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Shield AI, a venture-backed defense-tech company, is seeking a Staff Engineer for Fuel Systems to own the complete fuel system architecture for the Ranger (R6299) aircraft platform. You will serve as the Responsible Engineer for all fuel system aspects—from requirements and architecture through operational deployment—including design, sizing, and integration of fuel tanks, pumps, valves, plumbing, venting, pressurization, filtration, and level sensing hardware.
Key responsibilities include analyzing fuel system performance across the full aircraft operating envelope (pressure/flow requirements, transient engine demand, elevated-G maneuvering, tank depletion, slosh, vapor pressure, cavitation, vapor ingestion, and thermal effects). You will lead technical design reviews, supplier engagements, and hardware procurement while ensuring the system meets performance, mass, thermal, reliability, safety, and mission requirements. You will plan and execute component, subsystem, and vehicle-level testing—including instrumentation, procedures, data acquisition, and performance validation—and analyze ground and flight data to validate performance, quantify margin, identify anomalies, and drive improvements.
You will lead failure investigations and root cause analysis using inspection, testing, and data to develop corrective actions. Working hands-on with design engineers, technicians, propulsion, controls, airframe, manufacturing, supply chain, test, and flight teams, you will build, integrate, troubleshoot, and iterate flight hardware in a fast-paced development environment.
Shield AI's products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation technologies, with operations worldwide across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific.
**Requirements:**
- Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or related engineering discipline
- 7+ years of experience in aerospace fuel systems, fluid systems, propulsion, or related aircraft system development with demonstrated ownership of complex aerospace hardware
- Strong understanding of thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, heat transfer, and compressible/incompressible flow
- Strong understanding of aerospace fuel system design (pressure losses, pump performance, venting, vapor pressure, cavitation, transient flow behavior, thermal effects)
- Hands-on experience with fluid system hardware integration, instrumentation, testing, flight support, and technical failure investigations
- Strong proficiency in Python or similar tools for engineering analysis, data reduction, and model correlation
- Demonstrated ability to independently drive ambiguous technical problems to measurable results in fast-paced environments
- U.S. Citizenship and active security clearance
**Preferred qualifications:**
- Experience developing fuel systems for high-performance, tactical, or UAV aircraft
- Experience designing fuel systems for elevated-G maneuvering or aggressive vehicle dynamics
- Experience with fuel tanks, pumps, valves, regulators, level sensing, venting, pressurization, and fuel system control hardware
- Familiarity with GFSSP, REFPROP, CFD, ANSYS, FEA, or similar thermal-fluid analysis tools
- Experience with aerospace supplier management (component selection, procurement, development, qualification, integration)
- Background in rocket propulsion or propellant systems with transferable experience
- M.S. or Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or related discipline
