Payloads Lead, Thunder

Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century’s most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril’s family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI-powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3D command and control center.

As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years.

The Maneuver Dominance team is building Thunder - an autonomous attack rotorcraft built to fight alongside crewed combat aviation to deliver overwhelming mass effects deep beyond the front lines.

The team in London builds the Mission System and the autonomy that makes aircraft like Thunder work.

Autonomy is only as good as the link that carries it. Thunder is a compact airframe with weapons, sensors and radios competing for the same antenna real estate, flying low and in formation, in a spectrum that is actively contested. That is the problem you would own.

Anduril is seeking a Payloads Lead Engineer to join the Maneuver Dominance team at our Costa Mesa HQ. The Maneuver Dominance (MD) Team at Anduril develops aerial robotic systems designed to operate in large coordinated teams in concert with ground maneuver forces. We leverage existing Anduril drone platforms like Ghost, Altius, or Roadrunner, in addition to bringing 3rd party platforms into Anduril’s Lattice ecosystem.

We develop perception and autonomy algorithms to solve some of the hardest problems facing our customers.

Anduril is seeking a Payloads Lead Engineer to join the Maneuver Dominance team at our Costa Mesa HQ. The Maneuver Dominance (MD) Team at Anduril develops aerial robotic systems designed to operate in large coordinated teams in concert with ground maneuver forces. We leverage existing Anduril drone platforms like Ghost, Altius, or Roadrunner, in addition to bringing 3rd party platforms into Anduril’s Lattice ecosystem.

We develop perception and autonomy algorithms to solve some of the hardest problems facing our customers.

• Own the overall payloads architecture and roadmap across all weapon and payload systems integrated onto the platform
• Lead and grow multiple payload integration teams, each responsible for a specific weapon or payload module
• Develop program plans, estimates, and schedules across the payloads portfolio
• Drive cross team interface consistency in electrical (1553/1760), structural and mechanical, software, and datalink domains across all payload teams
• Own staffing plans, hiring, and resource allocation across the payloads organization
• Own product execution across payload work streams, including prioritization, roadmap, delivery tracking, and cross team dependency management
• Partner closely with the Mission Systems Lead and Mission Autonomy Lead to align payload capability, interfaces, and timelines with vehicle management and autonomy software
• Serve as primary technical relationship owner with customers, contractors, and external weapon and payload suppliers, covering commercial terms, technical scope, and delivery commitments
• Own or delegate stores management system (SMS) and fire control architecture standards applied consistently across payload modules
• Drive modular, open architecture standards (MOSA/WOSA) across the payloads portfolio to enable rapid reconfiguration and multi weapon compatibility
• Own safe separation and airworthiness certification strategy across the payload portfolio, coordinating with flight test and certification authorities
• Own requirements generation, Interface Control Documents, Software Requirement Specifications, and Performance Specifications standards across payload teams
• Support ongoing operation and sustainment of fielded weapon systems
• Support proposals and white papers for future payload efforts or capabilities
• Represent the payloads organization in program level technical reviews, customer engagements, and executive reviews
• Escalate and resolve cross team technical and resourcing conflicts across payload work streams, including conflicting design and development requirements
• Travel up to 25% to test sites, integration facilities, and partner locations