Senior Composites Mechanical Engineer

Joby Aviation; Santa Cruz (CA); On-site; USD 105,000 - 181,000; Full time

Job summary

Joby Aviation in Northern California seeks a hands-on Mechanical Engineer to own the cryogenic tank vacuum shell, addressing structural design, seals, and test planning for a high-performance hydrogen storage system.

The role requires a strong foundation in solid mechanics, heat transfer, and materials, with CAD and drawing release skills and hands-on hardware experience in aerospace environments.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field.
• 3–7 years of mechanical engineering experience in aerospace, energy, cryogenics, or other high-performance hardware environments.
• Strong fundamentals in solid mechanics, heat transfer, and materials behavior.
• Ability to perform first-principles hand calculations and use basic FEA or thermal analysis tools.
• Experience with 3D CAD and engineering drawing creation and release.
• Familiarity with precision machining, fabrication processes, and tolerance stack-ups.
• Working knowledge of composite structures and materials, with willingness to learn composite layup definition and drawing practices.
• Excellent problem-solving skills and comfort working in an iterative hardware development environment.
• Strong communication skills and ability to collaborate across disciplines.

Responsibilities

• Own the design and development of the cryogenic tank vacuum shell, including structural layout, interfaces, sealing features, and manufacturability considerations.
• Develop and execute test plans to validate vacuum shell performance, including structural, thermal, and leak-tightness verification.
• Take responsibility for engineering decisions, trade studies, and documentation associated with the vacuum shell and related hardware.
• Generate and release detailed CAD models, drawings, and configuration-controlled documentation.
• Translate system-level performance, mass, thermal, and safety requirements into robust mechanical designs.
• Perform hand calculations and simple simulations to evaluate strength, stiffness, modal behavior, buckling, and thermal expansion.
• Support material selection for cryogenic applications, including evaluation of high-performance alloys, composites, and sealing materials.
• Contribute broadly to other mechanical design efforts across the hydrogen storage system as part of the design-build-test cycle.
• Engage directly in hardware builds, troubleshooting, and development testing, rolling up sleeves to help get hardware designed, built, and tested.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with structures, thermal, propulsion, manufacturing, and test teams to deliver integrated solutions.

Skills

Solid mechanics

Heat transfer

Materials behavior

First-principles calculations

Communication

Cross-disciplinary collaboration

Problem solving

Iterative hardware development

Education

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

Tools

3D CAD

Engineering drawing release

FEA

Thermal analysis tools

Job description

Located in Northern California, the team at Joby Aviation is driven by our goal of creating an affordable, all-electric air transportation system. Imagine a piloted air taxi that takes off vertically, then quietly carries you and your fellow passengers over the congested city streets below, enabling you to spend more time with the people and places that matter most. Since 2009, our team has worked steadily to make this dream a reality. We have designed and tested many generations of prototype aircraft capable of serving in a network of electric air taxis. We are looking for talented, committed individuals to join our team as we push onwards toward certifying the Joby aircraft with the Federal Aviation Administration, scaling our manufacturing, and preparing to launch commercial service.

Overview

The Hydrogen Storage team is seeking a highly capable, hands-on Mechanical Engineer to support the development of cryogenic liquid hydrogen storage systems. This is a core individual contributor position for an engineer who enjoys working at the intersection of system-level requirements and detailed mechanical design, and who is motivated to take true ownership of critical hardware.

This role will have primary ownership of the vacuum shell for the cryogenic tank system, including structural design, thermal considerations, sealing strategy, test planning, engineering decision-making, drawing release, and overall project execution. The ideal candidate is a strong mechanical generalist with experience or interest in cryogenic systems and a demonstrated ability to optimize solutions at the system level through thoughtful, detail-level engineering execution. You are comfortable moving between first-principles thinking, hand calculations, CAD design, supplier interaction, and hands-on hardware development in a fast-paced aerospace environment.

We are looking for an engaged, creative, and fundamentally solid mechanical engineer with excellent cultural fit for a highly collaborative, design-build-test team.

Responsibilities

• Own the design and development of the cryogenic tank vacuum shell, including structural layout, interfaces, sealing features, and manufacturability considerations.
• Develop and execute test plans to validate vacuum shell performance, including structural, thermal, and leak-tightness verification.
• Take responsibility for engineering decisions, trade studies, and documentation associated with the vacuum shell and related hardware.
• Generate and release detailed CAD models, drawings, and configuration-controlled documentation.
• Translate system-level performance, mass, thermal, and safety requirements into robust mechanical designs.
• Perform hand calculations and simple simulations to evaluate strength, stiffness, modal behavior, buckling, and thermal expansion.
• Support material selection for cryogenic applications, including evaluation of high-performance alloys, composites, and sealing materials.
• Contribute broadly to other mechanical design efforts across the hydrogen storage system as part of the design-build-test cycle.
• Engage directly in hardware builds, troubleshooting, and development testing, rolling up sleeves to help get hardware designed, built, and tested.
• Collaborate cross-functionally with structures, thermal, propulsion, manufacturing, and test teams to deliver integrated solutions.

Required

• Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field.
• 3 to 7 years of mechanical engineering experience in aerospace, energy, cryogenics, or other high-performance hardware environments.
• Strong fundamentals in solid mechanics, heat transfer, and materials behavior.
• Demonstrated ability to perform first-principles hand calculations and use basic FEA or thermal analysis tools.
• Experience with 3D CAD and engineering drawing creation and release.
• Familiarity with precision machining, fabrication processes, and tolerance stack-ups.
• Working knowledge of composite structures and materials, with willingness to learn composite layup definition and drawing practices as applied to 3DX environments.
• Excellent problem-solving skills and comfort working in an iterative hardware development environment.
• Strong communication skills and ability to collaborate across disciplines.

Desired

• Experience with cryogenic systems or liquid hydrogen applications.
• Exposure to vacuum systems or vacuum-insulated structures.
• Experience with high-performance seals and leak-tight assemblies.
• Familiarity with cryogenic-compatible materials and thermal contraction considerations.
• Experience supporting hardware testing and development builds in a fast-paced, hands-on environment.

Additional Information

Compensation at Joby is a combination of base pay and Restricted Stock Units (RSUs). The target base pay for this position is $104,800 - $181,000/yr.The compensation package will be determined by job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.

Joby also offers a comprehensive benefits package, including paid time off, healthcare benefits, a 401(k) plan with a company match, an employee stock purchase plan (ESPP), short-term and long-term disability coverage, life insurance, and more.

Joby is an Equal Opportunity Employer