X-BAT Business Development Director, Middle East (Aerospace & Defense)

Location: Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates. Workplace: On-site. Requires willingness to live in the region, preferably Abu Dhabi, and travel extensively across the Middle East for 30–50% of the time.

Company

hirify.global develops autonomy-enabled airpower and Hivemind-enabled Collaborative Combat Aircraft solutions for aerospace and defense applications.

What you will do

• Identify, shape, and capture high-value opportunities across Middle Eastern next-generation airpower programs.
• Lead the full business development and regional sales lifecycle, from customer engagement and proposals through negotiation and contract award.
• Build relationships with Ministries of Defence, defense primes, integrators, government decision-makers, and strategic partners.
• Shape customer requirements and future CCA CONOPS to align with available product capabilities.
• Lead regional flight demonstrations, technical trials, and program pilots.
• Coordinate with engineering, product, legal, and program teams while providing field intelligence for product and integration roadmaps.

Requirements

• 15+ years in a relevant air force occupation, with deep knowledge of air-domain CONOPS and platform applications.
• 3–5+ years of experience in defense acquisition, business development, sales, or strategy, ideally involving air platforms or autonomy.
• 5+ years of experience in the Middle East, either operationally or in a defense business capacity.
• Demonstrated success capturing and closing defense programs or technology insertions with Ministries of Defence or multinational frameworks.
• Understanding of CCAs, MUM-T, AI-enabled CONOPS, regional acquisition pathways, and next-generation air combat trends.
• Ability to represent technically complex products to strategic and operational audiences; willingness to live in the region and travel 30–50%.

Nice to have

• Real-world operational experience flying tactical fighter aircraft.
• Strong technical background in air platforms or autonomy.

Culture & Benefits

• Work on aerospace and defense products at the cutting edge of autonomy-enabled airpower.
• Engage directly with military customers, defense primes, and government stakeholders.
• Collaborate across engineering, product, legal, and program functions.
• Participate in regional flight demonstrations, technical trials, and early-stage programs.