Principal Embedded Software Engineer - Aerospace (Hybrid)

AALTO; Farnborough; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Short-term incentive plan

25 days holiday

Private medical, dental & optical

Pension plan

Income protection & life assurance

Salary sacrifice scheme

Employee assistance programme

Perkbox discounts

Job summary

AALTO, based in Farnborough, is seeking a Principal Software Engineer to lead safety‑critical airborne software development. You will shape requirements, architecture and verification across the full lifecycle, collaborating with systems, hardware, and flight operations teams to deliver high‑integrity software.

The role emphasizes deep technical delivery, mentorship, and strong coding in C, C++ and Python within a demanding aerospace domain.

Qualifications

• Significant hands‑on software engineering experience, ideally around 10 years or more, with a strong background in embedded or real‑time systems.
• Experience taking airborne software through the full DO-178C lifecycle and supporting aircraft certification activities.
• Strong C programming skills, with practical experience in C++ and Python.
• Sound understanding of software architecture, design trade‑offs, debugging and verification in safety‑critical or highly regulated environments.
• Experience working with multidisciplinary engineering teams and translating complex technical issues into clear options and decisions.
• A collaborative, pragmatic approach, with the ability to mentor others without losing sight of hands‑on delivery.
• Familiarity with related standards and guidance such as DO‑330, DO‑331, DO‑332, DO‑333, ARP4754A/B, DO‑278, DEF STAN 00‑55 or DEF STAN 00‑56 would be beneficial.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, test and maintain embedded software for airborne systems, primarily using C, with C++ and Python where appropriate.
• Contribute across requirements, architecture, detailed design, implementation, integration, verification and certification support.
• Work closely with systems, hardware, test and flight operations teams to diagnose issues, make sound technical decisions and deliver aircraft‑level outcomes.
• Lead and contribute to software architecture discussions, technical reviews, code reviews and engineering best practice.
• Support software integration, debugging, test automation and continuous improvement of development processes.
• Provide technical guidance and mentoring to other engineers, helping the team build capability and confidence.
• Assess new tools, methods and technologies where they can improve quality, reliability or productivity.

Skills

C programming

C++

Python

Embedded software

DO-178C lifecycle

Safety-critical

Mentoring

Airborne software

Job description

AALTO, based in Farnborough, is seeking a Principal Software Engineer to lead safety‑critical airborne software development. You will shape requirements, architecture and verification across the full lifecycle, collaborating with systems, hardware, and flight operations teams to deliver high‑integrity software.

The role emphasizes deep technical delivery, mentorship, and strong coding in C, C++ and Python within a demanding aerospace domain.