GNC Engineer

Poseidon Aerospace; Berkeley (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Salary & equity

Relocation

Health benefits

6% retirement match

Flexible PTO

Free meals

AI tools

Job summary

Poseidon Aerospace is seeking a GNC Engineer to develop control systems for autonomous cargo aircraft. You will model vehicle dynamics, design flight controllers, and integrate solutions into flight-ready avionics, taking ownership from concept to validation.

You will build and refine simulation environments, implement control algorithms on hardware, and collaborate with avionics and software teams to maximize performance, safety, and reliability in dynamic flight regimes.

Qualifications

• Ownership of functional vehicle control systems including design and testing of GNC.
• Experience building simulation environments from scratch with best practices.
• Experience implementing flight control or navigation algorithms on high-performance vehicles.
• Familiarity with verification/validation of GNC software, 6-DOF sims and HITL testing.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain a simulation environment for aircraft attitude, stability, and performance.
• Design and implement flight control algorithms on hardware, owning GNC software development.
• Use simulation data to optimize control system design for flight dynamics and performance.
• Collaborate with avionics and software engineers to ensure reliable control and navigation solutions.

Skills

GNC development

Simulation environments

Flight control algorithms

Hardware-in-the-loop

C++/Python/Simulink

Tools

Simulink

Python

C++

Job description

About Poseidon Aerospace

Poseidon Aerospace is reimagining how the world moves goods. We build and operate full-size autonomous cargo aircraft - capable of carrying two tons of payload over a thousand nautical miles. From remote communities to contested logistics operations, our platforms unlock a new cost curve for air freight, making it faster, cheaper, and accessible anywhere it's needed. Headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area with locations in Washington DC, Oregon, and Maine; we're building something consequential.

As a GNC Engineer at Poseidon Aerospace, you will develop and implement control systems to ensure accurate and reliable performance of our aircraft. Your work will include vehicle dynamics modeling, flight control system design, and integrating your solutions into flight-ready avionics. We’re looking for someone who brings comprehensive GNC development skills to the team, from modeling to practical implementation.

Responsibilities

• Develop and maintain our simulation environment for analyzing aircraft attitude, stability, and flight performance.
• Design and implement flight control algorithms directly on hardware, taking ownership of software development for GNC systems.
• Use simulation data to inform and optimize control system design, focusing on flight dynamics and performance.
• Collaborate closely with avionics and software engineers to ensure reliable and efficient control and navigation solutions.
• Analyze flight trajectories, control profiles, and stability characteristics to maximize aircraft performance and safety.
• Contribute to high-level design decisions related to aircraft control systems and flight performance.
• Support prototyping efforts by implementing and testing control algorithms on prototype hardware.
• Tackle complex and novel challenges related to precise and reliable aircraft control, particularly in dynamic and changing environments.

Ideal Qualifications

• Demonstrated technical ownership of functional vehicle control systems, including design and simulation (e.g., "I developed and tested the GNC for XYZ aircraft").
• Experience creating simulation environments from the ground up, with a clear understanding of best practices.
• Experience implementing flight control and/or navigation algorithms on aircraft or similar high-performance vehicles.
• Familiarity with verification and validation of GNC flight software, including the use of 6-DOF simulations and hardware-in-the-loop (HITL) testing.
• Strong problem-solving skills and the ability to develop creative solutions for real-world control challenges.
• Fundamentals of C++/python/simulink for implementing control algorithms

What You Get From Us

• Competitive salary and meaningful early-stage equity
• Relocation support if applicable
• Employee Health Benefit Plans
• 6% Retirement matching
• Flexible PTO
• Free lunches, snacks, and a stocked fridge at our offices
• AI tools and subscriptions