Chief Engineer

The UAS Chief Engineer provides technical leadership, strategic direction, and execution oversight for the design, development, integration, and sustainment of advanced additively manufacturing unmanned systems. This role is responsible for end-to-end system engineering across air, ground, maritime, and/or multi-domain unmanned platforms, ensuring mission effectiveness, survivability, cybersecurity resilience, and compliance with applicable defense standards and regulations. The Chief Engineer serves as the primary technical authority for their assigned platform or product area, guiding cross-functional engineering teams, aligning technical roadmaps with customer requirements, and ensuring delivery of high-performance, secure, and reliable systems within cost and schedule constraints. This position works closely with government stakeholders, program management, operations, and executive leadership.

Essential Functions

• Provide overall technical leadership for additive manufactured unmanned system development programs, from concept through deployment and sustainment.
• Serve as the technical authority for system architecture, design trade studies, integration strategies, and risk management.
• Research and drive advancements in designs centered around additive manufacturing of UAS across the portfolio
• Lead system engineering processes including requirements development, decomposition, verification, validation, and configuration management.
• Oversee multidisciplinary engineering teams (mechanical, electrical, software, controls, AI/ML, autonomy, communications, cybersecurity, and systems engineering).
• Develop and maintain technical roadmaps aligned with defense customer needs and emerging operational requirements.
• Ensure compliance with applicable DoD standards, MIL-STDs, airworthiness/safety certifications, cybersecurity frameworks (e.g., RMF), and export regulations (e.g., ITAR/EAR).
• Direct integration of autonomy, navigation, sensors, communications, propulsion, and payload systems into cohesive, mission-ready platforms.
• Lead major technical reviews (SRR, PDR, CDR, TRR, PRR), ensuring readiness and program maturity at each phase.
• Identify, assess, and mitigate technical risks related to reliability, survivability, resilience, and mission performance.
• Support proposal development, customer briefings, and technical strategy discussions with government and defense partners.
• Foster innovation in autonomy, AI-enabled decision-making, resilient communications, and human-machine teaming.
• Mentor senior engineering staff and establish best practices in additive manufacturing, systems engineering, and product development.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Standard Essential Functions