Senior Drone Mechanical Engineering Manager

Decisive Point; Sunnyvale (CA); On-site; USD 200,000 - 320,000; Full time

Job summary

Applied Intuition, Inc. is seeking a Senior Mechanical Engineering Manager, Drone, to lead the mechanical design of our drone platforms from airframe to integration.

You will hire and mentor a team, guide tradeoffs on weight and aerodynamics, and work hands-on through the full product lifecycle. You will oversee structural, thermal, and vibration analyses, champion rapid prototyping, and collaborate with autonomy, avionics, electrical, software, and flight test teams to meet mission

Qualifications

• BS/MS in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field.
• 12+ years of experience designing hardware and shipping products, ideally for drones, UAS, or aircraft.
• 7+ years of experience leading and managing mechanical engineering teams.
• Hands-on experience designing flight vehicles or flight-critical structures such as airframes, wings, fuselages, rotor arms, or landing gear.
• Strong understanding of weight, structures, aerodynamic loads, stability, and propulsion integration.
• Experience designing lightweight structures including composites, carbon fiber, and aerospace metals.
• Experience with design for manufacturing across CNC, composites, sheet metal, and additive manufacturing.
• Proficiency in CAD, SolidWorks preferred, for 3D design and modification.
• Track record of hiring, developing, and retaining strong engineering talent.

Responsibilities

• As the senior Mechanical Engineering Manager, Drone, build and lead a team of mechanical engineers responsible for airframe, fuselage, wings or rotor arms, landing gear, and structural components.
• Set technical direction on weight, strength, aerodynamics, flight time, and payload capacity to ensure flight performance.
• Guide integration of propulsion, batteries, avionics, and payloads into the airframe, including packaging, mounting, cooling, and cable routing.
• Oversee structural, thermal, and vibration analysis across the team, using flight/test data to validate designs.
• Drive rapid prototyping: build, assemble, and iterate on real hardware; support flight testing and field operations.
• Lead failure and crash investigations, perform root cause analysis, and translate lessons into design improvements.
• Own design, analysis, and validation quality from component to fully integrated aircraft.
• Champion manufacturability, repairability, and field serviceability.
• Hire, mentor, and grow engineers; manage performance and career development.
• Partner cross-functionally with autonomy, avionics, electrical, software, and flight test leaders to meet mission requirements.

Skills

Flight hardware design

Team leadership

CAD SolidWorks

Aerospace structures

Manufacturing integration

Root cause analysis

Prototyping & testing

Education

BS/MS Mechanical/Aerospace Engineering

Tools

SolidWorks

FEA/CAE

Job description

Applied Intuition, Inc. is seeking a Senior Mechanical Engineering Manager, Drone, to lead the mechanical design of our drone platforms from airframe to integration.

You will hire and mentor a team, guide tradeoffs on weight and aerodynamics, and work hands-on through the full product lifecycle. You will oversee structural, thermal, and vibration analyses, champion rapid prototyping, and collaborate with autonomy, avionics, electrical, software, and flight test teams to meet mission