Staff Engineer, Aircraft Configuration Design (R5830)
Shield AI
San Diego, United States · Full time employee · Mechanical, Mechatronics & Actuation
Job Description: Shield AI is seeking an Aircraft Configuration Design Engineer to support the development of next-generation autonomous UAVs.
Apply on Shield AI’s careers page- Company
- Shield AI
- Location
- San Diego, United States
- Workplace
- On-site
- Type
- Full time employee
- Level
- Staff / Principal
- Specialism
- Mechanical, Mechatronics & Actuation
- Team
- X-BAT Engineering - Configuration Design
- Salary
- $144K–$210K
- Posted
- 9 September 2026
About the role
Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BAT aircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI’s technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube. Job Description: Shield AI is seeking an Aircraft Configuration Design Engineer to support the development of next-generation autonomous UAVs. In this role, you will assist in the design, optimization, and integration of aircraft configurations, ensuring that vehicle aerodynamics, structures, propulsion, and mission systems are harmonized for performance, manufacturability, and operational effectiveness. This position is ideal for a mechanical or aerospace engineer with a passion for cutting edge aircraft design, multi-disciplinary systems integration, and iterative prototyping in a fast-paced defense technology environment.