Albacore

Field Test Engineer (Copy) at Albacore (Philadelphia, PA)

Albacore· Philadelphia, PA·

Role details

Work type
Onsite
Employment
Full-Time

Job description

About the Team

Albacore is bringing our passion to innovation in the subsea domain, and we are looking to add a Field Test Technician to join the Ghostfin Field Operations team.. The Field Test Technician owns the physical logistics, safety, and readiness of the vehicle every time it goes in the water including transport, launch, and recovery. This is a hands-on, no-shortcuts role for someone who takes real pride in doing things the right way.

What you'll do

  • Prepare the UUV and support equipment for field exercises, including staging, loading, and rigging for transport
  • Operate and tow the support vessel and trailer to and from test sites, including trailer handling, dock line work, and small-boat operation
  • Support daily launch and recovery operations, working 1:1 with the Field Test Engineer on every deployment
  • Conduct pre- and post-operation visual inspections of the vehicle and flag anything that looks off before it becomes a problem
  • Maintain strict accountability for the physical safety of the vehicle throughout transport, staging, and testing
  • Assist with day-to-day test operations and help capture accurate operational records, as we’ll be in the water most weekdays to progressively mature the platform
  • Travel to support field testing and, as needed, customer site operations

Qualifications

  • Comfortable and confident working on the water — driving a boat, towing a trailer, handling dock lines, and generally at ease around marine equipment
  • A strong, demonstrated sense of ownership — someone who's genuinely careful, not reactive, about protecting expensive, sensitive equipment
  • Mature, dependable, and direct — a no-excuses person who does what they say they'll do without being managed closely
  • Willing to be hands-on and outdoors in a range of conditions, not looking for a desk job
  • Ability to lift and maneuver equipment up to 50 lbs
  • Travel from 25-50%, including overseas travel as needed

Preferred Qualifications

  • General boating license, or significant recreational time on the water (boating, fishing, or similar)
  • Prior military, maritime trades, or longshoreman-type work — any background with real physical accountability for equipment or vessels
  • Experience working alongside engineers or technicians on a testing or maintenance team
  • Experience with UUV/AUV/ROV equipment is a great plus

Why work at Albacore

  • High-impact defense mission: Directly contribute to national security and maritime defense with a young, mission-driven team
  • Early-stage ownership: Join post-seed, pre-scale startup (25 employees) where engineers have outsized influence on product and architecture
  • Location: Based in Philadelphia, PA
  • Open roles: Mechanical Engineer, Software Engineer, Electrical Engineer (plus past openings for Powertrain Engineer, Forward Deployed Engineer, Head of Supply Chain, and internships)
  • Technical culture: Hands-on work spanning robotics, AI, propulsion, battery systems, manufacturing, and defense contracting — a broad, fast-paced engineering environment
  • Backing: Y Combinator-backed with meaningful seed funding to support growth

Application questions