Hypersonic Wind Tunnel Lead Engineer

Scientific Research Corporation • Colorado Springs, CO

3d • $132,250 - $220,400 • Hybrid

About The Position

This person could work onsite in Alexandria, VA, St. Paul, Minnesota, or Full-Time Remote if not open to relocating. We are seeking an experienced Test Facility Lead Engineer to provide comprehensive technical oversight for the design, integration, operation, and maintenance of new and existing large-scale hypersonic ground test capabilities while providing technical leadership to ensure that once functional, the facility and its systems operate safely, reliably, and in alignment with performance requirements. The Department of War (DoW) Test Resource Management Center (TRMC) plays a critical role in ensuring our warfighters maintain a decisive edge. TRMC ensures that the DoW components possess the appropriate test and evaluation (T&E) infrastructure required to develop and field military systems. Scientific Research Corporation supports TRMC by providing a Systems Engineering and Technical Advisory (SETA) support staff. This team delivers specialized technical expertise, engineering oversight, program management, and acquisition support to help the government design, manage, and deliver complex systems, in this case unique test infrastructure. The ideal candidate will be a transonic and supersonic wind tunnel subject matter expert with strong documentation and communication skills, personal accountability, and a desire to work as part of a collaborative team. This role is a critical part of the government’s oversight team, serving as the technical lead and trusted technical advisor for a cutting-edge hypersonic T&E infrastructure project. You will be responsible for the government-side oversight of a state-of-the-art high-speed / transonic and supersonic wind tunnel test capability. Under the oversight of the Chief Engineer and in coordination with other Test Facility Lead Engineers and the Construction Lead, the candidate will: Providing Technical Oversight & Contractor Evaluation Serving as the primary technical advisor to the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR), overseeing the design-build prime contractor’s design and execution of a wind tunnel test capability Serving as the authoritative technical Point of Contact (POC), providing critical feedback and strategic guidance to the contractor to ensure designs align with government safety, reliability, and performance requirements Leveraging deep expertise of wind tunnel design, wind tunnel operations, and wind tunnel test planning to identify, own, manage, and communicate technical risk, developing mitigation plans in partnership with the Assistant Project Manager (APM) Representing the government program office while attending contractor-chaired Integrated Product Team (IPT) meetings, Technical Interchange Meetings (TIMs), technical design reviews, and milestone reviews applying subject matter expertise to provide insights and communicate government questions and concerns to the contractor Conducting detailed technical reviews of contractor-developed designs, drawings, specifications, and analyses such as Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) Validating contractor technical findings by performing independent verification analyses and coordinating with external SMEs, FFRDCs, UARCs, etc., to assess risk and inform government decisions Possessing and applying a strong safety ethos, leading and contributing to safety reviews and audits Contributing to programmatic planning by developing Statements of Work (SOW), Independent Government Cost Estimates (IGCEs), and facility requirement documentation Collaborating seamlessly within a highly matrixed team of mechanical, electrical, aerothermal, controls and instrumentation, and systems engineers, program management, program controls, physical security, cybersecurity, and construction professionals Reporting Translating complex project data into decision-ready insights; lead executive briefings to present technical summaries, risk assessments, and recommendations to support government action and decisions Adhering to, and reviewing internal and external work products for adherence to administrative and sensitive data protection guidelines #LI-HK1

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related technical discipline and 10+ years of experience in the aerospace or defense industry.
• Direct experience with the design, construction, operation, and/or modernization of large-scale Test and Evaluation (T&E) facilities such as wind tunnels, arc jets, rocket stands, turbine cells, etc.
• Proven ability to conduct comprehensive technical reviews and assessments, resolve complex technical issues, and oversee project phases from initial design through closeout.
• Exceptional communication skills with a proven ability to translate complex engineering data into decision-ready briefings for government and contractor stakeholders.
• Proven tactical project management skills with a demonstrated ability to drive accountability, manage action plans, and maintain project momentum.
• Experience integrating complex systems.
• Knowledge of engineering principles related to mechanical, electrical, instrumentation, and control systems.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office 365 suite of software.
• Must possess an active SECRET security clearance.
• U.S. Citizenship

Nice To Haves

• Master’s Degree or Ph.D. in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering.
• Experience working in a matrixed or collaborative technical oversight environment (SETA).
• Specific, direct experience with test-customer focused wind tunnel operations subsonic, transonic, supersonic, and , Hypersonic Aerodynamics, or Hypersonic Propulsion.
• Experience with Facility Engineering specializing in high-temperature and high-pressure systems.
• Experience in instrumentation systems, data collection, and data analytics.
• Understanding and regular use of Generative AI tools applied to engineering analysis, code generation, or document review.
• Experience with modern digital engineering design and analysis tools and software.
• Familiarity with DoW weapon acquisition programs and their T&E needs.

Responsibilities

• Provide comprehensive technical oversight for the design, integration, operation, and maintenance of new and existing large-scale hypersonic ground test capabilities.
• Provide technical leadership to ensure that once functional, the facility and its systems operate safely, reliably, and in alignment with performance requirements.
• Serve as the primary technical advisor to the Contracting Officer’s Representative (COR), overseeing the design-build prime contractor’s design and execution of a wind tunnel test capability.
• Serve as the authoritative technical Point of Contact (POC), providing critical feedback and strategic guidance to the contractor to ensure designs align with government safety, reliability, and performance requirements.
• Leverage deep expertise of wind tunnel design, wind tunnel operations, and wind tunnel test planning to identify, own, manage, and communicate technical risk, developing mitigation plans in partnership with the Assistant Project Manager (APM).
• Represent the government program office while attending contractor-chaired Integrated Product Team (IPT) meetings, Technical Interchange Meetings (TIMs), technical design reviews, and milestone reviews applying subject matter expertise to provide insights and communicate government questions and concerns to the contractor.
• Conduct detailed technical reviews of contractor-developed designs, drawings, specifications, and analyses such as Finite Element Analysis (FEA) and Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD).
• Validate contractor technical findings by performing independent verification analyses and coordinating with external SMEs, FFRDCs, UARCs, etc., to assess risk and inform government decisions.
• Possess and apply a strong safety ethos, leading and contributing to safety reviews and audits.
• Contribute to programmatic planning by developing Statements of Work (SOW), Independent Government Cost Estimates (IGCEs), and facility requirement documentation.
• Collaborate seamlessly within a highly matrixed team of mechanical, electrical, aerothermal, controls and instrumentation, and systems engineers, program management, program controls, physical security, cybersecurity, and construction professionals.
• Translate complex project data into decision-ready insights; lead executive briefings to present technical summaries, risk assessments, and recommendations to support government action and decisions.
• Adhere to, and review internal and external work products for adherence to administrative and sensitive data protection guidelines.

Benefits

• medical
• dental
• vision plans
• 401(k) with a company match
• life insurance
• vacation and sick paid time off accruals starting at 10 days of vacation and 5 days of sick leave annually
• 11 paid holidays
• tuition reimbursement

What This Job Offers

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