Deputy Program Engineer - Hypersonic Strike

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
• Deep ownership mindset – reliably deliver extreme outcomes

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 ability to obtain and maintain the required U.S. Government security clearance or other government authorization, and to satisfy any citizenship or other eligibility requirements imposed by applicable law, regulation, executive order, or government contract requirements. You will be notified if and when such requirements apply. 

Affirmative Action/EEO Statement 

Castelion is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all applicants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. 

Castelion is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities throughout the application and hiring process. If you require a reasonable accommodation to complete an application, participate in the interview process, or otherwise participate in the hiring process, please contact [email protected]. Requests for accommodation will be considered on an individual basis and handled in accordance with applicable law. 

Castelion is committed to fostering a workplace where employment decisions are based on qualifications, business needs, and the ability to perform the essential functions of the role, with or without reasonable accommodation. 

EAR/ITAR Requirements 

This position requires access to export-controlled information, and as such, employment (or hiring of a contractor) is contingent upon the candidate’s ability to access all applicable export-controlled information without additional export licensing being required by the Bureau of Industry and Security and/or the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls.