Senior Mechanical Engineer - Aerospace/UAV Systems Lead

Saab AB; Cambridgeshire and Peterborough; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 100,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

30 days annual leave

Pension scheme with company contribute

Private medical insurance

Death in service insurance

Share matching scheme

Enhanced maternity/paternity leave

Job summary

Saab UK, a leading defence and security company, seeks a Senior Mechanical Engineer for BlueBear - A Saab Company, based in Bedford. You will provide technical leadership across mechanical and aerospace development for unmanned systems, owning complex design tasks and mentoring engineers from concept through flight test and production.

The role requires extensive experience in aerospace/defence, advanced CAD (SolidWorks/CATIA), PLM systems, and familiarity with airworthiness.

Qualifications

• Degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering or equivalent.
• Extensive experience in mechanical design within aerospace, UAV, defence or similar sectors.
• Advanced SolidWorks or CATIA capability including surfacing, assemblies, drawing generation and GD&T, plus experience working within a PLM/PDM system.
• Experience leading products from concept through manufacture and test.
• Strong understanding of metallic and composite structures and manufacturing methods.
• Build, integrate and test prototype/rig hardware in the workshop
• Support fault-finding and rework on aircraft/test articles directly
• Experience with BS8888.
• Experience with DFMA, FMEA and engineering governance processes.
• Ability to lead multidisciplinary teams and mentor engineers.
• Strong communication and customer-facing skills.
• Experience with eVTOL, UAS or advanced air mobility systems.
• Knowledge of airworthiness and flight test processes.
• Experience in a regulated defence environment and eligibility for UK security clearance (SC).

Responsibilities

• Lead mechanical design and development activities across multiple aerospace programmes.
• Provide technical leadership, design reviews and mentoring for engineers.
• Own CAD architecture, detailed design, drawing release and configuration control using SolidWorks.
• Lead integration of propulsion systems, payloads and aircraft structures.
• Conduct engineering analysis including FEA (e.g. ANSYS/Nastran), hand calculations and design trade studies.
• Support manufacturing, assembly, verification, flight test and certification activities.
• Manage technical risks, DFMEA activities and engineering documentation.
• Engage with customers and stakeholders to translate requirements into solutions.
• Support estimates, planning and work package delivery.

Skills

Leadership

Mentoring engineers

Multidisciplinary teamwork

Customer-facing skills

Education

Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering degree

Tools

SolidWorks

CATIA

ANSYS/Nastran

PLM/PDM systems

Job description

Saab UK, a leading defence and security company, seeks a Senior Mechanical Engineer for BlueBear - A Saab Company, based in Bedford. You will provide technical leadership across mechanical and aerospace development for unmanned systems, owning complex design tasks and mentoring engineers from concept through flight test and production.

The role requires extensive experience in aerospace/defence, advanced CAD (SolidWorks/CATIA), PLM systems, and familiarity with airworthiness.