Senior Jet Engine Design Engineer - Small Turbine & AM Lead

Alta Ares; Blagnac; On-site; EUR 100,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Alta Ares is hiring a Senior Jet Engine Design Engineer to lead the development of small-scale jet propulsion systems (12–25 kg thrust). This hands-on role demands ownership in a fast-moving startup, delivering flight-ready engines from concept to hardware.

You will own turbine design, leverage metal additive manufacturing, and work with aerostructures to integrate propulsion into unconventional airframes while iterating rapidly to meet performance and cost targets.

Qualifications

• Minimum 8 years of experience in jet engine / gas turbine design.
• Proven track record designing and delivering engine models (not just components).
• Hands-on experience with small jet engines (12–25 kg thrust).
• Experience designing turbine/engine components for metal additive manufacturing (DfAM).

Responsibilities

• Design and develop new small jet engines (12–25 kg thrust) in-house.
• Own aerodynamic design of turbine components balancing performance and cost.
• Design turbine for metal additive manufacturing and printability.
• Work with 3D printing operations to define printable geometries and tolerances.
• Drive rapid iteration: build, test, learn, redesign quickly.
• Integrate propulsion systems into airframes like flying wings or drones.
• Apply design rules for extreme environments to ensure reliability.
• Contribute to engine testing (bench and flight) and continuous improvement.

Skills

Jet engine design

Gas turbine design

Small jet engines (12–25 kg thrust)

Additive manufacturing (DfAM)

Prototype development

Testing (bench and flight)

Rapid-iteration culture

Autonomous startup work

Aerodynamics

Tools

Metal additive manufacturing tools

Job description

Alta Ares is hiring a Senior Jet Engine Design Engineer to lead the development of small-scale jet propulsion systems (12–25 kg thrust). This hands-on role demands ownership in a fast-moving startup, delivering flight-ready engines from concept to hardware.

You will own turbine design, leverage metal additive manufacturing, and work with aerostructures to integrate propulsion into unconventional airframes while iterating rapidly to meet performance and cost targets.