Chief Engineer, Vehicle

Key Responsibilities

• Technical Authority & Architecture
• Own and maintain the vehicle system architecture, technical baseline, and configuration for the Draper Engine Vehicle.
• Serve as the final technical decision authority for vehicle-level design trades, requirements allocation, and risk acceptance.
• Ensure propulsion (Draper engine) is fully integrated into the vehicle system with appropriate margins, interfaces, and operational envelopes.
• Systems Engineering & Integration
• Lead vehicle-level systems engineering, including requirements flow-down, interface control, verification & validation (V&V), and configuration management.
• Oversee cross-disciplinary integration across: Propulsion, Structures & airframe, GNCAvionics & software, Thermal & TPS, Mission & flight systems.
• Chair technical reviews including SRR, PDR, CDR, TRR, and FRR.
• Program Execution Support
• Partner with Program Management to balance performance, cost, schedule, and risk.
• Support proposal efforts, customer technical interchange meetings (TIMs), and design reviews with government and commercial customers.
• Identify technical risks early and lead mitigation plans through test, analysis, or design iteration.
• Test, Qualification & Flight Readiness
• Define and approve vehicle-level test strategies including ground testing, qualification, and flight test.
• Ensure data-driven decisions using analysis, modeling, and test results.
• Provide technical sign-off for vehicle readiness and flight authorization.
• Team Leadership & Mentorship
• Provide technical leadership and mentorship to subsystem leads and senior engineers.
• Foster a culture of engineering rigor, accountability, and rapid execution.
• Help scale engineering processes and standards as programs mature.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or related field (Master’s or PhD strongly preferred).
• 12+ years of experience in aerospace vehicle development, including system-level ownership.
• Prior experience serving as a Chief Engineer, Lead Systems Engineer, or Vehicle Architect on a flight vehicle or missile system.
• Deep understanding of propulsion integration, vehicle dynamics, and system trades.
• Demonstrated experience leading vehicles through design reviews, test campaigns, and flight readiness.
• Ability to clearly communicate complex technical decisions to executive leadership and customers.
• Ability to work in a fast-paced environment and stay flexible based on customer demands and company priorities along with daily firefighting.
• Ability to make sound technical decisions under schedule and performance pressure.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree in Aerospace Engineering or related field.
• Experience with hypersonic vehicles, missiles, launch vehicles, or advanced propulsion systems.
• Familiarity with thermal, structural, and aero integration challenges in hypersonic regimes.
• Experience in design and analysis of fluids systems.
• Experience operating in ISO 9001 or AS9100 certified organizations.
• Experience with SMC-S-016 Test Requirements.
• Background working with DoD, DARPA, or classified programs.
• Familiarity with model-based systems engineering (MBSE) tools.
• Experience scaling a vehicle program from prototype to production.
• Active or ability to obtain a U.S. security clearance.