Structures Design Engineer - Composite Aircraft

Swarm Aero; Oxnard (CA); On-site; USD 140,000 - 210,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity in a high-growth defense tech

Competitive base salary

Medical, dental, vision, 401k

PTO and paid sick leave

Monthly wellness stipend

Daily catered lunch (office)

Paid parental leave

Direct impact on a national security使命

World‑class engineering team

Job summary

Swarm Aero is building a Group 5 autonomous aircraft and seeking a structures design engineer to own parts from concept through first article. You will design real hardware—control surfaces, ribs, spars, frames, doors—and drive analysis, drawings, vendor coordination, and first article testing.

You’ll coordinate with manufacturing and support integration of subsystems to deliver build-ready structures. The role emphasizes hands-on CAD/FEA work in a fast‑paced, small team, with travel to Oxnard

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field (advanced degree preferred).
• 5+ years of experience in composite structure design for aircraft, spacecraft, or similar vehicles.
• Deep understanding of composite and metal material properties, laminate design, bonding and joining techniques.
• Strong expertise in CAD software, particularly Siemens NX and Fibersim, or equivalent software.
• Led the design and analysis of composite structures throughout the product lifecycle, from conceptualization to production.
• Hands‑on experience with composite part fabrication and bonding.
• Familiarity with aviation industry standards and DoD certification requirements.
• Ability and willingness to travel to our Oxnard headquarters for onsite collaboration and meetings.

Responsibilities

• Own structural design and sizing for primary and secondary airframe structure, including wing, fuselage, empennage, and major joints
• Develop the loads and criteria set for the aircraft and turn it into sized structure with documented margins
• Run static, buckling, fatigue, and dynamic analysis in FEA, and know when hand calcs are the faster and better answer
• Design in composites and metallics, and decide placement based on weight, cost, and rate
• Work directly with manufacturing on layup design, tooling concepts, part count, and assembly sequence
• Define and run structural test from coupon to full scale static tests, reconciling results with the model
• Support integration of propulsion, landing or recovery systems, payload bays, and control surface actuation
• Own your parts end to end, from concept through drawings, vendor coordination, first article, and flight

Skills

Aerospace design

Composite structures

CAD Siemens NX

Fibersim

FEM/FEA analysis

Product lifecycle

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace/Mechanical Engineering

Advanced degree preferred

Tools

Siemens NX

Fibersim

Teamcenter

Job description

Swarm Aero is building a Group 5 autonomous aircraft and seeking a structures design engineer to own parts from concept through first article. You will design real hardware—control surfaces, ribs, spars, frames, doors—and drive analysis, drawings, vendor coordination, and first article testing.

You’ll coordinate with manufacturing and support integration of subsystems to deliver build-ready structures. The role emphasizes hands-on CAD/FEA work in a fast‑paced, small team, with travel to Oxnard