Inversion Space

Low-cost cargo re-entry services for space

Senior GNC Engineer - Controls

Flight Dynamics & GNCConfirmed live in the last 24 hours

Full-timePlaya Vista, Los Angeles, CA, USA$139k - $201k /yr

About the Job

Requirements

A bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, a related field, or equivalent experience is required.
Typically, five or more years of applicable experience designing and testing control systems for aerospace vehicles is required.
Experience building plant models of aerospace systems, including aerodynamic, actuator, and sensor dynamics, and controlling open-loop unstable systems is required.
Experience with high-rate digital control design, including discretization, sample-rate selection, and management of latency and computational delay is required.
Experience developing and exercising 3-DOF and 6-DOF flight simulations is required.
Strong fundamentals in classical and modern control theory, including frequency-domain loop shaping, stability-margin analysis, and state-space methods are required.
Proficiency with MATLAB/Simulink and programming languages such as Python or C++ is required.
Excellent verbal and written communication skills are required.
Ability to work in a dynamic, fast-paced startup environment is required.
Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government Secret or Top Secret security clearance is required.
U.S. citizenship, lawful permanent residency, protected-individual status, or eligibility to obtain required U.S. Department of State authorizations is required for ITAR compliance.

Responsibilities

Develop vehicle and subsystem plant models for aerodynamics, actuators, sensors, and structural dynamics at the fidelity needed for control design and verification.
Design and analyze high-rate flight-control loops that stabilize a statically unstable airframe across the flight envelope.
Deliver autopilot bandwidth and command tracking to respond quickly to real-time guidance commands.
Quantify and manage stability margins in the presence of sample rate, latency, actuator dynamics, and structural-mode constraints.
Integrate and exercise control designs in 3-DOF and 6-DOF flight simulations, including Monte Carlo robustness assessment across dispersed conditions.
Carry control algorithms through implementation in real-time flight software and hardware-in-the-loop testing.
Work with guidance, aerodynamics, structures, and avionics teams to achieve vehicle-level performance.

Desired Qualifications

A master's or PhD in Aerospace Engineering, a related field, or equivalent experience is preferred.
Experience designing autopilots for reentry, hypersonic, missile, or other high-dynamic-pressure flight systems is preferred.
Experience applying frequency-domain loop shaping to flight-control design, including constructing phase and gain budgets and managing two-sided stability margins for conditionally stable systems, is preferred.
Experience modeling actuator nonlinearities, including rate and position limits, and their effects on the stability of unstable plants, is preferred.
Experience with flexible-body dynamics and aeroservoelastic effects, including structural-mode filtering, is preferred.
Experience with system identification and control-relevant model updates from ground or flight-test data is preferred.
Experience implementing control algorithms in real-time flight software on embedded hardware is preferred.
Hardware-in-the-loop (HITL) test experience is preferred.
Prior experience working in startups or small independent teams is preferred.

Advanced Reentry Technologies

Who We Are:

Inversion is an aerospace and defense company pioneering advanced reentry technology to enable next-generation capabilities from space. By combining high-performance materials, precision aerodynamics, and mission-driven autonomy, Inversion is transforming reentry into an operational capability for an entirely new class of missions.

The company’s highly maneuverable reentry spacecraft, Arc, is designed for rapid global cargo delivery, hypersonic testing, and other national security missions that require precise, controlled flight through the atmosphere. Arc creates an entirely new transportation domain, unlocking unprecedented speed and global reach.

Headquartered in Los Angeles, Inversion designs, manufactures, and integrates its spacecraft under one roof, enabling the company to move rapidly from concept to flight. The company is backed by leading investors including Y Combinator, Spark Capital, and Lockheed Martin Ventures, with customers across the U.S. government and commercial space industry.

Position Overview:

High-performance maneuvering demands an extremely responsive airframe and control system. As the Senior GNC Engineer (Controls), you will be part of the team that develops high fidelity plant models describing Inversion’s reentry vehicles and you own the development of the flight control system that allows our vehicles to track aggressive guidance commands quickly and crisply. In this role, you will:

Develop plant models of the vehicle and its subsystems aerodynamics, actuators, sensors, and structural dynamics at the fidelity needed for control design and verification
Design and analyze high-rate flight control loops that stabilize a statically unstable airframe across the flight envelope
Deliver the autopilot bandwidth and command tracking needed to respond quickly to real-time guidance commands
Quantify and manage stability margins in the presence of sample rate, latency, actuator dynamics, and structural mode constraints
Integrate and exercise control designs in 3-DOF and 6-DOF flight simulations, including Monte Carlo robustness assessment across dispersed conditions
Carry control algorithms through implementation in real-time flight software and hardware-in-the-loop testing
Work closely with the guidance, aerodynamics, structures, and avionics teams to close vehicle-level performance

Required Qualifications:

Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, a related field, or equivalent experience
Typically, 5+ years of applicable experience designing and testing control systems for aerospace vehicles
Experience building plant models of aerospace systems, including aerodynamic, actuator, and sensor dynamics and controlling open-loop unstable systems
Experience with high-rate digital control design, including discretization, sample rate selection, and the management of latency and computational delay
Experience developing and exercising 3-DOF and 6-DOF flight simulations
Strong fundamentals in classical and modern control theory, including frequency-domain loop shaping, stability margin analysis, and state-space methods
Proficiency with MATLAB/Simulink and programming languages such as Python or C++
Demonstrated excellent verbal and written communication skills
Capable of working in a dynamic, fast-paced startup environment
Must have the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government Secret/Top Secret security clearance.

Desired Qualifications:

Master's or PhD in Aerospace Engineering, a related field, or equivalent experience
Experience with autopilot design for reentry, hypersonic, missile, or other high-dynamic-pressure flight systems
Experience applying frequency-domain loop shaping to flight control design, including the construction of phase and gain budgets and the management of two-sided stability margins for conditionally stable systems
Experience modeling actuator nonlinearities, including rate and position limits, and their effect on stability of unstable plants
Experience with flexible-body dynamics and aeroservoelastic effects, including structural mode filtering
Experience with system identification and control-relevant model updates from ground or flight test data
Experience implementing control algorithms in real-time flight software on embedded hardware
Hardware-in-the-Loop (HITL) test experience
Prior experience working in startups and/or small independent teams

Our office headquarters is located in Playa Vista, CA. This position requires in office presence.

The California annual base salary for this role is currently $139,000-$201,000.  Pay Grades are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data.  Individual pay will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: interviews and an assessment of several factors that are unique to each candidate, job-related skills, relevant education and experience, certifications, abilities of the candidate and internal equity. 

#LI-FH1

ITAR Compliance:

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here.

Equal Employment Opportunity:

Inversion provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, veteran status, or disability.

Inversion collects and processes personal data in accordance with applicable data protection laws. If you are a US Job Applicant see the CCPA Privacy Policy Noticefor further details.

About the Company

Inversion Space

Low-cost cargo re-entry services for space

Inversion Space builds low-cost, high-frequency re-entry vehicles to bring cargo and resources back from space. The core idea is to provide cargo return services from low-earth orbit and beyond, working with space agencies and private companies under service contracts and partnerships. Their product works by using reusable or versatile re-entry systems to safely carry valuable materials from space back to Earth, enabling clients to shuttle resources, samples, or equipment home for analysis or use. The company differentiates itself by emphasizing affordable, high-cadence return capabilities and a service-based model rather than just selling hardware, aiming to simplify and scale the process of bringing material back from space. The overarching goal is to make returning from space as common and practical as launching to space, supporting the sustainability and growth of space operations.

Company size: 51-200
Company stage: Series A
Total funding: $126.8M
Headquarters: Los Angeles, CA
Founded: 2021

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