Lead Engineer - Hardware Development

AV is seeking an experienced Lead Hardware Engineer to join the EE/RF Engineering team supporting the Titan Counter‑UAS (C‑UAS) program in San Diego, CA. In this role, you will lead hardware development, production, and sustaining engineering for ruggedized RF and electronic subsystems, overseeing PCB design, analog/RF integration, embedded systems, and hardware qualification while guiding a multidisciplinary engineering team.

Hardware Design & Development

• Lead design, review, and release of schematics and PCB layouts for RF receiver, transmitter, and control electronics used in C‑UAS systems.
• Own BOM generation, component selection, and revision management across board families.
• Perform and guide signal integrity, power integrity, and RF link budget analysis.
• Conduct and oversee design reviews (PDR, CDR) and ensure traceability to system requirements.
• Select and qualify connectors, passives, and active components to MIL‑grade and IPC standards.

RF & Embedded Systems

• Design and validate RF front‑end circuits including LNAs, mixers, filters, and amplifier chains.
• Support embedded hardware integration with MCUs (e.g., AVR ATmega
  32U4, RP2040) including fuse configuration, I/O mapping, and hardware bring‑up.
• Review and contribute to firmware interfaces (SPI, I2C, UART, USB) in coordination with the firmware team.
• Evaluate and characterize SPI NOR flash, RF shields, SMA/SMPM connectors, and other critical components for program use.

Production & Quality

• Support contract manufacturer relationships including technical coordination of PCB fabrication (IPC‑6012 Class 2/3) and PCBA assembly.
• Manage hardware repair pipelines; triage, diagnose, and coordinate rework on fielded units.
• Develop and maintain test procedures, assembly work instructions, and acceptance test specifications.

Team Leadership & Program Support

• Provide technical mentorship to junior and mid‑level electrical engineers and engineering technicians.
• Coordinate with management on hardware schedules, risk identification, and status reporting.
• Interface with vendors and suppliers to manage component lead times, qualification activities, and NRE efforts.
• Contribute to proposal efforts, ROM generation, and engineering change order (ECO) processes.

• B.S. or M.S. in Electrical Engineering, RF Engineering, or a closely related field.
• 6+ years of hardware design experience.
• Demonstrated expertise in RF/microwave circuit design.
• Proficiency with EDA tools (Altium Designer strongly preferred) for schematic capture and PCB layout.
• Hands‑on experience with lab equipment: spectrum analyzers, VNAs, oscilloscopes, signal generators.
• Strong knowledge of PCB manufacturing standards (IPC‑6012, IPC‑A‑610) and military environmental test standards (MIL‑STD‑810).
• Experience supporting contract manufacturers through NPI and production phases.

• 2+ years in a leadership or senior individual contributor role.
• Experience with ERP/PLM systems (e.g., Arena PLM, Odoo, Oracle Fusion) for BOM and change management.
• Prior experience at a defense prime or Tier‑1 defense subcontractor.

Clearance Level

No Clearance

Salary range: $151,000 - $214,200

Benefits: AV offers an excellent benefits package including medical, dental, vision, 401(k) with company matching, a 9/80 work schedule, and a paid holiday shutdown.

This position requires access to information that is subject to compliance with the International Traffic Arms Regulations (ITAR) and/or the Export Administration Regulations (EAR). Applicants must qualify as a U.S. person under ITAR and/or EAR, or be approved for an export license. The role may require current U.S. Citizenship due to contract requirements.

We are proud to be an EEO/AA Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability/veterans. Aero Vironment, Inc. is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) employer and welcomes all qualified applicants. Qualified applicants will receive fair and impartial consideration without regard to race, sex, color, religion, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, genetic data, sexual orientation, gender identity or other legally protected status.

U.S. Citizenship required.