Chief Engineer, Defense & Aerospace Systems

avav; Moorpark (CA); On-site; USD 225,000 - 359,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

401K with company match

9/80 work schedule

Holiday shutdown

Job summary

AeroVironment seeks a Vice-President level BGCE to lead the Precision Strike and Defense Systems in shaping product lifecycle from concept to sustainment. The role drives technical requirements, chairs reviews, and collaborates with customers and Product Line Managers to align operations with business goals.

As BGCE, you will guide a small group of engineers, translate operations concepts into roadmaps, and ensure performance across defense programs while maintaining DoD compliance and security

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering discipline.
• 15+ years in aerospace product design and sustainment.
• Experience leading UAS technical teams through lifecycle.
• Experience with drawings, BOMs, and change/quality systems.
• Experience in Agile and Waterfall development.
• Excellent verbal, presentation, and written communication skills.
• Ability to plan projects across schedule, budget, and resources.
• Leadership that inspires and aligns with business strategy.

Responsibilities

• Act as BGCE, the technical authority for the PSDS Business Group.
• Lead a team of engineers to ideate, develop, launch, and sustain products.
• Drive technical requirements for failure analysis and RCA.
• Chair technical review boards and feed roadmaps from concepts of operations.
• Mentor Product Line Chief Engineers and cross-functional teams.

Skills

Leadership

Systems engineering

UAS lifecycle

Agile/Waterfall

Communication

Project planning

Budget management

Influencing/negotiation

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, Electrical, or Systems Engineering

Job description

AeroVironment seeks a Vice-President level BGCE to lead the Precision Strike and Defense Systems in shaping product lifecycle from concept to sustainment. The role drives technical requirements, chairs reviews, and collaborates with customers and Product Line Managers to align operations with business goals.

As BGCE, you will guide a small group of engineers, translate operations concepts into roadmaps, and ensure performance across defense programs while maintaining DoD compliance and security