1. Airfield Technical Manager
2. Based at East Midlands
3. Permanent
Why EMA?
Every year, East Midlands Airport connects over 4 million passengers with more than 80 destinations across Europe and is also the UKs number one provider of pure freight services. Part of the largest UK owned airport operator group, MAG, East Midlands Airport supports over 6,000 jobs and generates around £300m each year for the region.
Sustainability is one of our core values, and it shapes everything we do. We're committed to protecting the environment and supporting our local communities. Our programmes include airport and airline decarbonisation, comprehensive education, skills and employment support and community engagement initiatives including volunteering opportunities.
At MAG, we recognise creating a first-class journey for our customers starts by creating a first-class career journey for our colleagues and we are committed to building inclusive environments in which our people can thrive. Youll also have access to some great benefits including:
4. Bonus scheme
5. 10% company contribution pension
6. Car allowance
7. Private medical scheme
8. 25 days holiday plus bank holidays
9. Free parking
10. Subsidised public transport
11. Huge range of company discounts
12. 2 volunteering days per year
13. Free VirtualGP service,available24 hours a day, 7 days a week
14. Care Concierge service
The role
The Airfield Technical Manager is accountable for the safe, compliant and value-driven lifecycle management of East Midlands Airports critical airfield technical assets, ensuring they continue to support the airports licence to operate, 24/7 operational resilience and long-term strategic objectives.
In line with ISO 55001, the role ensures that asset management decisions balance risk, cost, performance and safety, and that all airfield technical systems are maintained, operated and invested in to deliver safe, reliable and legally compliant outcomes.
Safety and Compliance Core Accountabilities
Safety and regulatory compliance are fundamental to this role. You will:
15. Act as the Senior Technical Authority for Air Traffic Engineering (CNS) and Airfield Ground Lighting (AGL), ensuring systems remain safe, serviceable and compliant at all times
16. Maintain Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) Approved Maintenance Organisation (AMO) status, directly supporting:
17. East Midlands Airports Air Navigation Service Provider (ANSP) certification
18. The airports aerodrome licence to operate
19. Lead engagement with the CAA Engineering Inspector, including:
20. Regulatory audits and surveillance visits
21. Management of findings, corrective actions and technical justifications
22. Negotiation and governance of dispensations where operationally required
23. Ensure compliance with applicable CAA CAPs, ICAO Annexes, EASA/UK regulatory frameworks and MAG governance standards
24. Embed a strong safety culture, ensuring hazards are identified, risk assessed, controlled and reviewed in line with SMS and asset assurance requirements
Asset Management
The role directly supports ISO 55001 requirements by:
Leadership & Asset Management Policy
25. Translating MAGs asset management and safety policy into clear technical strategies and operational practices
26. Acting as the single point of accountability for airfield technical asset performance, risk and compliance
Risk-Based Decision Making
27. Ensuring all maintenance, renewal and investment decisions are risk-led, proportionate and evidence-based
28. Integrating safety risk, operational impact and asset criticality into prioritisation and planning
Lifecycle Management
29. Owning the end-to-end lifecycle of airfield technical assets, from specification and installation through to operation, renewal and disposal
30. Ensuring assets remain fit for purpose, resilient and compliant throughout their working life
Asset Investment & Value Realisation
31. Strategic ownership of the £10.75m five-year airfield technical capital investment programme
32. Ensuring capital investment delivers:
33. Compliance with regulatory and safety standards
34. Improved asset reliability and availability
35. Reduced lifecycle risk and cost
Assurance & Continual Improvement
36. Providing clear asset performance, risk and compliance assurance to senior leadership
37. Driving continuous improvement through audits, inspections, lessons learned and stakeholder feedback
Key Responsibilities
38. Primary technical interface with EMA senior leadership, Air Traffic Control, Airfield Operations and Asset Maintenance
39. Maintain and improve regulatory compliance assurance across all CNS, AGL and visual aid systems
40. Lead collaboration with Terminal Engineering, RFFS and MAG group to:
41. Share best practice
42. Improve standardisation
43. Strengthen group-wide safety and asset strategies
44. Own critical supplier relationships for specialist airport, CNS and AGL equipment, ensuring competence, quality and compliance
45. Lead, develop and assure a team of specialist engineers, embedding:
46. Technical competence
47. Strong safety behaviours
48. Clear accountability and resilience
What Will Make You Successful
49. Significant experience in airfield technical engineering, CNS and/or AGL systems within a highly regulated, safety-critical environment
50. Proven capability operating as a technical authority and regulatory interface
51. Strong understanding of asset management best practice, ideally aligned to ISO 55001
52. Demonstrable experience managing regulatory audits, compliance assurance and safety risk
53. Leadership experience with the ability to build a high-performing, safety-led engineering team
54. Commercial and strategic capability across CAPEX and OPEX management
55. Chartered Engineer status (or progression towards it) and formal asset management or safety qualifications are desirable.