The Role
Lead strategic growth of airworthiness capability, expand Part 21 Extended Workbench, and remove capacity bottlenecks. Provide line management to CAMO and Fleet Managers, ensure compliance with UKCAA/EASA/Bailiwick frameworks, integrate modification pipelines with capability delivery, and drive data-driven fleet optimisation using reliability tools to enable predictive maintenance and reduce downtime.
Summary Generated by Built In
DEA is a full-service aircraft operator with extensive ISR flight capability backed up by a skilled in-house aviation engineering team. This powerful combination puts us at the forefront of our industry, both in the air and on the ground. It also ensures we can deploy and support quickly and efficiently, even in the world’s most challenging environments.
The Head of Airworthiness is a key engineering leadership role designed to sit between the Head of Engineering and operational execution managers. The core mandate of this role is to drive the long-term capability and capacity growth of the entire Airworthiness department, whilst working with the Head of Capability Delivery to expand the Company's Part 21 ‘Extended Workbench’ capacity to match scaling corporate ambitions.
The Head of Airworthiness is a key engineering leadership role designed to sit between the Head of Engineering and operational execution managers. The core mandate of this role is to drive the long-term capability and capacity growth of the entire Airworthiness department, whilst working with the Head of Capability Delivery to expand the Company's Part 21 ‘Extended Workbench’ capacity to match scaling corporate ambitions.
Crucially, this position establishes a clear delineation of operational focus: while the Continuing Airworthiness Manager (CAM) and Nominated Person to the CAMO retains full accountability for delivering day-to-day Business-as-Usual (BAU) fleet airworthiness, the Head of Airworthiness focuses explicitly on lifting the overall competency, removing structural capacity bottlenecks, and embracing opportunities to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of both aircraft and mission system support.
By providing direct line management and strategic oversight to the CAM and Fleet Managers, the post holder ensures absolute compliance with all associated civil airworthiness frameworks (UKCAA, EASA, 2-Reg). Additionally, the role maintains a critical dotted-line interface with the Head of Capability Delivery to seamlessly integrate aircraft and capability modification pipelines, technical capability mapping, and long-term organisational design into standard airworthiness tracks.
Key Responsibilities
1. Strategic Capability Growth & Part 21 Expansion
- Departmental Capacity Building: Actively identify and eliminate capacity bottlenecks within the CAMO and supporting fleet management teams, ensuring departmental resources grow effectively ahead of fleet expansion.
- Capability & Skill Mapping: Focus on lifting the overall competency, skills, and engineering baseline of the department, empowering the CAMO team to scale without hindering BAU delivery.
- Part 21 Scale-Up: Architect and lead the strategic roadmap to expand the company’s Part 21 Extended Workbench systems to optimise integration with partner Part 21s and, potentially, moving the organization toward standalone Part 21J approvals for minor, non-complex changes.
- Capability Delivery Synergy: Collaborate closely via a matrixed dotted line with the Head of Capability Delivery to deconflict complex modifications, STCs, and new fleet introduction tracks from Business-as-Usual (BAU) airworthiness baselines.
- Data-Driven Fleet Optimisation: Champion the implementation and utilization of advanced reliability engineering tools and software systems (such as Veryon Tracking+ and Centrik) to conduct detailed fleet-wide data analysis. Use trend monitoring, defect patterns, and statistical analysis to make evidence-based proposals that continuously optimise the Aircraft and Mission System Maintenance Programme (AMP/MSMP). By driving predictive maintenance schedules and refining supporting airworthiness systems, this function directly reduces operational downtime, mitigates fleet grounding risks, and bridges the gap between CAMO reliability tracking and Part-145 maintenance execution.
- BAU Safeguarding: Support and mentor the CAM and Fleet Managers, ensuring they possess the tools, personnel frameworks, and resources required to deliver flawless day-to-day BAU airworthiness.
- Direct Accountability: Lead, mentor, and govern the performance of the CAM and Fleet Managers to maximize team output, process standardization, and execution efficiency.
- Compliance Assurance: Ensure all continuing airworthiness and fleet operations satisfy the strict auditing frameworks and continuous certification standards of the UKCAA, Bailiwick of Guernsey, and EASA.
- Risk Management & Escalation: Embed safety and compliance risk management within the airworthiness departments, acting as the primary senior escalation point for complex technical frameworks before they reach the Head of Engineering.
Technical Experience & Qualifications
Essential:
- Proven leadership experience at a senior head-of-department level within an aviation engineering or complex airworthiness environment.
- Comprehensive command of airworthiness regulations, with specific experience growing, building, or managing Part 21J (or equivalent) frameworks alongside Part-CAMO (or equivalent) workflows.
- Demonstrated track record of scaling organisational capabilities, eliminating resource constraints, and driving cross-functional project success.
- Experience of delivering in a high-tempo operational environment supporting ISR or similar operations.
About
DEA and our sister company ESAO are a world leading specialist technology-led provider of complex aerial data acquisition services. A pioneer in airborne data gathering, DEA/ESAO use ground-breaking techniques and the most advanced and innovative technologies in the industry to help you answer complex questions and make informed decisions in real time.
Skills Required
- Proven leadership experience at senior head-of-department level within aviation engineering or complex airworthiness environment.
- Comprehensive command of airworthiness regulations, including experience growing, building, or managing Part 21J frameworks alongside Part-CAMO workflows.
- Demonstrated track record of scaling organisational capabilities, eliminating resource constraints, and driving cross-functional project success.
- Experience delivering in a high-tempo operational environment supporting ISR or similar operations.
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The Company
What We Do
DEA is a world leading technology-led provider of specialised aerial data acquisition services. Specialised Operations DEA delivers bespoke airborne solutions using their proprietary technology, real time connectivity and operational expertise combining senior military and commercial aviation experience to provide a class- leading innovative and agile response to the most demanding requirement. This combination forms the basis of enduring partnerships with our customers. Leading Technology DEA’s technical systems team create the soft and hard ability quickly to merge differing complex sensor technologies and technical standards, to deliver industry-leading operational flexibility and capabilities within competitive time and cost constraints. DEA's Mission Management System consolidates all required data and functionality into one easy to use platform enabling better analysis and outcomes. Engineering services DEA provides reliable and robust aircraft management, maintenance, modification & technical integration and parts services that are designed to keep their own fleet and our customers’ aircraft airborne and safe. All services and approvals are compliant with regulators including the United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and the United States Federal Aviation Authority (FAA). DEA's services include: • Intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) • Aerial survey • Specialist commercial air transport • Flight calibration and flight path validation.
