Systems Engineering Lead - Thunder

Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century’s most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril’s family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI-powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3D command and control center. As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years.

ABOUT THE TEAM

The Maneuver Dominance team is building Thunder - an autonomous attack rotorcraft built to fight alongside crewed combat aviation to deliver overwhelming mass effects deep beyond the front lines. The team in London builds the Mission System and the autonomy that makes aircraft like Thunder work. Autonomy is only as good as the link that carries it. Thunder is a compact airframe with weapons, sensors and radios competing for the same antenna real estate, flying low and in formation, in a spectrum that is actively contested. That is the problem you would own.

ABOUT THE JOB

We are seeking a Systems Engineering Lead to join the Maneuver Dominance team at our Costa Mesa HQ. In this role, you will work on new Mission System development, bringing pragmatic Systems Engineering thinking to complement and enhance the overall capability, ensuring that end-user needs are met in challenging operational environments. You will be part of a lean, high-ownership culture where you directly shape the product and operate at a velocity to fly new designs within months, not years.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

• Execute a right-sized, Agile Systems Engineering approach as per the Systems Engineering Management Plan (SEMP) for development of the Thunder Mission System and Payloads at the speed of relevance
• Support design teams in the evolution and progress of Technical Performance Measures (TPMs) throughout the design process
• Contribute to System Design Reviews (SDR) and engineering governance structures such as Preliminary Design Reviews (PDR), Critical Design Reviews (CDR), Test Readiness Reviews (TRR), Safety Review Boards (SRB) representing the Systems Engineering discipline
• Own and maintain Functional Decomposition, System Breakdown Structure (SBS), Product Breakdown Structure (PBS), and Architecture diagrams
• Develop key Systems Engineering design artifacts including System Description Documents (SDDs) and Interface Control Documents (ICDs)
• Champion the use of the Test and Evaluation Master Plan (TEMP) to enable Mission System and Payload maturation
• Shape the design of representative Hardware In Lab (HIL) and Hardware In The Loop (HITL) physical integration environments, and input into surrogate testing
• Create issue board workflows and coordinate ticket triage, action assignment, artifact capture and closure
• Shape and coordinate configuration and change management processes
• Support wholistic Systems Safety and Airworthiness efforts
• Support build, ground and flight test of prototype and production representative Thunder Mission Systems with Physical Configuration Audits (PCA) and verification-related task

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor degree in Aerospace, Mechanical, Electrical or Systems Engineering, or equivalent technical discipline
• 7+ years industry Systems Engineering experience including safety-critical hardware and software systems in the Defense or Aerospace industries, specifically crewed aircraft, rotorcraft, EVTOL, UAS or weapon systems
• Demonstrable Systems Engineering proficiency, including solicitation of requirements with the customer/end-user, collaboration with design teams
• Experience developing traditional and right-sized Systems Engineering artifacts, including pragmatic verification and validation plans
• Deep understanding of the test and evaluation process as applicable to developmental, acceptance and operational testing
• Familiarity with technical software packages such as Teamcenter, JIRA, JAMA, Cameo, and/or Ansys
• Experience with crewed or uncrewed developmental autonomous aircraft (Group 5 UAS or larger)
• Exposure to guidelines, standards and processes such as ARP-4754, ARP-4761, DO-178C, DO-254, JSSSEH, MIL-STD 882E, MIL-STD-810, MIL-STD-516C, MIL-STD-461, AC-17-01 desirable
• Proficiency in coordinating change management processes
• Outstanding written and verbal communication skills to include presentation of developed artifacts
• A sincere commitment to a positive, inclusive, and collaborative culture
• Eligible to obtain and hold a US security clearance

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS

• Direct experience defining interfaces (ICDs) and leading the physical/functional integration of complex mission systems, avionics, sensors (EO/IR, radar), or stores carriage and release systems.
• Practical, applied experience using Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) methodologies and SysML tools (specifically Cameo Systems Modeler / MagicDraw) for system architecture and requirements traceability.
• Hands-on experience designing, commissioning, or operating Hardware-in-the-Loop (HITL) and Software-in-the-Loop (SITL) test benches and system integration laboratories.
• Demonstrated background supporting rapid prototyping efforts, including active, on-site participation in prototype developmental ground and flight test campaigns.
• Experience directly authoring compliance artifacts and guiding a novel aircraft or weapon system through formal military airworthiness certification (e.g., MIL-STD-516C, MIL-STD-882E) or civil equivalents.
• Proven success applying Agile, Scrum, or Kanban frameworks to complex aerospace physical hardware programs to accelerate design-build-test iterations.
• Possess an active U.S. Secret or Top Secret security clearance.

US Salary Range 167000 - 222000 USD