Staff Propulsion Controls Engineer - Hybrid-Electric Aircraft

Kaizen Resourcing Ltd; California; Hybrid; USD 170,000 - 230,000; Full time

Job summary

Kaizen Resourcing Ltd is helping to source a Staff Propulsion Controls & Software Engineer for hybrid-electric aircraft propulsion. The role spans controls, embedded software, and simulation, with ownership from model to flight-ready implementation.

You will work on PMSM control, SiC stages, energy-management logic, and high-fidelity propulsion models, coordinating MIL/SIL/HIL validation and real-time firmware deployment.

Qualifications

• 8+ years developing controls and embedded software for high-power motor drives or power converters.
• Deep, hands-on expertise in PMSM control (d-q theory, FOC, SVPWM/DPWM, sensorless observers, flux-weakening, fault detection).
• Working knowledge of SiC MOSFET stages to design control and protection logic with device physics in mind.
• Fluency in MATLAB/Simulink, Simscape, and PLECS.
• Production embedded experience on DSPs (fixed-point, real-time scheduling, on-target debugging).
• Track record of taking a controls or embedded subsystem from concept to flight- or field-ready.
• MS or PhD in Electrical Engineering, Power Electronics, or Controls preferred (strong BS candidates with relevant experience considered).

Responsibilities

• Design, implement, and tune discrete-time control loops for PMSM drives, active rectifiers, and DC/DC converters.
• Develop EMI-aware modulation and switching strategies for SiC stages (20-40+ kHz).
• Build the supervisory power-split and energy-management logic coordinating turbogenerator, battery, DC bus, and propulsion inverters.
• Create high-fidelity propulsion models in MATLAB/Simulink, Simscape, and PLECS; correlate models to bench data.
• Stand up MIL/SIL/HIL environments (Typhoon HIL, OPAL-RT, Speedgoat) with regression and fault-injection suites.
• Translate algorithms from model to production firmware on DSPs (TI C2000, ARM Cortex) via Embedded Coder or hand-written C/C++.
• Define real-time communications and ICDs (CAN/CAN-FD/Ethernet) and support dyno/iron-bird integration.
• Produce design specs, modeling reports, and verification evidence aligned to DO-178C, DO-254, ARP4754B.

Skills

PMSM control

Embedded software

MATLAB/Simulink

SiC MOSFETs

DSPs

Real-time debugging

Flight hardware integration

Education

MS in Electrical Engineering

PhD in Electrical Engineering

Tools

Typhoon HIL

OPAL-RT

Speedgoat

TI C2000

ARM Cortex

Job description

Kaizen Resourcing Ltd is helping to source a Staff Propulsion Controls & Software Engineer for hybrid-electric aircraft propulsion. The role spans controls, embedded software, and simulation, with ownership from model to flight-ready implementation.

You will work on PMSM control, SiC stages, energy-management logic, and high-fidelity propulsion models, coordinating MIL/SIL/HIL validation and real-time firmware deployment.