Aerospace Flight Dynamics Simulation Engineer

Leidos • Huntsville, AL

1d • $107,900 - $195,050 • Onsite

About The Position

This is a senior-level aerospace engineering position in Leidos’ Flight Systems Department within the Defense Sector. The engineer supports the development, analysis, and testing of complex flight systems, including cruise missiles, containerized munitions, hypersonic missile programs, and other rapid-development efforts. The role involves developing and maintaining flight-vehicle simulations, analyzing system dynamics and performance, communicating technical findings, and collaborating with interdisciplinary teams. The engineer will also lead a small team of junior modeling and simulation engineers and support live flight-test events. The position is performed on-site at the Huntsville, Alabama office; candidates must live in the North Alabama area or be willing to relocate.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Physics, or a related field from an ABET-accredited school, plus 8 or more years of experience; or a master’s degree plus 6 or more years of experience.
• Fundamental understanding of aerospace engineering concepts, particularly flight dynamics, simulation, orbital mechanics, and/or guidance, navigation, and controls.
• Solid programming foundation in MATLAB/Simulink, C/C++, Python, or another programming language.
• Strong technical communication skills and ability to work independently and collaboratively.
• Resident of the North Alabama area or willing to relocate to work on-site at the Huntsville, Alabama office.
• U.S. citizenship and possession of, or ability to obtain, a Secret clearance.

Nice To Haves

• Master’s degree in Aerospace Engineering; applicable experience may be considered in lieu of an advanced degree.
• Familiarity with and experience in the DoW digital engineering paradigm.
• Prior experience with post-flight data analysis.
• Experience with flight-system development programs.
• Strong mathematics skills in linear algebra, matrix mathematics, statistics, trigonometry, and coordinate transformations.
• Experience conducting Monte Carlo analysis on Linux clusters.
• Experience with hardware-in-the-loop simulation architectures.
• Experience with configuration management software such as Git or Mercurial.
• C++ programming experience.
• Experience with trajectory analysis tools such as TAOS or OTIS.
• Experience using numerical optimization techniques.
• Experience with Simulink code generation.
• Experience with GNC applications for flight vehicles, guided munitions, and/or UAS systems.

Responsibilities

• Create and/or maintain 6-DOF, 3-DOF, and/or hardware-in-the-loop simulations that incorporate aerodynamic and propulsion models, GNC algorithms, and other features to characterize flight-vehicle performance, dynamics, and mission effectiveness.
• Conduct flight-vehicle dynamics analyses, including Monte Carlo analysis, trajectory optimization, and parametric sweeps, to support design decisions, trade studies, reliability assessments, mission planning, flight-test preparation, and performance characterization.
• Present accurate assessments of technical results to program managers, external customers, and stakeholders to support design decisions and mission success.
• Lead a small team of junior modeling and simulation engineers by determining simulation requirements, delegating tasks, reviewing work, and communicating with program leadership.
• Collaborate with aerodynamics, propulsion, mechanical design, avionics, software, and other teams to ensure system designs meet mission requirements.
• Support live flight-test events through planning, on-site test support, telemetry collection, and post-flight analysis.
• Develop, upgrade, or use scripts, GUIs, and other utilities to support analysis and programmatic efforts.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior