Senior Systems Engineer — Unmanned Defense & Simulation

InvestedintheMission; Huntsville (AL); On-site; USD 134,000 - 204,000; Full time

Job summary

AeroVironment in Huntsville, AL seeks a Principal Systems Engineer to drive design across unmanned systems for defense and commercial use. You will collaborate with Controls and Design teams to define requirements, architect solutions, and advance simulations from concept to validation.

Responsibilities include managing traceability, developing test plans, and guiding architecture decisions while mentoring engineers and ensuring safety. ITAR compliance and a strong systems mindset are essential.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mathematics, CS/Engineering, or related field.
• 12–15 years of systems engineering experience, aerospace preferred.
• Proficiency with C/C++ and Matlab is required.
• Experience with requirements traceability through full system cycle.
• Familiarity with model-based engineering tools and safety protocols.

Responsibilities

• Oversee requirements traceability through the system development cycle.
• Provide weekly status updates and burn-down metrics.
• Allocate requirements to subsystems and coordinate engineering.
• Develop instrumented flight-test vectors and data acquisition.
• Create system test plans and reports; review specifications.
• Interpret customer requirements and influence architecture decisions.
• Mentor team members and uphold company values.

Skills

C/C++

Matlab

Requirements tracing

Education

Bachelor's degree in Mathematics, Computer Science/Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Aerospace, or Mechanical Engineering

Tools

Simulink

Ansys

Solidworks

Job description

AeroVironment in Huntsville, AL seeks a Principal Systems Engineer to drive design across unmanned systems for defense and commercial use. You will collaborate with Controls and Design teams to define requirements, architect solutions, and advance simulations from concept to validation.

Responsibilities include managing traceability, developing test plans, and guiding architecture decisions while mentoring engineers and ensuring safety. ITAR compliance and a strong systems mindset are essential.