Aerospace Structures Design Engineer II – UAV Platform

Shieldai; Seattle (WA); On-site; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Shield AI is seeking an Aerostructures Design Engineer II to design structural components for our next-generation UAV platform. You will contribute from concept through production release on the Mechanical Engineering team, ensuring structural integrity, manufacturability, and system integration.

The role emphasizes cross-functional collaboration with aerodynamics, propulsion, avionics, payload, and manufacturing, along with hand calculations and limited FEA under guidance, and participation in

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering.
• 2+ years of experience in aircraft structural design.
• Experience releasing structural components in development or production.
• Knowledge of composite and metallic structures, including fasteners and load paths.
• Proficiency in CAD tools (NX, CATIA, SolidWorks, or similar).
• Understanding of GD&T, tolerance stackups, and DFMA.
• Strong written and verbal technical communication.
• Ability to operate in fast-paced, high-ownership engineering environments
• S//SAR level security clearance desired.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop structural components and assemblies for Shield AI’s UAV platform.
• Execute design lifecycle from conceptual development to drawing release.
• Perform hand calculations for stress with limited FEA guidance.
• Collaborate with aerodynamics, propulsion, avionics, payload, and manufacturing teams.
• Support structural validation through testing and verification.
• Generate design documentation, drawings, and interface definitions.
• Partner with manufacturing and flight test teams to resolve build issues.
• Participate in design reviews and present findings clearly.
• Continuously improve structural depth in layout, joints, tolerancing, and optimization.

Skills

CAD tools

GD&T & tolerancing

Structural design

Technical communication

Security clearance

Composite/Metal structures

Fast-paced environment

Education

Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering

M.S. degree in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering

Tools

ANSYS

Abaqus

NASTRAN

Job description

Shield AI is seeking an Aerostructures Design Engineer II to design structural components for our next-generation UAV platform. You will contribute from concept through production release on the Mechanical Engineering team, ensuring structural integrity, manufacturability, and system integration.

The role emphasizes cross-functional collaboration with aerodynamics, propulsion, avionics, payload, and manufacturing, along with hand calculations and limited FEA under guidance, and participation in