Senior Airworthiness & Certification Engineer

Merlin (NASDAQ: MRLN) is a publicly traded aerospace and defense company building a non-human pilot to deliver full-stack autonomy for any aircraft from takeoff to touchdown. The Merlin Pilot autonomy system powers a growing range of aircraft and mission profiles and has been proven through hundreds of autonomous flights from Merlin's global flight test facilities, including Kerikeri, New Zealand; Quonset Point, Rhode Island; and soon, Bedford, Massachusetts. Headquartered in Boston, Merlin is expanding its organization to accelerate the development and deployment of its autonomy platform, helping customers solve some of aviation's most pressing challenges, from pilot shortages to improving flight safety. Backed by some of the world's leading investors prior to its public listing, Merlin continues to advance the certification and commercialization of autonomous flight across commercial and defense aviation. About You: You are a hands-on airworthiness & certification engineer who owns certification work directly. You lead compliance activities for defined certification workstreams, resolve complex compliance challenges, interface confidently with regulatory authorities (military and civil), and mentor engineers. You communicate effectively with regulatory authorities on assigned technical topics. Merlin builds autonomous aviation systems for civil and defense customers. The Airworthiness & Certification organization needs an experienced certification engineer who can lead complex technical areas through the military airworthiness and civil certification process. You will lead certification documentation and compliance activities for a defined technical area, interface directly with regulatory authorities, and mentor junior and mid-level certification engineers within the Airworthiness & Certification and Engineering organizations. If you want ownership over meaningful technical certification work with room to broaden across both military and civil domains, this is the role for you. Responsibilities: Execute the certification strategy and technical approach for a major program or product lineContribute to planning, developing, and coordinating important engineering projectsLead certification documentation and compliance activities for complex technical areas (structures, systems, avionics, or flight controls)Develop and apply cross-functional competency in military and industry airworthiness standards — MIL-SPECs, MIL-STDs, DEF STANs, JSSG-2001, and MIL-HDBK-516 — and guide engineering teams in developing compliant designsAuthor and manage Issue Papers (IPs), Certification Review Items (CRIs), and Military Certification Review Items (MCRIs), and drive them to closureInterface directly with regulatory representatives, airworthiness authorities and sponsoring offices (e.g., USAF, U.S. Army Aviation, NAVAIR, FAA, EASA) on assigned certification topicsDrive certification program schedules, identifying compliance risks and implementing mitigation strategies to ensure timely approvalsSupport civil certification programs and activities as needed, applying 14 CFR Part 21/23/25 and applicable advisory circulars alongside civil certification authoritiesManage regulatory audits, conformity inspections, and test witnessing activitiesContribute to standardizing and scaling Merlin's airworthiness and certification processes and provide technical assistance to certification engineers across departmentsManage Type Inspection Authorization (TIA) prerequisites, draft TIAs, and secure approvals across programsManage the designee program including appointment and oversight; maintain an internal registry of available designee resources Qualifications: Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field6-9 years of aerospace certification experience, including direct interface with airworthiness or certification authoritiesProven ability to work both independently and embedded within cross-functional engineering teamsDirect, hands-on experience taking military airworthiness or civil certification programs from certification basis development through closureStrong written and verbal communication skills and project management capabilityWorking knowledge of 14 CFR Part 21, 23, 25, and applicable advisory circulars, sufficient to support civil certification activitiesDemonstrated ability to interface with military airworthiness authorities (e.g., USAF, U.S. Army Aviation, NAVAIR, MAA) and to conduct meetings with regulatory agenciesU.S. citizenship, and an active Secret clearance or a clear path to one (as required by program assignment)Working knowledge of military airworthiness standards (MIL-SPECs, MIL-STDs, DEF STANs) sufficient to lead an existing program independently Nice to Haves: Deep civil certification/validation experience with FAA (Part 23/25) and/or EASA (CS-23/25) programsKnowledge of systems engineering principles — requirements decomposition, V&V planning, and configuration managementWorking familiarity in software and hardware assurance standards (DO-178C, DO-254, MIL-STD-882)Working knowledge of safety assessment methodologies: FHA, FMEA/FMECA, FTA, and common cause analysisWorking knowledge of emerging aerospace technologies such as electric propulsion, UAVs, or advanced air mobility is highly desirableWorking knowledge of FAA military certification processes and interaction with FAA Military Certification Branch (MCB, formerly Military Certification Office (MCO)) Merlin Labs offers an innovative, entrepreneurial, and team-focused startup environment. We also offer a top-notch benefits package (health, dental, life, flexible paid time off, and 401k with match) and work/life integration. Being part of the Merlin team allows you to become part of a small team that supports professional development while working together to achieve our mission. Merlin Labs is an equal opportunity employer and values diversity. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, genetic information, sex (including pregnancy), gender, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, military service or obligation or disability status, or any other characteristic protected by law. All job offers are contingent upon the candidate passing background and reference checks. At this time, we are unable to provide visa sponsorship or consider candidates who require visa transfers. Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States without the need for visa sponsorship now or in the future. In compliance with federal law, all persons hired will be required to verify identity and eligibility to work in the United States and to complete the required employment eligibility verification form upon hire. If you require reasonable accommodation in completing an application, interviewing, completing any pre-employment testing, or otherwise participating in the employee selection process, please direct your inquiries to: people@merlinlabs.com Merlin Labs does not accept unsolicited resumes from any source other than directly from candidates. The compensation range provided is reflective of base salary only, and is a good-faith estimate based on a wide range of factors. The actual offer will be determined by a variety of factors including the candidate's qualifications, skills, experience, education, and training. Highly competitive equity grants are considered part of Merlin's total compensation package. Additionally, Merlin offers top-tier benefits for full-time employees.