Chief Engineer, Air Vehicle Lead - MMA (Aerospace)

Location: Seattle, Washington or San Diego, California; on-site

Company

hirify.global develops autonomous aircraft and related aerospace systems for mission-driven applications.

What you will do

• Own the aircraft architecture, technical performance, integration, and design integrity throughout the development lifecycle.
• Lead multidisciplinary engineering across aerodynamics, flight sciences, structures, mechanical systems, propulsion, avionics, electrical systems, and flight controls.
• Drive system-level trades involving performance, weight, range, payload, cost, reliability, manufacturability, schedule, and technical risk.
• Lead the aircraft from requirements and conceptual design through detailed design, hardware release, build, integration, ground testing, flight testing, and production.
• Partner with Manufacturing, Supply Chain, Quality, Operations, suppliers, and external partners to transition the aircraft into repeatable production.
• Mentor engineers and technical leaders while establishing rigorous, hands-on engineering practices and resolving critical technical issues.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related engineering discipline.
• 15+ years of relevant aircraft development experience, including significant technical leadership on complex aerospace programs.
• Experience leading an air vehicle or major aircraft system through multiple development phases, including design, build, integration, ground test, flight test, and production.
• Broad knowledge of aircraft development, including aerodynamics, structures, propulsion, flight controls, avionics, mechanical systems, system integration, verification, and validation.
• Demonstrated ability to make difficult technical decisions, manage risk, solve engineering problems hands-on, and deliver hardware through development milestones.
• Ability to obtain and maintain the security clearance required for the program.

Nice to have

• Master’s degree or higher in an engineering discipline.

Culture & Benefits

• Full-time employee position with on-site collaboration.
• Mission-driven, values-focused engineering environment.
• Emphasis on technical ownership, first-principles thinking, urgency, disciplined judgment, accountability, and respectful teamwork.