Lead Autonomous Flight Controls Engineer

Lead the flight autonomy behind ASKA’s drive-and-fly mission. Bring vehicle dynamics, control software, simulation, and testing together as we build the intelligence to manage autonomous movement across ground and air.

Lead autonomous-flight and flight-controls engineering under the CTO. You will provide hands‑on technical direction across airborne automation, guidance and control integration, establish verification expectations, and support development from simulation through controlled flight evaluation. This role calls for an experienced aerospace engineer who can connect flight dynamics, real‑time software and test evidence while leading a focused engineering team.

Employment Full‑time proposed

Location & work arrangement Eagle Field Airport, Firebaugh, CA
· Palo Alto area or remote for eligible software and analysis work, to be defined; on‑site integration, development and test schedule to be discussed; availability for occasional testing at Eagle Field Airport required, with advance coordination

Technical leadership and delivery of autonomous‑flight and flight‑controls engineering.

Reports to the CTO and leads Autonomous Flight & Flight Controls engineers. Coordinates with AI, simulation, avionics, systems and flight-test specialists. The Driving Autonomy lead owns the separate ground‑vehicle discipline.

• Own technical planning and engineering review for assigned airborne autonomy and flight‑control functions.
• Develop measurable requirements and acceptance criteria with aircraft systems, safety, avionics and flight‑test engineers.
• Guide control‑law, guidance, mode‑management and airborne software work, with documented responsibility for each function.
• Review stability, robustness, control authority, actuator limits, timing and degraded‑condition behavior using justified analysis methods.
• Lead integration and verification of controller, navigation and aircraft interfaces, including configuration and calibration control.
• Set staged SIL, HIL, rig and flight‑evaluation objectives with simulation and test specialists.
• Use test‑data analysis and system identification to resolve discrepancies and substantiate engineering release recommendations.
• Mentor engineers, coordinate technical reviews and communicate readiness, resource needs and dependencies to the CTO and program manager.
• Own and continually improve evaluation methods for assigned flight‑autonomy and control functions with systems and test specialists; maintain measurable acceptance criteria, repeatable checks and traceable coverage, and use discrepancies to improve subsequent verification.

• Bachelor’s degree in aerospace, electrical, controls or computer engineering, or equivalent demonstrated aerospace engineering expertise.
• 10+ years in aircraft GNC, flight controls, airborne automation or closely related development, including 3+ years of technical leadership.
• Demonstrated responsibility for an aircraft control or autonomy function validated through ground and flight testing.
• Strong aircraft flight‑dynamics and control‑theory knowledge, including stability, robustness, estimation and actuator constraints.
• Practical experience with real‑time C/C++ software and MATLAB/Simulink or equivalent control‑design tools.
• Experience integrating airborne software and avionics interfaces and maintaining requirements‑to‑test traceability.
• Ability to lead evidence‑based reviews and work effectively with pilots, test engineers, systems specialists and assurance personnel.

VTOL or UAS development; model‑based software workflows; system identification; HIL/iron‑bird testing; familiarity with DO-178C, DO-331 and aircraft systems‑assurance practices as applicable to the assigned…