Thermal Design Engineer – Autonomous Aircraft

The Rundown AI, Inc.; Dallas, Northern (TX, KY); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Shield AI is seeking a Thermal Engineer to own the design, analysis, and integration of thermal management systems for its launch and recovery components of autonomous aircraft. You will develop and validate heat-transfer models, perform CFD analyses, and guide cross-functional teams to ensure reliability and mission readiness.

The role requires 2+ years in thermal engineering, strong fundamentals in heat transfer and fluid mechanics, and proficiency with ANSYS Icepak, FloEFD, and CAD tools like

Qualifications

• BS in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related discipline.
• 2+ years of professional experience in thermal engineering.
• Strong expertise in heat transfer (conduction, convection, radiation) and fluid mechanics.
• Strong understanding of active and passive cooling solutions and their integration at component and system level.
• Understanding of thermal management design elements including TIMs, spreaders, heat sinks, vapor chambers, heat pipes, and fans
• Proficiency with thermal analysis and CFD tools (e.g., ANSYS Icepak, FloEFD, STAR-CCM+).
• Experience with CAD design tools such as NX, SolidWorks, or similar.
• Demonstrated experience applying first-principles reasoning to complex engineering problems.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Proven ability to learn and adapt quickly to new tools, processes, and technical challenges in a fast paced, startup environment.
• A demonstrated record of working hard, being trustworthy, holding yourself to high standards, and being kind to others
• Ability to obtain a S//SAR level security clearance desired.

Responsibilities

• Own thermal solutions for the autonomous aircraft launch and recovery system.
• Develop and validate analytical, numerical, and computational models for heat transfer and fluid flow using hand calculations and CFD tools such as FloEFD.
• Prototype, test, and iterate mechanism designs for functionality and reliability.
• Provide technical leadership in trade studies, system architecture decisions, and risk assessments.
• Drive test planning, instrumentation, and data analysis to correlate models with experimental results.
• Proactively identify risks, propose solutions, and influence mechanical, electrical and/or PCBA design direction.
• Collaborate with mechanical, electrical, avionics, flight controls, manufacturing, and test teams.
• Support pre-production builds, prototype integration, and ground/flight testing on the pathway to production and field deployment.
• Participate in design reviews, architecture discussions, and technical decision-making forums related to structural systems.
• Identify opportunities to improve design processes, configuration management, and team workflows for increased engineering velocity and design quality.

Skills

Heat transfer

Fluid mechanics

Thermal management

CFD analysis

First-principles reasoning

Communication

Learning agility

Education

BS in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering

Tools

ANSYS Icepak

FloEFD

STAR-CCM+

NX

SolidWorks

Job description

Shield AI is seeking a Thermal Engineer to own the design, analysis, and integration of thermal management systems for its launch and recovery components of autonomous aircraft. You will develop and validate heat-transfer models, perform CFD analyses, and guide cross-functional teams to ensure reliability and mission readiness.

The role requires 2+ years in thermal engineering, strong fundamentals in heat transfer and fluid mechanics, and proficiency with ANSYS Icepak, FloEFD, and CAD tools like