Composites Design Engineer (Space Launch New Zealand)

Matchbox; Christchurch; On-site; NZD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Dawn Aerospace in Christchurch, New Zealand, seeks a Composites Design Engineer to help design structures for our rapidly reusable spaceplane. You will move designs from concept to manufacture, testing and flight with a focused, high-performing team.

Ideal candidates have 3+ years in aerospace composite design, strong laminate theory knowledge, and hands-on CAD experience. This role is on-site in NZ with frequent collaboration across disciplines.

Qualifications

• Degree in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering, or Physics, or related field.
• At least 3 years designing composite structures in aerospace/high-performance environments.
• Strong knowledge of composite materials, laminate theory and manufacturing processes.
• Experience with CAD tools CATIA, NX or SolidWorks.

Responsibilities

• Design primary and secondary composite airframe structures (fuselage, wings, control surfaces, internal supports).
• Develop laminate schedules, manufacturing drawings, tooling concepts, assembly fixtures and engineering documentation.
• Perform structural sizing, trade studies and design optimization using analytical and numerical methods.
• Collaborate with manufacturing, test and flight operations to ensure practical, robust designs.
• Support structural testing, qualification activities and flight campaigns.
• Collaborate with aerodynamics, systems, avionics and propulsion engineers for integrated vehicle solutions.
• Contribute to continuous improvement of engineering processes and standards.

Skills

Composite design

Laminate theory

Manufacturing processes

Engineering drawings

Analytical problem solving

Communication

Education

Bachelor's in Aerospace Engineering

Bachelor's in Mechanical Engineering

Physics or related field

Tools

CATIA

Siemens NX

SolidWorks

FEA tools

Job description

Our Mission: Fly to Space Twice in One Day

At Dawn Aerospace, we're building a space transportation network with the frequency and reliability of aviation.

Our Aurora spaceplane programme is developing the world's first rapidly reusable, rocket-powered aircraft capable of routine access to space. Every day, we are pushing the boundaries of aerospace engineering, designing, building, testing, and flying vehicles at a pace rarely seen in the industry.

We're looking for a Composites Design Engineer to help design the structures that will make this possible.

This is role where your designs will be realised. You'll see your work move rapidly from concept to manufacture, test and flight, working alongside a highly capable team building one of the world's most ambitious aerospace programmes.

What You'll Do

• Design primary and secondary composite airframe structures, including fuselage, wings, control surfaces and internal support structures.
• Develop laminate schedules, manufacturing drawings, tooling concepts, assembly fixtures and engineering documentation.
• Perform structural sizing, trade studies and design optimisation using analytical and numerical methods.
• Work closely with manufacturing, test and flight operations teams to ensure designs are practical, manufacturable and robust.
• Support structural testing, qualification activities and flight campaigns.
• Collaborate with aerodynamics, systems, avionics and propulsion engineers to deliver integrated vehicle solutions.
• Contribute to the continuous improvement of engineering processes, methodologies and standards.

About You

You're a practical engineer who enjoys turning ideas into hardware. You thrive in fast-moving environments, take ownership of your work, and enjoy solving difficult problems alongside other high-performing engineers.

You are comfortable working across disciplines, engaging directly with manufacturing and testing, and balancing engineering excellence with speed of execution.

Your Capabilities

• A degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Physics or a related field.
• At least 3 years of professional experience designing composite structures within aerospace, aviation, motorsport or another high-performance engineering environment.
• Strong understanding of composite materials, laminate theory and manufacturing processes.
• Experience using CAD software such as CATIA, Siemens NX, SolidWorks or similar.
• Experience producing detailed engineering drawings and managing design releases.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Experience working with suppliers and external manufacturing partners.
• Experience operating in a rapid development, prototype or experimental environment.

Bonus Points For

• Experience with aerospace certification, qualification or flight-test programmes.
• Experience using FEA tools for structural analysis of composite structures.
• Hands‑on composites manufacturing, tooling or build experience.
• Experience developing flight hardware.

Why Join Dawn?

• Design hardware that flies.
• Work on one of the world's most advanced spaceplane programmes.
• See designs move rapidly from concept to flight.
• Collaborate with an exceptional multidisciplinary engineering team.
• Take ownership of challenging technical problems with real‑world impact.
• Help build the future of space transportation.

Diversity & Inclusion

At Dawn Aerospace, we believe that diverse teams build better solutions. We are committed to creating an inclusive environment where people of all backgrounds, identities, and experiences are valued and supported to do their best work.

About Dawn Aerospace

Dawn Aerospace is a space transportation company with a purpose. Our mission is to enable the next generation of space users by providing more sustainable and scalable ways to access and move around in space. We believe this access, in the form of a transportation network, will fundamentally change what’s possible from space. We currently focus on three areas of space transportation:

• In-space propulsion – We're a leading supplier of turnkey green propulsion systems for various classes of satellites. Our systems utilise safe, accessible propellants and we have over 170 of these propulsion units on more than 40 operational satellites already. A further 200 units are in production.
• In-space servicing – Coupled with our propulsion expertise, we are ensuring that our customers' satellites are refuellable. In the coming years, Dawn will offer a refueling service to enable life extension of customer satellites. This new market is aligned with our sustainability goal to ensue a clean and safe space for everyone!
• Spaceplane – We are developing the fastest and highest-flying aircraft ever to take off from a runway, combining the extreme performance of rocket propulsion with the reusability of conventional airplanes to enable high-frequency, low-cost access to sub-orbital space.

Our international teams are distributed across four locations: the Netherlands, France, New Zealand, and the USA.

Important!

If you think you have what it takes but are unsure that you check every box, we still want to hear from you.

To all recruitment agencies: Dawn Aerospace does not accept agency resumes. Please do not forward resumes to our job's alias, our employees, or any other company location. Dawn Aerospace will not be responsible for any fees related to unsolicited resumes.