Review the evidence signals before interviewing. Then use the anchored descriptions—not instinct alone—to choose the score that best matches each answer.
01
Evaluation factor
Hands-on competence
35% weight
Check hands-on command of airframes they name: DJI Matrice or M350, WingtraOne, fixed-wing VTOL. Probe payload swaps, RTK base setup, multispectral and thermal sensor calibration, and flight planning in Pix4D or UgCS.
Evidence to listen for
Names the equipment, materials, and tolerances they work to
Can describe a job start to finish without hand-waving the hard parts
Holds the tickets, licences, or certifications the work requires, and they are current
Knows what they are not qualified to touch
Five-point scoring guide
1
Poor
Cannot describe the work concretely; lacks required tickets or licences.
2
Needs Improvement
Basic familiarity; needs supervision on routine tasks.
3
Satisfactory
Competent on standard work; slower or unsure on unfamiliar jobs.
4
Very Good
Skilled and independent across the normal range of the role.
5
Excellent
Names specific airframes and payloads flown, describes radiometric calibration steps, RTK ground control setup, and mission planning parameters for repeat survey grids.
02
Evaluation factor
Safety discipline
30% weight
Test regulatory discipline: Part 107 or equivalent certificate, airspace authorisation via LAANC, BVLOS waivers, pre-flight checklists, LiPo battery storage and charging rules, and site risk assessments over water or wetlands.
Evidence to listen for
Treats procedure as protection rather than paperwork
Can describe a time they stopped work and why
Knows the specific hazards of this trade and the controls for each
Reports near misses instead of hiding them
Five-point scoring guide
1
Poor
Casual about safety; describes shortcuts with pride.
2
Needs Improvement
Follows procedure when watched; cannot name the hazards that matter.
3
Satisfactory
Sound safety habits; less certain on unfamiliar hazards.
4
Very Good
Safety is instinctive; can describe stopping work over a real concern.
5
Excellent
Holds current certification, recites pre-flight and lost-link procedures unprompted, and describes aborting a flight over wind limits or wildlife disturbance concerns.
03
Evaluation factor
Fault finding
20% weight
Probe diagnosis of real failures: compass or IMU calibration errors, GPS drift, gimbal faults, motor ESC warnings, corrupted SD imagery, and geotag misalignment discovered during post-processing.
Evidence to listen for
Has a method for narrowing a fault rather than swapping parts
Reads schematics, manuals, or error codes and acts on them
Knows when to escalate rather than guess
Can describe a fault that took real work to find
Five-point scoring guide
1
Poor
Parts-swapper; no diagnostic method.
2
Needs Improvement
Fixes symptoms; cannot explain how they found the cause.
3
Satisfactory
Solid on familiar faults; less structured on new ones.
4
Very Good
Clear systematic method with a real hard-fault story.
5
Excellent
Walks through isolating a fault from flight logs (Airdata or DJI logs), separating sensor, firmware, and environmental causes before replacing parts.
04
Evaluation factor
Reliability and conduct
15% weight
Assess field reliability: remote deployments in wetlands or forests, tolerance for early launch windows and weather holds, data handoff to GIS or ecology teams, and equipment logbook upkeep.
Evidence to listen for
Turns up, on time, prepared
Handles shift work, callouts, or travel as the role requires
Documents work so the next person can pick it up
Deals with customers or site staff professionally
Five-point scoring guide
1
Poor
Unreliable attendance; unprofessional on site.
2
Needs Improvement
Inconsistent; documentation is an afterthought.
3
Satisfactory
Dependable; paperwork is adequate.
4
Very Good
Consistently reliable, documents well, professional with customers.
5
Excellent
Shows consistent maintenance logs, plans around weather windows and permits, and delivers processed orthomosaics or point clouds on the agreed schedule.
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