Principal Mechanical Systems Engineer, IPT Lead

CHAOS Industries is redefining modern defense with a multi-product portfolio that gives the ultimate advantage-domain dominance. The company's products are powered by Coherent Distributed Networks (CDN), empowering warfighters, commercial air operators, and border protection teams to act faster, adapt rapidly, and stay ahead of evolving threats.

CHAOS Industries was founded in 2022 and has raised a total of $1 billion in funding from leading investors, including 8VC, Accel, and Valor Equity Partners. The company is headquartered in Los Angeles, with offices in Washington, D.C., San Francisco, San Diego, and London. For more information, please visit  .

Role Overview: We are seeking an experienced Principal Mechanical Systems Engineer who will lead design and development of aircraft mechanical systems — including landing gear, doors/hatches/access panels, wheels and brakes, actuation mechanisms, and related mechanical subsystems — for a Massed Modular Aircraft (MMA) program. This role owns the mechanical systems design approach from concept through qualification and production transition, with emphasis on modularity, producibility, and design-for-mass-manufacture principles that support high-rate, distributed production.

The ideal candidate brings broad aircraft mechanical systems expertise across multiple subsystem domains, combined with a strong producibility mindset suited to attritable, low-cost, or mass-producible aircraft concepts.

• Lead design and integration of aircraft mechanical systems, including:
• Wheels, tires, and brake systems (including brake control and anti-skid considerations)
• Doors, hatches, access panels, and associated latching/locking mechanisms
• Actuation systems (electromechanical, hydraulic, or pneumatic as applicable) supporting flight control surfaces, doors, and landing gear
• Other mechanical subsystems as required (e.g., tow fittings, jacking points, ground handling provisions)
• Define and enforce a modular mechanical systems architecture with common interfaces, standardized attachment schemes, and interchangeable subassemblies across platform variants.
• Own mechanical system trade studies (actuation method, materials, kinematics) balancing performance, weight, reliability, cost, and producibility at scale.
• Ensure mechanical systems integrate cleanly with airframe structure, avionics, and flight controls across modular interface boundaries.
• Apply design-for-manufacture and design-for-assembly (DFM/DFA) principles to mechanical systems to enable high-rate, low-touch-labor production.
• Partner with Manufacturing Engineering to define producible mechanism designs, standardized components, and assembly/installation sequences compatible with distributed or multi-site production.
• Drive design decisions that reduce part count, unique fastener/hardware types, and non-recurring tooling complexity without compromising mechanical reliability or safety.
• Support make/buy and sourcing strategy discussions with Supply Chain, including identification of commercial-off-the-shelf (COTS) or modified-COTS mechanical components where appropriate to reduce cost and lead time.
• Lead or oversee mechanical systems analysis, including kinematic/motion analysis, structural analysis of mechanism components, load analysis (landing gear ground loads, braking loads, door/latch loads), and reliability/durability analysis.
• Define and execute the mechanical systems test program (component, subsystem, and full-system functional, environmental, and endurance testing) required to substantiate the design.
• Support qualification activities in accordance with applicable military and/or civil-derivative standards relevant to landing gear, brakes, and mechanical systems…