Lead GNC Engineer

AlgoForge Aerospace; Bengaluru; On-site; INR 4,000,000 - 7,000,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Absolute Autonomy

Flight Hardware

Direct Ownership

The Hard Problems

Job summary

AlgoForge Aerospace is seeking a Lead GNC Engineer to design and implement autonomous guidance for the AF-Series launcher. You will architect 6-DOF control laws and validate them with real-time Estimators and HITL rigs. The role emphasizes C++ flight software, Python/MATLAB modeling, and rigorous verification against extreme aerospace dynamics.

You will lead trajectory shaping, energy management, and post-flight data refinement to ensure precise, reliable performance from pad to landing.

Qualifications

• MS/PhD in Aerospace, Electrical, or Mechanical Engineering.
• Deep focus on Control Theory and rigid body dynamics.
• Proficiency in modern C++ for flight code and Python/MATLAB for modeling.
• Experience with orbital mechanics and quaternion math.
• Hands-on with Hardware-in-the-Loop (HITL) systems.

Responsibilities

• Architect robust 6-DOF control laws for pad liftoff to landing.
• Design and tune state estimators to fuse IMU, GPS, and Star Tracker data in real time.
• Develop high-fidelity Monte Carlo simulations for reliability and stability.
• Implement optimized guidance algorithms for trajectory shaping and energy management.
• Own post-flight data review and refine models with telemetry feedback.

Skills

PID

Root Locus

LQR

H-infinity

MPC

C++

Python

MATLAB

Aerospace Control

Education

MS/PhD in Aerospace, Electrical, or Mechanical Engineering

Tools

C++

Python

MATLAB

Job description

Mission Overview At AlgoForge Aerospace, brute force propulsion is useless without absolute control. As the Lead Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GNC) Engineer, you will architect the brain of the AF-Series launch vehicle. Your algorithms will pilot a monolithic structure autonomously through the chaotic atmosphere, managing the highly transient dynamics of Rotating Detonation Engines (RDE). You are responsible for ensuring we thread the needle to orbit with pinpoint accuracy, and execute the supersonic retro-propulsion required to stick the landing.

Operational Objectives

Architect robust 6-DOF control laws (TVC & RCS) spanning pad-liftoff, Max-Q, hypersonic reentry, and propulsive booster recovery. Design and tune advanced state estimators (Extended/Unscented Kalman Filters) to fuse IMU, GPS, and Star Tracker telemetry in hard-real-time. Build aggressive, high-fidelity Monte Carlo simulations to validate vehicle survivability and controller stability under extreme aerodynamic dispersions. Implement highly optimized guidance algorithms (e.g., convex optimization) for trajectory shaping and precision energy management. Own the post-flight data review, interrogating flight telemetry to refine aerodynamic coefficients and anchor your models to reality.

Mission Prerequisites

MS/PhD in Aerospace, Electrical, or Mechanical Engineering with a relentless focus on Control Theory and Rigid Body Dynamics. Deep, intuitive mastery of classical (PID, Root Locus) and modern control architectures (LQR, H-infinity, MPC). Uncompromising proficiency in modern C++ for writing deterministic flight code, and Python/MATLAB for rapid mathematical modeling. Extensive experience handling orbital mechanics, quaternion math, and highly non-linear aerospace systems. A builder's mindset—you must be comfortable running your algorithms on physical Hardware-in-the-Loop (HITL) test rigs, not just simulations.

Deployment Benefits

• Absolute Autonomy

  Write the logic that commands millions of pounds of thrust.

• Flight Hardware

  Watch your math fly to orbit and return to the landing pad.

• Direct Ownership

  No silos. You write the math, you write the C++, you own the result.

• The Hard Problems

  Solve the unprecedented GNC challenges of RDE-powered ascent.