Chief Engineer, Advanced Science and Technology

ABOUT THE TEAM

The Air Dominance and Strike (AD&S) Chief Engineering Team is a driving force behind the technical execution and strategic vision of our most critical programs. They are responsible for architecting a vision for product development and guiding multi-disciplinary teams to deliver effectively. They are expected to own the mission and to be deeply involved in building the eco-system that enables execution.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

As a Chief Engineer focused on Science & Technology, you will act as the senior technical authority guiding conceptual design, applied research, and experimental development for advanced air systems. You will be expected to be highly creative at the conceptual stage, deeply understand customer mission needs, and personally drive technical execution through modeling, experimentation, build, and test.

Concept Creation & Applied Science

• Lead early-stage conceptual design of advanced air vehicle systems, including configuration exploration, trade studies, and performance modeling.
• Apply first-principles thinking across aerodynamics, structures, propulsion, controls, autonomy, and low observables to evaluate concepts.
• Identify and mature key scientific and technical breakthroughs required to unlock new operational capability
• Balance creativity with engineering realism, ensuring concepts are grounded in executable technology paths.

Systems Architecture & Integration

• Define system architectures that integrate air vehicle design, mission systems, autonomy, and manufacturing considerations from the outset.
• Lead cross-disciplinary trade studies and modeling efforts to understand subsystem interactions, sensitivities, and failure modes.
• Guide the transition of concepts from exploration to prototype-ready designs.

Customer Understanding & Problem Translation

• Partner closely with customers to understand operational problems, constraints, and mission intent at a fundamental level.
• Translate loosely defined or emerging customer needs into technical hypotheses, experiments, and development plans.
• Act as a technical translator between customer objectives and engineering execution.

Technical Leadership & Ownership

• Serve as the accountable technical owner for advanced S&T programs or major system elements.
• Lead and mentor multidisciplinary teams in ambiguous, fast-moving development environments.
• Communicate complex technical ideas clearly to engineers, leadership, and customers.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Physics, Systems Engineering, or a related technical field (advanced degree strongly preferred).
• 10+ years of experience in advanced R&D, experimental aerospace systems, or new technology development programs.
• Demonstrated experience leading conceptual design and early-phase system architecture.
• Strong systems-level thinking with the ability to reason across multiple engineering domains.
• Hands-on experience with real hardware, experimentation, or test activities.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Prior experience working with DOW technology development organizations such as DARPA and AFRL
• Experience transitioning technologies from early research through prototype and operational demonstration.
• Background in experimental or flight test environments, including test planning and execution.
• Experience working on advanced or classified air systems, including low-observable or signature-constrained designs.
• Deep technical expertise in one or more domains (e.g., aerodynamics, flight controls, GNC, propulsion, structures, systems integration).
• Demonstrated ability to thrive in fast-paced, non-traditional aerospace environments.
• Currently obtains a Top Secret level clearance or higher