Deputy Program Engineer, Hypersonic Strike Torrance, CA Mechanical Engineering

Deputy Program Engineer, Hypersonic Strike

• Mechanical Engineering

Why Castelion, Why Now

Castelion is moving incredibly fast to develop and deliver advanced defense systems at a time when execution matters more than ever. We believe focus, ownership, and excellence are decisive advantages - and we're building a world-class team to turn bold ideas into real capability.

This is a rare opportunity to join at an early stage, where you'll have significant ownership, collaborate with exceptional teammates, and make a direct, measurable impact on our mission and the future of the company - regardless of your function.

Deputy Program Engineer, Hypersonic Strike

System-level trades for Blackbeard development test milestones and own configuration and release status for all Blackbeard development flights. Serve as the primary technical partner to the product Responsible Engineer, maintaining a vehicle-level understanding of the system and driving technical execution across the program. Set and maintain clear visibility into testing progress across the company including vehicle-level systems integration, propulsion, structures, avionics, GNC, software, payload, thermal, and ground systems.

Responsibilities

Own the objectives, success criteria, schedule, and vehicle configuration for each development test. Align these with program leadership and technical stakeholders.

Own the integrated technical configuration for each development vehicle and mission, including top-level vehicle CAD, interfaces, configuration baselines, and design release status.

Identify and resolve cross-functional technical issues, interface conflicts, and configuration gaps that could impact vehicle performance, build, test, or flight.

Track and communicate vehicle technical maturity, schedule, critical-path risks, and readiness to the broader organization and program leadership.

Lead vehicle and mission readiness reviews, ensuring technical risks, open work, deviations, and required decisions are clearly understood and driven to closure.

Coordinate preflight engineering verification across all disciplines, ensuring required analyses, tests, inspections, and technical approvals are completed.

Own or coordinate key customer technical data deliveries and mission-specific vehicle information.

Ensure lessons learned from ground and flight testing are rapidly incorporated into subsequent vehicle configurations.

Operate with broad authority across the program and drive issues to closure regardless of functional ownership.

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, Electrical Engineering, or related field.
• 8+ years of hands-on hardware design, testing, and support
• Demonstrated project management and communication skillset across 100+ organizations
• Demonstrated capability to evaluate system-level risk and develop test strategies aligned with and approved by the customer.

Preferred Skills and Experience

• System integration and test for electromechanical hardware and software
• Flight vehicle test experience, first flights, rockets

Castelion offers a generous benefits package. Please refer to the bottom of our Careers page for more details.

Other Duties

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

Additional Eligibility Requirements

This position may require access to classified information or restricted U.S. Government sites, systems, or information, as determined by the Company and/or applicable U.S. Government requirements. If the position is so designated, your employment in the role may be contingent upon your…