Flight Sciences Tools and HPC engineer

Archer; San Jose (CA); On-site; USD 162,800 - 217,600; Full time

Job summary

Archer is an aerospace company based in San Jose, California, seeking a skilled software engineer to design and maintain internal software libraries and computing infrastructure for its innovative electric aircraft project. The ideal candidate will have extensive experience in scientific software development, specifically for flight sciences, and proficiency in the scientific Python ecosystem.

The role offers a competitive salary range of $162,800 – $217,600, with a strong emphasis on diversity and inclusivity in the workplace. Join us in advancing sustainable air mobility!

Qualifications

• Master's or Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering or related field.
• 5+ years of experience in scientific/engineering software development.
• Experience with HPC management and Linux administration.

Responsibilities

• Design and maintain software libraries and computing infrastructure.
• Promote software excellence across engineering teams.
• Administer on-premises HPC resources.

Skills

Scientific software development

Python proficiency

Experience with HPC systems

Problem-solving skills

Knowledge of engineering disciplines

Education

Master's or Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering or related field

Tools

NumPy

SciPy

Pandas

TensorFlow

MATLAB

Docker

Job description

Archer is an aerospace company based in San Jose, California building an all-electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft with a mission to advance the benefits of sustainable air mobility. We are designing, manufacturing, and operating an all-electric aircraft that can carry four passengers while producing minimal noise.

Our sights are set high and our problems are hard, and we believe that diversity in the workplace is what makes us smarter, drives better insights, and will ultimately lift us all to success.

What you’ll do:

• Design, implement, and maintain internal software libraries and applications as well as computing infrastructure to enable engineers to solve problems faster and more efficiently. Promote the use of shared computational infrastructure, tools, and practices across engineering teams within the Flight Sciences department.
• Develop processes and software tools to improve the reproducibility and traceability of computations. Drive the implementation of such tools.
• Promote a culture of software excellence across the engineering organization.
• Understand the needs of various engineering teams to efficiently utilize High-Performance Computing (HPC) resources, and make informed decisions on infrastructure solutions to ensure optimal resource utilization and cost savings.
• Maintain and administer on‑premises HPC resources.
• Advocate for engineering and computing needs with the company‑wide IT department.

What you need:

• Master's or Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Computational Engineering, or a related field.
• 5+ years of experience as a user and developer of scientific/engineering software for flight sciences or similar disciplines (e.g., aerodynamics, acoustics, control, loads, thermal analysis, mass properties, vehicle simulation).
• Demonstrated experience in developing computing software and infrastructure, with proficiency in the scientific Python ecosystem (NumPy, SciPy, Pandas, Scikit-learn, TensorFlow/PyTorch, VTK).
• Demonstrated experience with standard best practices in software development, including version control, CI/CD, software testing, and environment management.
• Experience with the design and administration of HPC systems, either on-premise or cloud (AWS preferred). Knowledge of Linux administration, high‑speed network interconnects, parallel file systems, and MPI is required.
• Experience with HPC management software (Slurm/PBS/Torque, OpenHPC/Bright, Warewulf/XCat, Spack/EasyBuild, Lmod).
• Good understanding of enterprise IT and common network security practices.
• Excellent problem‑solving skills and ability to work collaboratively in a team environment.
• Experience as an engineer in one or more of the following areas of aircraft design: aerodynamics, conceptual design, rotor/propeller design, vehicle simulation, loads and dynamics, structural design, stress analysis, GNC.
• Contributions to open‑source scientific software projects.
• Experience with MATLAB and Simulink.
• Proficiency in one or more compiled languages (e.g., C/C++, Fortran, Rust).
• Familiarity with databases (SQL, NoSQL, time‑series) and database application design (ORM/ODM).
• Experience with software packaging (Pip, Conda, Spack) and containerization technologies (Docker/Singularity/Shifter) for scientific software.
• Familiarity with software configuration management tools (Chef/Puppet/Ansible).
• Familiarity with common CI/CD tools and practices (TeamCity/Jenkins, Artifactory, Docker).
• Experience with analysis tools and workflows for aircraft/rotorcraft design (aerodynamics, CFD, GNC, loads, structural analysis, CAD, mass properties).

For this position, we are targeting a base pay range of $162,800 – $217,600. Actual compensation offered will be determined by job‑related knowledge, skills, and experience.

Archer is proud to be an Equal Opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusivity in the workplace. All aspects of employment are decided on the basis of merit, qualifications, and business needs. We do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, gender identity, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws.

Archer is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to job applicants with physical or mental disabilities.