Lead GNC Engineer for Exo-Atmospheric Interceptors

Destinus; Katwijk; On-site; EUR 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Destinus leads a European consortium, seeking a senior GNC engineer to own flight simulation, navigation, guidance, and control algorithms for an exo-atmospheric interceptor. You will translate model results into vehicle requirements and collaborate with a cross-functional team to drive hardware‑in‑the‑loop readiness and mission success.

You will contribute to the design and validation of GNC loops across hypersonic and space applications, applying MATLAB/Simulink and Python to deliver

Qualifications

• BSc, MSc, or PhD in Aerospace Engineering, Control Engineering, Applied Mathematics, or a related field.
• 10+ years of GNC experience on missiles, interceptors, spacecraft, launch vehicles, or comparable high‑performance systems.
• Strong expertise in at least two areas across guidance, navigation and estimation, and control, with solid understanding across the complete GNC loop.
• Experience developing and implementing flight-proven systems for hypersonic and/or space applications, including qualified hardware and software.
• Nice to have: hardware-in-the-loop testing and/or flight testing.

Responsibilities

• Build and own the six‑degree‑of‑freedom flight simulation used as the reference model for vehicle performance and analysis
• Develop navigation and estimation throughout the flight, manage the error budget through handover, and develop terminal guidance for the final engagement
• Own the terminal miss budget, quantifying how sensing noise, timing, disturbances, and other uncertainties affect end‑to‑end accuracy
• Design and tune control algorithms across the phases of flight, assessing stability and robustness throughout the operating envelope
• Run analysis and simulation campaigns across nominal and stressing conditions, translating findings into vehicle and subsystem requirements
• Work closely with the wider engineering team to integrate GNC performance into the overall interceptor design

Skills

GNC concepts

Flight simulation

Navigation

Guidance

Control algorithms

System-level thinking

Education

BSc, MSc, or PhD in Aerospace Engineering, Control Engineering, Applied Mathematics, or a related field

Tools

MATLAB

Simulink

Python

Hardware-in-the-loop testing

Job description

Destinus leads a European consortium, seeking a senior GNC engineer to own flight simulation, navigation, guidance, and control algorithms for an exo-atmospheric interceptor. You will translate model results into vehicle requirements and collaborate with a cross-functional team to drive hardware‑in‑the‑loop readiness and mission success.

You will contribute to the design and validation of GNC loops across hypersonic and space applications, applying MATLAB/Simulink and Python to deliver