Principal Engineer - Targets & Countermeasures

AeroVironment • Huntsville, AL

1d

About The Position

AeroVironment is seeking a Principal Engineer to provide Missile Defense Agency (MDA) engineering oversight for target system payloads and countermeasure development. The role serves as a technical advisor to the program office, assessing prime contractor designs, technical plans, and target instrumentation layouts. The engineer provides technical support across major program milestones, from System Requirements through Product Acceptance, and coordinates with multiple organizations, modeling teams, cost analysts, and schedulers to support accurate, timely delivery.

The position provides expertise on payload and countermeasure requirements development, analysis, design, qualification, and fielding; independently evaluates contractor designs, plans, reports, and technical procedures; and assesses target instrumentation requirements, physical layouts, component selection, and testing methods. It also supports milestone reviews, responds to technical inquiries from external MDA organizations, and leads multidisciplinary Technical Interchange Meetings. The role contributes technical assessments to budget estimates and coordinates with program schedulers on delivery deadlines and status.

The position requires a master's degree in a STEM field, at least 12 years of experience supporting missile defense or complex DoD programs, and an active DoD Secret clearance. Travel of up to 20% may be required. Access to ITAR- and/or EAR-controlled information requires documentation verifying U.S. person status; some positions may require current U.S. citizenship due to contract requirements.

Requirements

• Master's degree in a Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math (STEM) field.
• 12 or more years of experience supporting missile defense or large-scale, complex DoD programs.
• Active DoD Secret clearance.
• Experience managing end-to-end program lifecycles, including development, testing, and fielding of complex systems.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment where priorities change quickly.
• Ability to handle multiple urgent tasks while maintaining focus.
• Ability to support travel requests up to 20% of the time.
• Ability to provide documentation verifying U.S. person status for access to ITAR- and/or EAR-controlled information; some positions may require current U.S. citizenship due to contract requirements.

Nice To Haves

• Understanding of Infrared/Radar Cross Section (IR/RCS) signatures for flight objects and countermeasures.
• Experience with material properties and material property measurements.
• Knowledge of real-world threat systems and their impact on target designs.
• Understanding of MDA flight test requirements and ability to apply them to payload hardware development.
• Technical proposal development and evaluation experience.

Responsibilities

• Provide technical expertise on payload and countermeasure requirements development, analysis, design, qualification, and fielding.
• Review and assess prime contractor designs, plans, reports, and technical procedures.
• Evaluate target instrumentation requirements, physical layouts, component selection, and testing methodologies.
• Provide technical evaluation and engineering support at major program milestones, including SRR, PDR, CDR, TRR, FRB, MRB, and PAR.
• Respond to technical inquiries from external MDA organizations.
• Lead multidisciplinary Technical Interchange Meetings (TIMs).
• Provide technical assessments to the cost analysis team to support accurate program budget estimates.
• Coordinate with the program scheduler to track delivery deadlines and keep leadership informed of status.

Benefits

• Medical insurance
• Dental insurance
• Vision insurance
• 401(k) with company matching
• Flexible work schedule options
• Some programs may offer a 9/80 work schedule and paid holiday shutdown, depending on business unit, role, and customer contract requirements.

What This Job Offers

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