Principal High-Speed Digital Electronics Design Engineer
Leonardo
Principal High-Speed Digital Electronics Design Engineer
Leonardo
Aerospace, defense tech design and manufacturing
Job Description:
Salary: £53,000 to £71,400
Leonardo UK operates a grade-based salary framework with broad bands. The salary range shown reflects the approved grade band for this role, or a narrower hiring range published within that band, and is benchmarked against the external market. Exceptions above the standard range are managed through governance controls to protect internal equity.
Your Impact
At Leonardo, we’re bringing together some of the brightest engineering minds to develop the GCAP radar, and we’re looking for experienced Principal High‑Speed Digital Electronics Engineers to join us in Edinburgh or Newcastle.
This is more than a role—it’s an opportunity to step into a growing programme at a pivotal moment. You’ll be embedded within a multi‑disciplinary delivery team, taking concepts from early requirements right through to final delivery. Every day, you’ll see the direct impact of your expertise as part of a high‑performing team driving innovation at pace.
What you’ll bring
This is an exciting opportunity for you as an experienced engineer to bring your skillset and knowledge into our working environment. You will:
Design cutting‑edge high‑speed digital PCBs, incorporating state‑of‑the‑art FPGAs, microprocessors, and complex interconnects.
Lead hardware development across the full lifecycle—from early requirements analysis and design to testing, integration, acceptance, and customer delivery.
Produce clear, accurate technical documentation, maintaining configuration control and providing insight through plans and progress updates.
Collaborate with engineers across disciplines as you solve real integration challenges within sophisticated systems.
Apply your technical foundation, ideally grounded in a degree such as Electrical & Electronic Engineering, Physics, or a related field (BSc, BEng, MSc, MEng, PhD, EngD).
Translate system‑level requirements into robust hardware designs, working with clarity and precision.
Use your schematic capture expertise to bring designs to life.
Design high‑speed serial communication links, drawing on your understanding of relevant protocols and architectures.
Integrate hardware, firmware, and software—bringing microprocessor‑based systems onto bespoke hardware platforms.
Take a methodical, process‑driven approach to the entire design lifecycle.
Debug, test, and verify your designs, supporting system commissioning and making sure everything works seamlessly.
Security Clearance
This role is subject to pre-employment screening in line with the UK Government’s Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS). An additional range of Personnel Security Controls referred to as National Security Vetting (NSV) may apply, this could include meeting the eligibility requirements for The Security Check (SC) or Developed Vetting (DV). For more information and guidance please visit: https://careers.uk.leonardo.com/gb/en/security-and-vetting
Why join us
At Leonardo, our people are at the heart of everything we do. We offer a comprehensive, company-funded benefits package that supports your wellbeing, career development, and work–life balance. Whether you're looking to grow professionally, care for your health, or plan for the future, we’re here to help you thrive.
Time to Recharge: Enjoy generous leave with the opportunity to accrue up to 12 additional flexi-days each year.
Secure your Future: Benefit from our award-winning pension scheme with up to 15% employer contribution.
Your Wellbeing Matters: Free access to mental health support, financial advice, and employee-led networks championing inclusion and diversity (Enable, Pride, Equalise, Armed Forces, Carers, Wellbeing and Ethnicity).
Rewarding Performance: All employees at management level and below are eligible for our bonus scheme.
Never Stop Learning: Free access to 4,000+ online courses via Coursera and LinkedIn Learning.
Refer a friend: Receive a financial reward through our referral programme.
Tailored Perks: Spend up to £500 annually on flexible benefits including private healthcare, dental, family cover, tech & lifestyle discounts, gym memberships and more.
Flexible working: Flexible hours with hybrid working options. For part time opportunities, please talk to us about what might be possible for this role.
For a full list of our company benefits please visit our website.
Leonardo is a global leader in Aerospace, Defence, and Security. Headquartered in Italy, we employ over 53,000 people worldwide including 8,500 across 9 sites in the UK. Our employees are not just part of a team—they are key contributors to shaping innovation, advancing technology, and enhancing global safety.
At Leonardo we are committed to building an inclusive, accessible, and welcoming workplace. We believe that a diverse workforce sparks creativity, drives innovation, and leads to better outcomes for our people and our customers. If you have any accessibility requirements to support you during the recruitment process, just let us know.
Be part of something bigger - apply now!
Primary Location:
GB - EdinburghAdditional Locations:
GB - NewcastleContract Type:
PermanentHybrid Working:
HybridLeonardo operates in aerospace, defense, and security, designing and manufacturing advanced technologies for militaries, intelligence agencies, and defense contractors. Its products combine hardware, software, and services and are delivered through subsidiaries in the US (DRS, Electronics US, Critical Infrastructure, Aircraft and Aerostructures US). It differentiates itself with a broad, diversified portfolio and end-to-end support from development to sustainment, plus training and customer service. Its goal is to provide reliable, state-of-the-art capabilities to defense, intelligence, and civil infrastructure customers while maintaining strong support and training.
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