Principal Missile Systems Simulation, Test & Analysis Engineer

Worker Type Regular Job Description Next Generation Counter-Unmanned Aircraft Systems (C-UAS) Missile Program Location: Huntsville, Alabama Work Arrangement: Primarily on-site, with travel to integration and flight-test locations Clearance: Ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. security clearance Citizenship: U.S. citizenship required Position Overview We are seeking a highly experienced Missile Systems Simulation, Test & Analysis Engineer to support the development, integration, and flight testing of a next-generation counter-unmanned aircraft system missile. This position will serve as a senior technical contributor across missile system modeling and simulation, guidance and control, seeker and radar integration, flight-test planning, and post-test analysis. The successful candidate will connect simulation predictions, laboratory testing, hardware performance, and flight-test results to identify system deficiencies and drive rapid technical improvements. This role requires broad systems-level understanding and the ability to work across guidance, navigation and control; radar and RF sensors; flight software; telemetry; system integration; and test operations. The engineer must be comfortable developing analysis tools, investigating complex system behavior, working directly with flight hardware and technical teams, and communicating findings to program leadership and customers. Key Responsibilities · Develop, maintain, and validate six-degree-of-freedom and lower-fidelity missile simulations used for design, performance analysis, trade studies, and test preparation. · Evaluate missile performance against unmanned aircraft and other representative threat profiles. · Integrate aerodynamic models, propulsion characteristics, seeker and radar models, environmental effects, state estimators, autopilot logic, and production-representative GNC software into system simulations. · Use simulation to support sensor requirement development, engagement-envelope analysis, guidance-law evaluation, autopilot gain tuning, and missile performance optimization. · Analyze missile telemetry, radar tracks, seeker data, RF data, network traffic, inertial measurements, and optical truth data from laboratory, ground, captive-carry, and live-fire testing. · Develop software tools that allow engineers and operators to visualize test events, correlate multiple data sources, reproduce anomalies, and quickly understand system behavior. · Support hardware-in-the-loop, software-in-the-loop, processor-in-the-loop, integrated system, and end-to-end missile testing. · Plan and support flight tests, integration events, range activities, and real-time test operations. · Compare flight-test results with preflight predictions and use observed performance to validate or improve system models. · Investigate complex system anomalies involving sensors, timing, communications, navigation, guidance, control, software, or hardware integration. · Develop methods for injecting representative radar-track errors, dropped tracks, target maneuvers, sensor uncertainty, and other off-nominal conditions into simulations and test environments. · Perform radar, seeker, RF, antenna, and signal-processing analysis, including calibration, measurement-error characterization, filtering, and sensor-performance evaluation. · Support evaluation of system performance requirements and recommend technically sound improvements to missile hardware, software, algorithms, interfaces, and test processes. · Prepare technical reports, test plans, analysis briefings, and recommendations for engineering teams, program leadership, customers, and system users. · Collaborate closely with missile designers, flight-software developers, GNC engineers, seeker and radar engineers, systems engineers, test personnel, government customers, and external suppliers. · Provide technical direction and mentorship to early-career engineers and analysts. Required Qualifications · Bachelor's degree in electrical engineering, aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering, computer engineering, physics, applied mathematics, or a closely related technical field. · Minimum of 10 years of relevant engineering experience, including significant work in missile systems, aerospace systems, defense-system testing, or related high-performance flight systems. · Demonstrated experience developing, modifying, or using six-degree-of-freedom flight or missile simulations. · Strong working knowledge of guidance, navigation and control, including guidance laws, autopilots, state estimation, coordinate systems, and flight dynamics. · Experience analyzing flight-test, telemetry, radar, seeker, or other time-correlated system data. · Proficiency with Python, MATLAB/Simulink, C++, or comparable scientific-computing and simulation tools. · Experience developing analysis, visualization, or test-support software. · Ability to work across multiple engineering disciplines and troubleshoot complex system-level problems. · Ability to translate test results and technical analysis into clear findings, risks, and recommended actions. · Strong written and verbal communication skills. · Willingness to travel periodically to test ranges, integration facilities, suppliers, and customer locations. · U.S. citizenship and ability to obtain and maintain the security clearance required for the position. Preferred Qualifications · Master's degree or Ph.D. in electrical engineering, aerospace engineering, controls, applied mathematics, or a related discipline. · Experience supporting the development or evaluation of C-UAS, missile-defense, interceptor, rocket, or guided-weapon systems. · Experience with deployed defense systems and live-fire missile testing. · Experience integrating production or flight-representative GNC software into an integrated flight simulation. · Understanding of radar tracking, RF sensors, missile seekers, antenna behavior, and signal processing. · Experience with Kalman filtering, state estimation, optimal control, trajectory optimization, or pseudospectral optimization. · Experience using Missile DATCOM, computational fluid dynamics tools, aerodynamic databases, or flight-test system-identification techniques. · Experience with hardware-in-the-loop or processor-in-the-loop test environments. · Experience working with telemetry systems, network data, optical tracking systems, inertial sensors, and range truth sources. · Experience with software-defined radio, spectrum analyzers, vector network analyzers, oscilloscopes, signal generators, or other RF and electronics laboratory equipment. · Familiarity with embedded processors, electronics troubleshooting, PCB design, or hardware/software interfaces. · Experience using CUDA, GPU computing, or other parallel-processing methods for high-performance simulation or signal processing. · Active Secret or higher-level U.S. security clearance. · Private pilot, experimental aircraft, flight-test, robotics, or other hands-on engineering experience is a plus. Technical Skills of Interest · Six-degree-of-freedom missile and aircraft simulation · Missile guidance, navigation and control · Radar and seeker modeling · Signal processing and RF analysis · Kalman filtering and state estimation · Trajectory optimization and optimal control · Aerodynamics and flight dynamics · Flight-test planning and data analysis · Python, C++, MATLAB and Simulink · NumPy, SciPy and Pandas · Linux and Windows development environments · Scientific visualization · Hardware and software integration · Telemetry and time-correlated data analysis Candidate Profile The ideal candidate is a hands-on technical leader who can move comfortably between simulation, software, hardware, test operations, and system-level analysis. This person is intellectually curious, methodical when investigating anomalies, and able to develop practical tools that help the broader team make faster and better-informed engineering decisions. The successful candidate will not be limited to a single subsystem. They will understand how radar tracks, seeker measurements, state estimation, guidance commands, autopilot behavior, vehicle dynamics, and flight hardware interact across the complete engagement. They will play a key role in converting test data into actionable improvements and accelerating the Next Generation C-UAS Missile program from development through qualification and fielding. Clearance Level Secret The salary range for this role is: $133,500 - $203,750 AeroVironment considers several factors when extending an offer, including but not limited to, the location, the role and associated responsibilities, a candidate’s work experience, education/training, and key skills. ITAR Requirement: This position requires access to information that is subject to compliance with the International Traffic Arms Regulations (“ITAR”) and/or the Export Administration Regulations (“EAR”). In order to comply with the requirements of the ITAR and/or the EAR, applicants must qualify as a U.S. person under the ITAR and the EAR, or a person to be approved for an export license by the governing agency whose technology comes under its jurisdiction. Please understand that any job offer that requires approval of an export license will be conditional on AeroVironment’s determination that it will be able to obtain an export license in a time frame consistent with AeroVironment’s business requirements. A “U.S. person” according to the ITAR definition is a U.S. citizen, U.S. lawful permanent resident (green card holder), or protected individual such as a refugee or asylee. See 22 CFR § 120.15. Some positions will require current U.S. Citizenship due to contract requirements. Benefits : AV offers an excellent benefits package including medical, dental vision, 401K with company matching, a 9/80 work schedule and a paid holiday shutdown. For more information about our company benefit offerings please visit: . We also encourage you to review our company website at to learn more about us. Principals only need apply. NO agencies please. About AV: AV isn’t for everyone. We hire the curious, the relentless, the mission-obsessed. The best of the best. We don’t just build defense technology—we redefine what’s possible. As the premier autonomous systems company in the U.S., AV delivers breakthrough capabilities across air, land, sea, space, and cyber. From AI-powered drones and loitering munitions to integrated autonomy and space resilience, our technologies shape the future of warfare and protect those who serve. Founded by legendary innovator Dr. Paul MacCready, AV has spent over 50 years pushing the boundaries of what unmanned systems can do. Our heritage includes seven platforms in the Smithsonian—but we’re not building history, we’re building what’s next. If you're ready to build technology that matters—with speed, scale, and purpose—there’s no better place to do it than AV. We are proud to be an EEO/AA Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability/veterans. AeroVironment, Inc. is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) employer and welcomes all qualified applicants. Qualified applicants will receive fair and impartial consideration without regard to race, sex, color, religion, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, genetic data, sexual orientation, gender identity or other legally protected status. ITAR U.S. Citizenship required