Senior Data Scientist

Cessna Aircraft Company; Wichita (KS); On-site; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Textron Aviation is seeking a Senior Data Scientist to advance predictive maintenance and connected aircraft solutions. You will merge large-scale time-series sensor data with maintenance records, develop ML workloads, and mentor junior scientists to drive data-driven decisions across the organization.

The role focuses on building models, experimentation, and governance while partnering with cross-functional teams to deploy insights into operations and maintenance practices.

Qualifications

• 7+ years of experience in data science, machine learning, or analytics.
• Experience leading data science projects and mentoring junior data scientists.
• Strong communication and ability to explain technical concepts to technical and non-technical audiences.
• Aviation experience preferred.

Responsibilities

• Develop machine learning models for classification, regression, clustering, and time-series analysis.
• Lead cross-functional collaboration to deploy models into business processes.
• Mentor junior data scientists and lead projects.
• Design experiments and causal inference studies to support strategic initiatives.
• Communicate findings through stakeholder presentations.
• Champion governance, ethics, and model interpretability.

Skills

Python

SQL

Machine learning

Time-series

Data visualization

Cloud platforms

MLOps

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's or PhD

Tools

Azure ML

MLflow

AWS SageMaker

PyTorch

TensorFlow

Pandas

Job description

Job Description - Senior Data Scientist (345009)

Senior Data Scientist (Job Number: 345009 )

Textron Aviation has been inspiring the journey of flight for nine decades through the iconic and beloved Cessna and Beechcraft brands. We are passionate advocates of aviation, empowering people with the freedom of flight. As you join our legacy as a global leader in private aviation, you’ll have opportunities to try new fields, expand your skills and knowledge, stretch your abilities, and build your career. We provide a competitive and extensive total rewards package that includes pay and innovative benefits to support you and your family members – now and in the future, beginning day one. Your success is our success.

JOB SUMMARY

Data Scientists drive strategic initiatives by performing advanced analytics, predictive modeling, and machine learning on complex internal and external datasets. Theyleverageadvanced mathematics, statistics, and code-first toolsto deliver high-impact, actionable insights. Unlike Data Analysts, Data Scientists focus on building and validating models, conducting experiments, and generating recommendations that directly inform business strategy and operational transformation.

We are seeking an experienced Data Scientist to join our small, specialized, and highly motivated team that is implementing predictive maintenance and connected aircraft solutions for a large fleet of Textron Aviation aircraft. In this senior position, you will merge large scale time-series aircraft sensor data, parts, and maintenance records using a variety of machine learning, deep learning, AI, and visualization methods. You will keenly focus on maximizing the operational availability of customer jet, turboprop, and piston aircraft along with efficient aircraft maintenance practices. As a key part of your role, you will mentor and provide technical leadership to junior data scientists, foster creativity, and champion innovative, cutting-edge data science methodologies across the organization.

At Textron Aviation, we are building a community of Data & Analytics professionals with an emphasis on collaboration and cross functional support. You will have the opportunity to work closely with your peers throughout the organization toward a vision ofdatadriven strategy.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES

• Support data exploration, hypothesis testing, and foundational predictive analytics.
• Independently develop machine learning models for classification, regression, clustering, and time-series analysisusing Python and relevant libraries.
• Collaborate with analysts and engineers to prepare and clean data for modeling.
• Document methodologies and contribute to reproducible research practices.
• Develop foundational understanding of the business domain, includingaircraftOEM operations.
• Apply advanced statistical techniques to evaluate model performance and business impact.
• Work with large datasets using Python, SQL, and cloud-native platforms.
• Communicate findings through technical documentation and stakeholder presentations.
• Contribute to the development of analytics best practices and model governance.
• Lead development of predictive models and advanced analytics workflows.
• Mentor junior data scientists and contribute to team knowledge sharing.
• Design experiments and causal inference studies to support strategic initiatives.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to integrate models into business processes.
• Champion adherence to governance frameworks and global data science standards.
• Drive innovation in datasciencemethodologies and tools.
• Influence enterprise-wide strategy through advanced modeling and simulation.
• Lead cross-domain projects involving deep learning, NLP, or advanced time-series forecasting.
• Advocate for ethical AI practices and model interpretability.
• Serve as a thought leader in data science governance, ensuring consistency and quality across teams.

EDUCATION/ EXPERIENCE

• Bachelor’s degree required inApplied Mathematics, Statistics, Computer Science,Data Science,or related technical field/coursework.
• Minimum 7 years ofrelevant experience required in data science, machine learning, artificial intelligence, predictive modeling, or advanced analytics.
• Master’s or PhD degreeinApplied Mathematics, Statistics, Computer Science, Data Science, or related field preferred.
• Aviation experience preferred.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to explain complex technical concepts and analytical findings to both technical and non-technical audiences.
• Practical application experience with Python (and associated libraries: pandas, scikit-learn,etc.), SQL, and statistical analysis.
• Experience with data visualization tools (Matplotlib,Seaborn,Plotly,or similar).
• Advancedproficiencywith tree-based algorithms and dimensionality reduction.
• Experienceworking with relational databases and developing complex data sets.
• Experience withgenerative AI concepts, including large language models (LLMs), prompt engineering, retrieval-augmented generation (RAG), andcomfortable withAIcoding assistants.
• Experience building, deploying, and managing machine learning solutions using cloud-native platforms (Azure ML,MLflow, AWS SageMaker, etc.), includingMLOpspractices such as version control, CI/CD, experiment tracking, model deployment, monitoring, and lifecycle management.
• Commitment to continuous learning, adoption of emerging data science methodologies, and ethical, responsible AI practices.
• Preferred experience in ML model training on multiple GPUs/CUDA.
• Experienceoptimizingcomputeperformanceon large datasets using parallel processing and multi-core utilization techniques and packages (e.g.Polars,PySpark,Dask, etc.)
• Experience with deep learninglibraries (e.g.PyTorch, TensorFlow),transformer-basedarchitectures,andadvanced modeling techniques.
• Proven experience leading data science projects and teams, mentoring junior data scientists, and driving strategic initiatives.
• Strong analytical skills, research capabilities, and careful attention to detail.
• Strong linear algebraskills.
• Proven experience leading data science projects and teams, mentoring junior data scientists, and driving strategic initiatives.
• Strong analytical skills, research capabilities, and careful attention to detail.

Textron Aviation Inc must comply with U.S. export control laws and regulations. If a position requires access to sensitive information controlled under these laws and regulations, a successful applicant must be eligible to meet any requirements to access controlled information.

The above statements are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by employees assigned to this job. They are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, and skills required of personnel so classified.

Join Textron Aviation’s Kansas team and you may be eligible for a $5,000 state of Kansas Aviation tax credit for up to five years. Visit https://www.aircapitaloftheworld.com/taxcredits for more information on the tax credit.

EEO Statement

Textron is committed to providing Equal Opportunity in Employment, to all applicants and employees regardless of race, color, religion, age, national origin, military status, veteran status, disability, sex (including pregnancy and sexual orientation), genetic information or any other characteristic protected by law.