Aerodynamics Engineer, Air Vehicles

Anduril Industries; Costa Mesa (CA); On-site; USD 129,000 - 171,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans

Generous time off

Professional development reimbursement

Job summary

A defense technology company seeks an Aerodynamics Engineer in Costa Mesa, California. The role involves designing unmanned air vehicles and conducting aerodynamic analysis. Candidates should have a BS in Aerospace Engineering, with experience in aircraft performance analysis and strong programming skills in MATLAB or Python. The position offers a competitive salary range of $129,000—$171,000 and includes comprehensive health benefits, retirement plans, and professional development support.

Qualifications

• 3+ years of work experience as an individual contributing engineer.
• Experience with aircraft performance and analysis predictions.
• Passion for defending the United States and her allies.

Responsibilities

• Aerodynamic design of unmanned air vehicles at various design stages.
• Conduct stability and control analysis.
• Plan and execute wind tunnel tests.

Skills

Aerodynamic analysis techniques

Strong programming skills

Wind tunnel and flight test experience

Education

BS or higher degree in Aerospace Engineering

Tools

StarCCM+

MATLAB

Python

Job description

Aerodynamics Engineer, Air Vehicles

Join to apply for the Aerodynamics Engineer, Air Vehicles role at Anduril Industries.

Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century’s most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril’s family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI‑powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3‑D command and control center. As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting‑edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years.

About the Team

The Air Dominance and Strike Aerodynamics Engineering Team is responsible for the advanced aerodynamic design and analysis for Group 5 air vehicles and missile platforms. Air Dominance and Strike Aerodynamics Engineers own the full development lifecycle, from conceptual design to flight test planning, execution and analysis ensuring high‑performance, resilient, and scalable systems that meet the demands of complex, contested environments.

What You'll Do

• Aerodynamic design of unmanned air vehicles/missiles at conceptual, preliminary, and detail design maturities
• Aerodynamic analysis of unmanned air vehicles, using both low and high order methods
• Including analysis tool development and improvement as needed
• Stability and control analysis
• Aircraft performance modeling and simulation
• Aerodynamic loads generation
• Wind tunnel test planning, execution, and analysis
• Flight test planning, execution, and analysis

Required Qualifications

• BS or higher degree in Aerospace Engineering
• 3+ work experience as an individual contributing engineer
• Experience with aircraft performance and analysis predictions
• Competent in a variety of aerodynamic analysis techniques including hand calculations, vortex, lattice methods, panel methods, and computational fluid dynamics (CFD)
• Wind tunnel and flight test experience including data acquisition, data analysis and project coordination
• Strong programming skills in higher‑level languages (e.g., MATLAB, Python) for internal tool development in a version‑controlled environment
• Experience preparing formal documentation (i.e., specifications, test procedures, technical reports, etc.)
• Passion for defending the United States and her allies
• Eligible to obtain and maintain an active U.S. Secret security clearance

Preferred Qualifications

• StarCCM+ experience
• Ice accretion or icing analysis experience
• Missile DATCOM, OTIS, or DYMOS
• Experience with transonic and supersonic flow regimes
• Active U.S. Secret security clearance

Salary Range

$129,000—$171,000 USD

Healthcare Benefits

The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience, education and/or training, critical skills, and/or business considerations. Highly competitive equity grants are included in the majority of full time offers; and are considered part of Anduril's total compensation package. Additionally, Anduril offers top‑tier benefits for full‑time employees, including:

• US Roles: Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision plans at little to no cost to you.
• UK & AUS Roles: We cover full cost of medical insurance premiums for you and your dependents.
• IE Roles: We offer an annual contribution toward your private health insurance for you and your dependents.

Additional Benefits

• Income Protection: Anduril covers life and disability insurance for all employees.
• Generous time off: Highly competitive PTO plans with a holiday hiatus in December. Caregiver & Wellness Leave is available to care for family members, bond with a new baby, or address your own medical needs.
• Family Planning & Parenting Support: Coverage for fertility treatments (e.g., IVF, preservation), adoption, and gestational carriers, along with resources to support you and your partner from planning to parenting.
• Mental Health Resources: Access free mental health resources 24/7, including therapy and life coaching. Additional work‑life services, such as legal and financial support, are also available.
• Professional Development: Annual reimbursement for professional development
• Commuter Benefits: Company‑funded commuter benefits based on your region.
• Relocation Assistance: Available depending on role eligibility.

Retirement Savings Plan

• US Roles: Traditional 401(k), Roth, and after‑tax (mega backdoor Roth) options.
• UK & IE Roles: Pension plan with employer match.
• AUS Roles: Superannuation plan.

The recruiter assigned to this role can share more information about the specific compensation and benefit details associated with this role during the hiring process.

To view Anduril's candidate data privacy policy, please visit https://anduril.com/applicant-privacy-notice/.