Unmanned Systems Engineer
| Company | Iron EagleX |
|---|---|
| Location | Fayetteville, NC, USA |
| Salary | $Not Provided – $Not Provided |
| Type | Full-Time |
| Degrees | Master’s |
| Experience Level | Senior |
Requirements
- 5+ years of experience in UAS engineering with focus on Group 1 and Group 2 platforms.
- Hands-on experience with drone systems integration, onboard compute, and hardware/software troubleshooting.
- Familiarity with common GCS (Ground Control Station) and mission planning tools such as QGroundControl, Mission Planner, or proprietary DoD systems.
- Proficiency in integrating sensors, communications, and processing into compact drone platforms.
- Knowledge of distributed systems and secure communication protocols.
- Experience with flight test procedures and FAA/DoD regulatory compliance.
- Due to US Government Contract Requirements, only US Citizens are eligible for this role.
Responsibilities
- Lead the engineering and integration of Group 1 and 2 unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for defense and ISR missions.
- Design and implement hardware and software solutions for drone payloads, sensors, and onboard compute platforms.
- Develop and test communication interfaces between distributed drone subsystems.
- Integrate autonomous and semi-autonomous capabilities into existing drone architectures.
- Collaborate with mission planners and ground control station developers to ensure interoperability and end-to-end mission execution.
- Support flight testing, data collection, diagnostics, and system tuning.
- Participate in the prototyping and fielding of next-generation UAS capabilities.
- Contribute to the development of documentation, system diagrams, interface control documents (ICDs), and integration guides.
- Engineer drone subsystems including navigation, payload control, telemetry, and power management.
- Implement onboard compute systems using platforms such as NVIDIA Jetson, Intel NUC, or similar embedded computing environments.
- Perform hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) and software-in-the-loop (SIL) simulation and validation.
- Support integration of drones with secure networks and tactical edge systems.
- Assist in compliance testing to meet DoD airworthiness and security standards.
- Troubleshoot field issues and provide engineering support during mission operations.
- Interface with government stakeholders to define system requirements and performance benchmarks.
Preferred Qualifications
- Master’s degree in a relevant engineering discipline.
- Experience with open-source flight stacks such as PX4 or ArduPilot.
- Familiarity with C2 interoperability standards (e.g., STANAG 4586, MAVLink).
- Exposure to AI/ML-enabled perception or autonomy in UAS applications.
- Experience with ruggedization and environmental hardening for operational deployment.