←Back to 7316 Small Unmanned Aircraft System (SUAS) Operator — overview, pay, training, civilian translation, reviews
7316E6
Small Unmanned Aircraft System (SUAS) Operator
E-6 (Staff Sergeant) · Marines
HEADS UP
You are a staff NCO in a MOS where staff NCO billets are genuinely limited. Your reputation from every section you have ever led is in the room with you at every promotion board and every billet selection. This is a small community — your name is known.
The Honest MOS Read
At Staff Sergeant, you are the senior SUAS technical and tactical authority for your battalion or equivalent command. The MOS is small enough that at E6 you are likely one of very few staff-level SUAS operators in the unit, which means you are frequently operating without a peer in the building to compare notes with. That isolation cuts both ways: it gives you professional autonomy that larger MOSes rarely grant E6s, and it means every misjudgment you make is yours alone.
The SSGT tier is where the institutional advocacy role becomes explicit. You are not just running a section — you are the person who shapes how the command thinks about organic ISR. If the battalion treats SUAS as an afterthought that gets tasked when someone remembers it exists, that is a culture problem and fixing it is partly your responsibility. The SSGTs who have left this MOS with strong records are the ones who made themselves indispensable to the planning process, not the ones who waited to be asked.
The counter-UAS threat picture at SSGT has practical consequences for how you organize your section and train your operators. Near-peer adversaries are fielding commercial and military counter-UAS systems that can detect, track, and defeat Group 1/2 platforms. Your employment doctrine needs to account for this — altitude selection, emission control, frequency management, and lost-link contingency planning are no longer theoretical topics. Build it into your section SOP and your pre-deployment training program.
The civilian and government career translation is strongest at this tier. Government civilian positions in the GS-11 through GS-13 range exist for experienced SUAS operators and training developers. DoD contractor roles supporting SUAS programs at program offices, training commands, and operational support contracts are real and the pay is significant. The SSGT with a documented operational record, Part 107, and any additional credential (thermography, commercial mapping, FAA ground instructor) has a genuinely strong external profile. The question at E6 is no longer whether the market wants you — it is whether you want the next three to eight years to be in uniform or in a different kind of service.
Career Arc
SSGT: battalion-level SUAS technical authority, section management, and integration into intelligence and operations planning cycles Potential assignment as SUAS program support at MARCORSYSCOM or training development at TECOM — both are high-value career assignments that build credibility beyond the tactical level Gunnery Sergeant competitive window: the 7316 SSGT-to-GySgt pipeline is small; operational reputation, fitness report quality, and whether you have made a difference at the program level matter at this window Warrant officer (7315): if you haven't gone WO yet, the SSGT window is the last practical window to pursue a packet without it feeling like a late pivot Government civilian preparation: at 10-12 years of service, begin the federal job series application process — your veteran's preference and experience are most competitive at this point in the federal hiring cycle Mentorship of junior SUAS operators: the SSGTs who invest in junior Marine development build a professional reputation that follows them through every transition
Common Screwups
Losing touch with the technical baseline while focused on leadership duties — a SSGT who cannot answer the technical question that a CPL brings to them has lost a critical dimension of authority in a technical MOS Failing to document the section's operational record in a format that survives unit turnover — oral history dies at PCS; the procedures, lessons learned, and employment techniques your section has developed need to be written down Allowing the relationship with the battalion intelligence section to atrophy — a SSGT who is not in the intelligence officer's Rolodex is a SSGT whose section doesn't get tasked for the missions that build records Missing the government civilian application window by assuming there will be a better time — the federal hiring process is slow and the earlier you begin it, the more options you have when you're ready to use them Letting personal misconduct — financial, alcohol-related, or interpersonal — happen at a career tier where there is no recovery; a SSGT in front of a board for misconduct at 12 years of service has lost the career
A Day in the Life
0530: PT formation; SSGT leads and ensures section meets battalion standards 0800: Morning formation; SSGT attends battalion formation and receives daily priorities from SgtMaj/XO 0900: Battalion staff synchronization or intelligence planning meeting — SSGT is present to represent organic ISR capability 1000: Section management: maintenance supervision, qualification tracking review, training calendar update 1130: Noon chow 1300: Flight operations, training event supervision, or staff officer coordination — depends on exercise cycle 1500: Administrative work: fitness report development, counseling records, government civilian application research, professional correspondence 1700: Evening formation; coordinate with junior NCOs on tomorrow's priorities
Weekly Cadence
The SSGT week is organized around two planning horizons: the current week's execution and the next 30-60 days' training calendar. Monday is the readiness reset — status of every operator and every piece of equipment. Tuesday and Wednesday are typically where the staff planning cycle is heaviest — the SSGT should be present in those meetings and not just briefed afterward. Thursday and Friday are execution and close-out. In garrison, this means training events and administrative work. In the field, it means the section is running sorties and producing products.
The career management component of the week is real at SSGT. Every month, there should be a deliberate hour spent on individual Marine counseling, career tracking, and professional development planning. This is not overhead — it is the job.
What Good Looks Like at This Rank
The best SSGTs in this MOS are advocates as much as operators. They have built sections where operators know their purpose, commanders know how to use the capability, and the intelligence section treats SUAS as a planning input rather than an ad hoc add-on. The SOP is current, the training calendar is full of deliberate events, and the section's operational record is documented in a format that will survive the next PCS cycle.
They are also thinking about what comes next — not because they're checked out, but because they are planning the same way they plan a mission. The SSGT who is 12 years in and has no answer to 'what are you doing at year 20' is operating without a plan. The good ones have a parallel track: government civilian applications in progress, a relationship with a DoD contractor hiring manager, or a WO packet in the system.
Preview — The Next Rank
At Gunnery Sergeant, the job is broad unit leadership with SUAS expertise as a specialized tool rather than the entire job description. The GySgt 7316 may be the senior enlisted advisor for an entire UAS capability across multiple sections, responsible for the training and readiness of a larger formation. The technical depth you built at SSGT is the credibility foundation, but the job at GySgt is institutional leadership — shaping how the command thinks about and employs ISR capability at the operational level.
FAQ
7316 E6 — Frequently Asked Questions
Q01What does a E6 7316 (Small Unmanned Aircraft System (SUAS) Operator) actually do?
Serve as the SUAS platoon NCOIC or senior UAS advisor for a ground combat element.
Q02What's the most important thing to know as a E6 7316?
You are a staff NCO in a MOS where staff NCO billets are genuinely limited.
Q03What mistakes get E6 7316 soldiers fired or relieved?
Losing touch with the technical baseline while focused on leadership duties — a SSGT who cannot answer the technical question that a CPL brings to them has lost a critical dimension of authority in a technical MOS Failing to document the section's operational record in a format that survives unit turnover — oral history dies at PCS; the procedures, lessons learned,…
Q04What's next after E6 for a 7316 (Small Unmanned Aircraft System (SUAS) Operator) in the Marines?
At Gunnery Sergeant, the job is broad unit leadership with SUAS expertise as a specialized tool rather than the entire job description.
Q05What manuals and regulations does a E6 7316 need to know cold?
MCWP 3-42.1, MCRP 2-10A.7, joint ISR publications, MAGTF targeting publications, MCO on SUAS employment
This playbook has no tips yet. Be the first to share what you know.
Published by the Honest MOS Editorial DeskVerified against DoD/.gov sourcesUpdated May 2026Editorial standards