Senior Technical Recruiter - Flight

CHAOS Industries; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 130,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health benefits

401k match

Free lunch

Unlimited PTO

Casual dress code

Job summary

CHAOS Industries is seeking a Senior Technical Recruiter to lead full-cycle recruiting for hardware and engineering talent in our Washington, DC office, with a focus on aircraft and airborne systems. You will partner with hiring managers to define roles, build pipelines for niche engineering specialties, and drive a high-touch candidate experience in a fast-scaling defense tech environment.

Responsibilities include sourcing, screening, coordinating interviews, and delivering timely offers while

Qualifications

• 6+ years of full-cycle technical recruiting experience in aerospace/defense hardware
• Direct experience recruiting for flight or airframe domains (flight controls, aerostructures, avionics, propulsion)
• Experience partnering with engineering leaders on role scoping, pipelines, and candidate evaluation
• Strong understanding of aerospace disciplines and candidate mapping
• Established network in the DC aerospace/defense recruiting community
• Consultative approach building trust with candidates and hiring managers
• Ability to manage multiple searches and report funnel progress
• Curiosity, low ego, willingness to learn and adapt

Responsibilities

• Own full-cycle recruiting for engineering roles from screening to offer
• Partner with hiring managers to understand technical requirements across disciplines
• Build sourcing strategies to identify engineers with aircraft or airborne systems experience
• Develop pipelines for niche, hard-to-fill roles
• Coordinate with Recruiting Coordinators and Operations to streamline processes
• Maintain pipeline metrics and report progress to leadership
• Represent roles accurately to candidates and understand team roadmaps
• Lead external agencies for niche roles
• Deliver a high-touch candidate experience
• Work 4 to 5 days onsite in Washington, DC office

Skills

Full-cycle recruiting

Engineering recruiting

Aerospace recruiting

ATS/HRIS

Sourcing strategies

Stakeholder management

Networking

Tools

Greenhouse

LinkedIn Recruiter

Pave

Asana

Juicebox

Job description

CHAOS Industries is redefining modern defense with a multi-product portfolio that gives the ultimate advantage—domain dominance. The company's products are powered by Coherent Distributed Networks (CDN™), empowering warfighters, commercial air operators, and border protection teams to act faster, adapt rapidly, and stay ahead of evolving threats.
CHAOS Industries was founded in 2022 and has raised a total of $1 billion in funding from leading investors, including 8VC, Accel, and Valor Equity Partners. The company is headquartered in Los Angeles, with offices in Washington, D.C., San Francisco, San Diego, Seattle, and London. For more information, please visit www.chaosinc.com.

Role Overview

CHAOS is looking for a Senior Technical Recruiter to lead full-cycle recruiting out of our Washington, D.C. office, with a focus on hardware and engineering talent tied to aircraft and airborne systems development. You'll partner closely with hiring managers and our broader recruiting org to build pipelines for engineers across a range of technical disciplines, with particular emphasis on roles connected to flight hardware and systems. This is a high-ownership role for someone who understands what it takes to hire engineers building real, flying systems, not just software.

Responsibilities

• Own full-cycle recruiting for engineering roles, from initial screening through offer
• Partner with hiring managers to deeply understand technical requirements across disciplines such as airframe and structures, flight controls, autonomy, propulsion, systems engineering, and flight test
• Build and execute sourcing strategies to identify engineers with relevant aircraft or airborne systems development experience, drawing on your own network in the space
• Develop pipelines for niche, hard to fill roles where candidates are scarce and competition is high
• Partner with Recruiting Coordinators, fellow Recruiters, and Operations to keep the hiring process efficient
• Maintain and report on pipeline metrics and hiring progress to leadership and internal stakeholders
• Develop a working understanding of the technical roadmap and culture of the teams you support, in order to accurately represent roles to candidates
• Recommend and implement process improvements as hiring needs evolve
• Run point on any external recruiting agencies supporting niche or hard to source roles
• Deliver a high touch, proactive candidate experience for a talent pool that has options
• Work 4 to 5 days onsite out of our Washington, D.C. office

Minimum Requirements

• 6+ years of full-cycle technical recruiting experience, with a track record of closing engineering talent in aerospace, defense tech, or a related hardware intensive industry
• Direct experience recruiting for roles tied to manned or unmanned aircraft development, such as flight controls, aerostructures, avionics, propulsion, systems integration, or flight test engineering (commonly referred to as "flight" or "airframe" recruiting backgrounds)
• Experience partnering with engineering directors and technical hiring managers on role scoping, pipeline strategy, and candidate evaluation
• Strong understanding of aerospace engineering disciplines and how they map to candidate backgrounds and career paths
• Established network within the aerospace and defense tech recruiting community in the DC area or similar hubs
• Consultative approach that builds trust with both candidates and hiring managers
• Experience managing multiple concurrent searches and reporting on funnel progress
• High curiosity and low ego; values learning, direct feedback, and continuous improvement
• Familiarity with ATS/HRIS systems and a range of sourcing channels for hard to find technical talent

Preferred Requirements

• Prior experience recruiting at a defense tech company, a traditional aerospace/defense prime, or an aircraft OEM
• Experience with tools such as Greenhouse, LinkedIn Recruiter, Pave, Asana, Juicebox
• Ability to operate independently with minimal oversight in a fast scaling environment
• Resilient, creative problem solver who adapts quickly to shifting priorities
• Direct, timely, and efficient communicator with strong active listening skills
• High ownership mindset with a willingness to support mission critical hiring beyond the defined scope of the role

Why CHAOS

• Health Benefits: Medical, dental, and vision benefits 100% paid for by the company
• Additional benefits: 401k (+ 50% company match up to 6% of pay), FSA, HSA, life insurance, and more
• Our Perks: Free daily lunch, ‘No meeting Fridays’, unlimited PTO, casual dress code
• Compensation Components: Competitive base salaries, generous pre-IPO stock option grants, relocation assistance, and (coming soon!) annual bonuses
• Team Growth: 350 employees and counting across 5 global offices

Salary Range: $130,000 - $150,000

The stated compensation range reflects only the targeted base compensation range and excludes additional earnings such as bonus, equity, and benefits. If your compensation requirements fall outside of the range, we still encourage you to apply. The salary range for this role is an estimate based on a range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience, education and/or training, critical skills, and/or business considerations.
Recruiting Agencies: CHAOS Industries does not accept unsolicited resumes or outreach. Unsolicited submissions will not be reviewed or compensated.