ensuring that Griff can fully own, evolve, and responsibly differentiate its operator-facing software internally, while working pragmatically across disciplines in a growing organization.

Key Responsibilities

System-Facing Frontend Development

• Design and develop frontend software for Griff’s ground control station and operator tools
• Build user interfaces tightly integrated with flight systems, telemetry, and system state
• Contribute to early architectural and technology decisions in an evolving environment
• Ensure performance, robustness, and long-term maintainability of the frontend codebase

Collaboration & Integration

• Work closely with embedded and systems/software engineers to define and evolve interfaces
• Collaborate with operators to understand real operational needs and constraints
• Work closely with internal stakeholders across engineering, operations, and company leadership
• Coordinate and integrate work from external UX/UI specialists and development partners

Quality & Delivery

• Establish structure, testing practices, and technical foundations for long-term ownership
• Participate in design and code reviews to maintain high engineering standards
• Translate concepts and designs into production-ready, operational software
• Iterate pragmatically based on user feedback, testing, and operational experience, with a focus on robustness and operator trust

What the Role Is Not

• This is not a pure UI or web-only role.
  The focus is on system-facing frontend and operational software. At the same time, we work pragmatically and collaboratively across disciplines to build the right solution, not narrow silos.
• This is not a product owner role.
  Product direction is shaped collaboratively. This role contributes actively through technical judgment and system understanding, without carrying sole product responsibility.
• This is not an embedded or firmware role.
  However, in a growing company there may be periods where adjacent support is needed. This role is expected to collaborate and help where it makes sense, while keeping clear ownership boundaries.

Desired Qualifications

Required

• Strong background in software engineering (C++, systems-oriented development, or similar)
• Experience building user interfaces for complex or system-heavy applications
• Comfort working close to hardware, telemetry, or real-time data
• Ability to work with ambiguity and take responsibility in an early-stage environment
• Solid understanding of software quality, testing, and maintainability

Preferred

• Experience with C++ UI frameworks such as Qt (or similar)
• Familiarity with UAVs, robotics, industrial systems, or safety-critical environments
• Experience collaborating with UX designers and translating designs into robust implementations
• Exposure to embedded systems, avionics, or real-time software (collaborative, not ownership)
• Experience with tools for prototyping, visualization, or simulation

Personal Qualities

• Pragmatic, responsible, and collaborative mindset
• Strong technical judgment and systems thinking
• Comfortable working across disciplines without rigid role boundaries
• Able to balance usability, robustness, and development speed
• Motivated by building systems that are trusted and relied upon in real-world operations

Why Join Griff Aviation?

• Help shape the operator experience of world-leading heavy-lift UAVs, where safety, clarity, and trust matter more than novelty
• Take real responsibility in a company that owns most of its core technology
• Work closely with a highly skilled, interdisciplinary, and international team
• Meaningful engineering challenges at the intersection of hardware and software
• Competitive salary, pension, and insurance benefits
• Based in Sykkylven, Norway – fjords, mountains, and advanced aviation technology

Apply at careers@griffaviation.com — applications are reviewed continuously.