Senior Staff Engineer Actuation Systems Architecture and Design
Shield AI is a U.S. defense-technology company developing mission-autonomy software and autonomous aircraft for military and allied operations.
Funding history
Investors
About Shield AI
Founded in 2015, Shield AI builds Hivemind autonomy software and V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft for operations in contested, GPS- and communications-denied environments. Its current site also presents Aechelon synthetic-reality simulation and Vision Systems detection and tracking products.
Skills
Candidate Availability
Required and preferred rules are kept separate and reflect the wording in the original posting.
About the Role
You will take technical ownership of actuation-system architecture, requirements, detailed design, and integration for aircraft mechanisms. You will select and size actuators, manage sequencing and redundancy, define interfaces, and drive system integration across vehicle subsystems. You will define verification traceability, perform focused technology assessments, execute qualification testing, support airworthiness certification, and lead design-maturity reviews through production-ready hardware delivery.
Requirements
- U.S. citizenship and an active Secret or higher security clearance
- 8–15 years of aircraft actuation-system design experience
- Hands-on experience with electric actuation, including EMA or EHA, or centralized hydraulics
- Bachelor's or Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related technical discipline
- Experience sourcing aerospace components, managing suppliers, and assembling test setups
- Ability to self-direct technical work and deliver functional hardware under tight timelines
- Knowledge of actuator sizing, power and thermal interfaces, FMEA, redundancy management, and mechanism integration
- Experience leading multidisciplinary actuation design and integration
- Familiarity with MIL-HDBK-516, MIL-STD-810, SRR, PDR, and CDR
Responsibilities
- Lead actuation-system architecture, requirements definition, and detailed design
- Select and size actuators and manage sequencing, redundancy, failure modes, and mechanism interfaces
- Integrate actuation systems with control surfaces, bay doors, and vehicle mechanisms
- Own power and thermal integration interfaces
- Define, allocate, and maintain verification traceability
- Perform technology assessments to resolve design and integration risks
- Define and execute qualification test plans under MIL-STD-810
- Support MIL-HDBK-516 airworthiness certification
- Lead design-maturity and qualification-status reviews at SRR, PDR, and CDR
Benefits
- Bonus
- Benefits
- Equity