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General Atomics Aeronautical Systems · 2 days ago

Aero Performance Engineer

Poway, CA

Full-time

Onsite

Mid, Senior Level

$98K/yr - $171K/yr

4+ years exp

General Atomics Aeronautical Systems, Inc. (GA-ASI) is a world leader in remotely piloted aircraft and tactical reconnaissance radars. The Aero Performance Engineer will be involved in the design and development of next-generation unmanned aircraft platforms, focusing on aerodynamic modeling, wind tunnel testing, and performance validation.

EnergyEnergy EfficiencyManufacturingWireless

No H1B

Security Clearance Required

U.S. Citizen Only

Responsibilities

Support all phases of aircraft design, including conceptual, preliminary, and detailed design

Take part in wind tunnel and flight test planning, execution, and post-test analysis

Conduct trade studies and carry out sensitivity analyses to inform high-level engineering design decisions

Predict and validate aircraft performance by developing and maintaining analytical Modeling and Simulation (M&S) tools

Generate high-fidelity 6DOF aerodynamic databases from wind tunnel and CFD data

Collaborate among peers, as part of a multi-disciplinary team, to solve unique and complex engineering challenges

Participate in internal and customer-facing design reviews, test readiness reviews, flight briefings, and technical meetings

Contribute to a broad swath of novel aircraft platforms ranging from Small Unmanned Air Systems (SUAS) to Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA)

Qualification

Aero Performance AnalysisMATLAB ProgrammingAerodynamic ModelingWind Tunnel TestingMultidisciplinary Design OptimizationAerodynamic Design ToolsApplied StatisticsPython ProgrammingObject-Oriented ProgrammingEffective CommunicationTeam CollaborationProblem Solving

Required

Typically requires a bachelors degree, masters degree or PhD in engineering or a related technical discipline from an accredited institution and progressive engineering experience as follows; six or more years of experience with a bachelors degree, four or more years of experience with a masters degree, or two or more years with a PhD. May substitute equivalent engineering experience in lieu of education

Completion of relevant coursework in the areas of low- and high-speed aerodynamics, air-breathing propulsion, and aircraft performance analysis

Advanced MATLAB programming experience is required, including the ability to interpret and extend upon in-house, peer-developed, codes

Ability and willingness to operate with relative autonomy; proactively collaborating with other disciplines and seeking out help when appropriate

Effective at communicating complex engineering concepts both verbally and in writing

Understands engineering concepts, principles, and theory; and has experience demonstrating the application of those concepts

Must possess the ability to understand new concepts quickly and apply them accurately throughout an evolving environment

Ability to obtain and maintain a DoD Secret security clearance is required

Ability to work on-site during normal business hours for indeterminate periods of time as dictated by program security requirements

Preferred

Familiarity with Multidisciplinary Design, Analysis, and Optimization (MDAO), Design of Experiments (DoE), and surrogate modeling techniques

Applied experience using aerodynamic and aircraft design and analysis tools such as AVL, XFOIL, MSES, OpenVSP, OpenMDAO, SUAVE, RDS, Aviary, NASTRAN, LEAPS, FLOPS, and/or other

Strong background in applied statistics and aerodynamic uncertainty quantification, with experience using Gaussian process regression, surrogate modeling, and/or sensitivity analysis to support 6-DOF aerodynamic modeling, performance prediction, and Monte Carlo analysis. Experience with wind tunnel data uncertainty analysis preferred

Familiarity with Python, Java, or C/C++ programming languages

Foundational understanding of Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) principles

Contributed to internally developed engineering analysis tools and software

Exposure to adjacent technical areas, including Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), Guidance Navigation and Control (GNC), and/or aircraft structures

Familiarity with implementation of thrust-drag bookkeeping and force-moment accounting methodologies

Active DoD Secret, or higher, security clearance