{"id":2146588,"url":"https://alion.io/job/windborne-systems-launch-operator-oahu","title":"Launch Operator - Oahu","company":{"id":5093,"name":"Windborne Systems","domain":"windbornesystems.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/windbornesystems","size_band":"51-200","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Ashby","truth_index":{"grade":"A","score":87,"open_postings":6,"ghost_share":0,"stale_share":0.333,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":70,"computed_at":"2026-10-16T05:45:00Z"}},"role":"Field & Service","role_family":"Field & Service","seniority":null,"employment_type":"part_time","work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"explicit","locations":[],"countries":[],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":28,"max":30,"currency":"USD","period":"hour","gross":null,"usd_annual":60000},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":null,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-10-09T02:07:56Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-10-09","last_verified_at":"2026-10-17T03:47:45Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":8,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":8},"description":"WindBorne Systems is supercharging weather forecasts with a unique proprietary data source: a global constellation of next-generation smart weather balloons targeting the most critical atmospheric data. We design, manufacture, and operate our own balloons, using the data they collect to generate otherwise unattainable weather intelligence.\nOur mission is to eliminate weather uncertainty, and in the process help humanity adapt to climate change, be that predicting hurricanes or speeding the adoption of renewables. We are building a future in which the planet is instrumented by thousands of our microballoons, eliminating gaps in our understanding of the planet and giving people and businesses the information they need to make critical decisions. The founding team of Stanford engineers was named Forbes 2019 30 under 30 and is backed by top-tier investors, including Khosla Ventures and Footwork VC.\nWe are hiring a part-time balloon launch contractor based in Oahu, HI to support our weather forecasting mission. You'll be launching high-altitude weather balloons that collect atmospheric data used to improve forecasts for events like hurricanes and wildfires. The role is hands-on and outdoors, with flexible hours - approximately 10-20 hours per week, depending on the company's launch needs - across evenings, weekdays, and weekends.\nResponsibilities\nLaunch high-altitude weather balloons following established safety and operational procedures\n\nOperate and troubleshoot engineering prototype balloon units requiring more technical depth than a standard field launch role\n\nCollaborate closely with engineers during evening launches, maintaining a solutions-oriented attitude even at the end of a long shift\n\nBuild launch rigs, balloon units, and other hardware. Hands-on assembly is a core part of this role and how our team stays close to the hardware\n\nSet up and break down launch sites, ensuring equipment is properly configured and secured\n\nManage and maintain inventory of balloon supplies, compressed gas cylinders, and related equipment\n\nPerform routine equipment checks and flag maintenance or safety concerns\n\nNavigate the operational complexity of the launch site, which may involve coordination with the property owner, local city officials, and nearby airport authorities. This is not a simple field site and requires patience and process discipline\n\nAdapt to varying conditions and work well under ambiguity\n\nSkills and Qualifications\nFollows detailed processes and safety procedures with precision\n\nClear and timely communicator\n\nComfortable with computers and hands-on technical equipment - able to use a screwdriver and figure things out\n\nStrong positive attitude and flexible personality; this team moves fast and needs people who execute\n\nGreater technical aptitude than a standard launch role: able to debug engineering hardware and work through issues in the field\n\nComfortable working independently during evening shifts and interfacing with engineers who may be pushing hard on a deadline\n\nExperience with compressed gas cylinders a plus, but not required\n\nMust have authorization to work in the U.S.\n\nSchedule\nFlexible, approximately 10-20 hours per week depending on the company's launch needs.\nCompensation\n$28-30/hr. We are considering a range of backgrounds and experience levels and adjust our offers to be competitive with market rates.\nLocation\nOahu, Hawai'i. In-person required.","description_format":"text","description_chars":3422,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":null,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":null,"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":[],"hiring_locations":[{"name":"United States","iso":"US","kind":"country"}],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Sensors & Transducers","Earth Observation","AI for Science"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-10-09T04:27:19Z"}],"visa":[{"country":"US","licensed_sponsor":true,"evidence":"H-1B filings in 12 months: 3","filings_12m":3,"filings_prev_12m":4,"green_card_filings_12m":0,"median_offered_wage_usd":182500,"route":null,"cap_exempt":false,"checked_at":"2026-10-15T11:24:14+00:00","sources":["US Department of Labor: LCA disclosure data (H-1B, H-1B1, E-3)"],"filings_for_role_12m":0}],"liveness":{"score":86,"band":"hot","label":"Hiring now","p_open":1,"p_active":0.86,"p_room":1,"age_days":7,"expected_fill_days":70,"reasons":["conf:3","win:early"],"computed_at":"2026-10-16T05:45:00Z"},"pay":{"stated_usd_annual":60000,"is_top_pay":false},"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/windborne-systems-launch-operator-oahu","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/windborne-systems-launch-operator-oahu.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-10-17T05:40:12Z","cache_seconds":300,"methodology":"https://alion.io/methodology","terms":"https://alion.io/terms","contact":"https://alion.io/contact","api":"https://alion.io/developers","about":"Alion is a live layer of people, companies and AI agents: who they are, whether they are real and active right now, what they do and how to work with them, readable by people and by agents and paid per call.","catalog":"https://alion.io/catalog.json","usage":{"tier":"crawler_verified","counted_by":"address","units_charged":1,"used_today":7659,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-10-18T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002,"plus_per_slice":{"credits":0.05,"usd":0.005}},"unit":"per company, plus each slice with data","note":"the employer in depth","call":{"mcp_tool":"get_company","arguments":{"id":5093},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=5093"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fwindborne-systems-launch-operator-oahu"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":1,"usd":0.1},"unit":"per slice","note":"pay, demand and time to fill for this role and place","call":{"mcp_tool":"market_stats"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=market.stats&for=job%2Fwindborne-systems-launch-operator-oahu"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002},"unit":"per posting in a list","note":"similar open postings","call":{"mcp_tool":"search_jobs"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=job.search&for=job%2Fwindborne-systems-launch-operator-oahu"},{"id":"company.verify","title":"Is this company real and active right now","status":"pilot","price":null,"unit":"per company","request":{"url":"https://alion.io/catalog/request","method":"POST","body":"{\"offer\": \"company.verify\", \"for\": \"job/windborne-systems-launch-operator-oahu\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fwindborne-systems-launch-operator-oahu"}]}