Senior Loads and Dynamics Engineer - Aeroelastics and Rotordynamics

Zipline • South San Francisco, CA

6d • $150,000 - $215,000 • Onsite

About The Position

Zipline is seeking a hands-on Senior Structural Engineer to own aircraft structural analysis, system-level Global Finite Element Models (GFEMs), and assembly-level Detailed Finite Element Models (DFEMs). In this role, you will apply first-principles analysis and tight design-test-analysis loops to ensure Zipline's delivery aircraft are safe, light, and highly available for continuous logistics operations. Your work will directly impact aircraft airworthiness, fleet uptime, and mission success by increasing vehicle life, decreasing maintenance intervals, root-causing and preventing in-field failures, and enabling higher payloads and range. This role reports to the Structural Analysis Lead and collaborates across design, test, reliability, systems, and field operations. The position is based at Zipline's manufacturing and test lab facility in South San Francisco, with travel to field sites and test ranges typically ranging from 5-10% depending on the program phase.

Requirements

• Minimum 5 years of experience in structural analysis for aircraft or complex aerospace vehicles working with metallic, composite, and polymer structures.
• Hands-on hardware experience.
• Demonstrated ownership of a top-level GFEM or equivalent system-level model integrating multiple subsystem inputs.
• Experience managing contributions from 3–5 engineers.
• Deep capability with industry-standard tools (examples: NX, FEMAP/NX Nastran, ANSYS, Siemens Design Center).
• Proficiency scripting in Python or MATLAB to automate workflows and reports.
• Solid classical stress and dynamics background, including Roark/Bruhn-level hand-calculation fluency.
• Experience with structural modes, random vibration, and forced-harmonic analysis.
• Proven track record of experimental correlation: defining instrumentation, producing pre-test predictions, and tuning models to match static/dynamic/flight tests within engineering tolerances.
• Clear owner mentality with rapid decision cadence.
• Tolerance for ambiguity and shifting configurations.
• Disciplined documentation habits.
• Ability to identify opportunities to maximize impacts to cost, scalability, and fleet health.
• Must be eligible to work in the US.

Nice To Haves

• You’ve built your own prototypes to get quick answers.
• Pencil and paper calculations are always your first step.
• You prefer simple and fast over detailed and large.
• You are on the floor during system testing.
• You have never presented a FEM plot without adjusting the legend scale.

Responsibilities

• Own and maintain the top-level Global Finite Element Model (GFEM), setting and enforcing standards for material properties, numbering, interfaces, model fidelity, and validation procedures to ensure it serves as the single source of truth.
• Produce rapid analysis studies and design guidance by performing hand calculations and creating lightweight beam/shell FEMs to drive design trades, delivering updated models and results within 24–48 hours.
• Perform static, dynamic, stability, and damage-tolerance analyses for metallic and composite primary/secondary structures, evaluating and optimizing systems for structural loads, vibration modes, and deflections, and producing documented margin and load reports for qualification testing and regulatory artifacts.
• Plan and execute structural tests by defining pre-test predictions, instrumentation plans, and post-test correlation workflows, tuning models to test data to achieve target agreement (e.g., stiffness and key stress results within ~5% for validated modes and load paths).
• Lead root-cause investigations for test and field failures, generate corrective design changes, and collaborate with manufacturing, design, reliability, and test teams to implement actions and update inspection criteria.
• Collaborate daily with design, systems, reliability, test, and flight operations; create and document standardized in-house FEM tools, verification checklists, and model-release processes; mentor 3–5 contributors feeding into the GFEM.
• Support flight-test campaigns and field remediation events on-site, execute rapid test fixes, and prioritize fleet-impacting issues to minimize downtime and preserve flight schedules.
• Resolve test issues and provide corrective action direction for issues found in qualification testing.

Benefits

• Zipline is an equal opportunity employer and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws or our own sensibilities.
• We value diversity at Zipline and welcome applications from those who are traditionally underrepresented in tech.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed