Summer Placement Supportability Engineer

Leonardo UK Ltd; Easter Howgate; Hybrid; GBP 80,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading defense and aerospace company is seeking a Summer Placement Supportability Engineer in Edinburgh to work on real-world engineering projects. Candidates should be studying Aerospace, Electronics or Mechanical Engineering and possess strong communication skills. The role offers mentorship and a chance to gain insight into product lifecycle processes. Join a team making an impact on global safety and innovation.

Benefits

25 days of leave pro rata

Award-winning pension scheme

Free mental health support

Access to online courses

Qualifications

• Currently studying a relevant discipline in engineering.
• Enthusiastic and self-motivated with initiative.
• Analytical with a focus on data.

Responsibilities

• Support product lifecycle from design to production.
• Analyze and report on RMT of products.
• Work with experienced engineers on real projects.

Skills

Strong communication skills, written and verbal

Ability to solve technical problems

Computer literacy (MS Office)

Appreciation of product lifecycle

Passion for reliability and root cause analysis

Education

Currently studying Aerospace, Electronics or Mechanical Engineering

Job description

Job Description

Are you ready to make an impact and gain hands‑on experience working on real‑world projects from day one?

At Leonardo, we’re looking for summer placement students who want to be part of something bigger—shaping innovation, advancing technology, and enhancing global safety.

Our placements are designed to help you apply your studies in a practical setting, develop your technical skills, and gain valuable insight into how our business operates.

Our Summer Placement Programme

Our 13‑week Summer Placement Programme gives you the chance to work on meaningful projects alongside subject‑matter experts, within multidisciplinary teams, and across the product lifecycle. Throughout your placement, you’ll receive coaching and support from a dedicated team, with the potential to return for future placements or progress onto our Graduate Development Programme.

The programme will run from 1 June to 28 August 2026.

We encourage you to spend at least three days each week on site to integrate with your team and maximise your learning experience.

What you’ll do as a Summer Placement Supportability Engineer

Supportability Engineers are integral to a product’s lifecycle: from concept and initial design, through production, and into in‑service support.

They analyse and report on the Reliability, Maintainability and Testability (RMT) of a product and advise on design and development to satisfy customer specifications. Supportability Engineering are the experts in Root Cause Analysis and are integral during production when manufacturing defects are observed.

As a Summer Placement Supportability Engineer, you will contribute to a real ongoing project within the department alongside experienced engineers who will provide training, mentoring and guidance. You will be exposed to real‑world engineering and learn about the use of Supportability processes and tools.

In Edinburgh, Supportability Engineering are directly involved with:

• IRCM (Infra‑Red Counter Measures) Systems
• Laser Target Designator and Laser Ranging Systems
• Eurofighter Typhoon Radar
• SAAB Gripen Radar
• Surveillance AESA (Active Electronically Scanned Array) Radars
• The Global Combat Air Programme

Examples of summer placement projects include:

• Physics of Failure & Finite Element Analysis – an evaluation of Ansys Sherlock in addition to experience of other tools within Ansys suite
• Electronics Reliability Analysis – Evaluating Radar PCAs for Reliability, Maintainability, and Testability
• Lead Free & Materials Science – design, development and production support and interaction with engineers in a variety of functions and roles
• Data Analytics – producing reports using analysis from Production and Field Defect Data

What you’ll bring

Entry Requirements

Currently studying Aerospace, Electronics or Mechanical Engineering or related disciplines.

Competencies we look for

• Strong communication skills, written and verbal
• Ability to solve technical problems
• Computer literacy (MS Office)
• Appreciation of the lifecycle of a product and electronic product design
• A passion for reliability and root cause analysis

Personal attributes

• Self‑motivated, enthusiastic, and able to use initiative
• Analytical with an eye for data
• Outgoing with a willingness to ask questions
• Collaborative and flexible in approach

Security Clearance

This role is subject to pre‑employment screening in line with the UK Government’s Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS). An additional range of Personnel Security Controls referred to as National Security Vetting (NSV) may apply, this could include meeting the eligibility requirements for The Security Check (SC). For more information and guidance please visit: https://careers.uk.leonardo.com/gb/en/security-and-vetting

Why join us

At Leonardo, our people are at the heart of everything we do, key contributors in shaping innovation, advancing technology, and enhancing global safety.

Benefits

• Time to recharge: Our employees are entitled to 25 days of annual leave plus bank holidays. As a Summer Placement student you will receive this allowance pro rata.
• Secure your future: Award‑winning pension scheme with up to 15% employer contribution
• Your wellbeing matters: Free access to mental health support, financial advice, and employee‑led networks championing inclusion and diversity (Enable, Pride, Equalise, Armed Forces, Carers, Wellbeing and Ethnicity)
• Never stop learning: Free access to 4,000+ online courses via Coursera and LinkedIn learning.

For a full list of our company benefits please visit: https://careers.uk.leonardo.com/gb/en/company-benefits

We are committed to building an inclusive, accessible, and welcoming workplace. We believe that a diverse workforce sparks creativity, drives innovation, and leads to better outcomes for our people, communities, and customers. If you have any accessibility requirements to support you during the recruitment process, just let us know.

Be part of something bigger - apply now!

Primary Location: GB - Edinburgh

Additional Locations: GB - Newcastle

Contract Type: Fixed term

Hybrid Working: Hybrid