FOUNDING TURBOMACHINERY ENGINEER: NEXT-GEN PROPULSION
Location: Huntington Beach, CA
Salary Range: $200,000 $250,000
Equity: All roles include a generous equity package reflecting the early-stage, high-growth potential.
The Mission: Re-engineering Defense Capability
We are an early-stage, defense-focused manufacturing company with a singular, high-stakes mission: to fundamentally change how critical propulsion systems are designed and produced for national security. We are focused on using advanced manufacturing processes to build jet turbines at scale, powering the incoming class of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS).
For too long, defense manufacturing has tolerated low-volume, exquisite designs that are fundamentally unscalable. We are taking a first principles approach to solve this. Our mandate is to produce high-performance engines efficiently at scale, challenging every incumbent process where it lacks demonstrable proof of value.
The Role: Critical IC & Technical Architect
This is a Founding Engineer role, demanding the technical depth of a Principal Individual Contributor (IC) and the strategic vision of a future leader. You will personally execute the most complex design work while defining the foundation for the entire propulsion department.
This is a rare opportunity for a brilliant engineer who is ready to build a system 0 to 1a mission-critical system that will provide immediate competitive capability to national defense. If you are yearning to tackle a truly complex challenge with complete technical ownership, this is your chance.
Key Responsibilities: Technical Ownership & Foundation Building
Full Lifecycle Ownership: You will personally drive engine development from cradle to grave, ensuring technical execution from initial concept through flight-ready hardware.
Design & Execution: Create and refine 3D geometry for all core engine components. Design, test, and optimize entire rotating assemblies for optimal aerodynamic and thermodynamic performance.
Performance Optimization: Aggressively optimize designs for maximum thrust-to-weight ratio.
Critical Subsystems: Personally develop or specify sophisticated bearing systems, select advanced materials, and establish balancing methodologies to ensure system longevity and performance.
Strategic Growth: Provide the guidance for test equipment and methodologies, defining the technical roadmap that will allow us to hire a world-class team to deliver propulsion at scale.
Systems Integration: Constantly iterate with hot-end and subsystem engineers to achieve total system optimization.
The Builder Profile: Complexity is the Goal
This opportunity is designed for engineers who are currently thriving but are seeking to apply their mastery to genuinely complex, mission-critical challenges with national impact. We seek individuals driven by meritocracy who prioritize solving hard problems over corporate hierarchy.
Qualifications:
Bachelors degree or higher in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering.
4-6 or more years of experience in gas turbine design, jet engine development, or high-speed rotating machinery.
Expertise in one or more core areas: rotating assembly design, CFD, or rotor dynamics.
Deep familiarity with relevant high-performance alloys, materials, and advanced manufacturing methods required for modern turbomachinery production.
Proficiency in sophisticated CAD and simulation tools such as ANSYS, STAR-CCM, Concepts NREC, SolidWorks or NX.
Preferred Experience (The Edge):
Direct experience working specifically with jet turbines, UAS programs, and related defense hardware.
Hands-on experience with cold and hot gassing of experimental turbomachinery designs.
History with specialized turbomachinery analysis software (e.g., AxStream, Concepts NREC).
Experience with turbomachinery test rig development and Turbine Cycle Analysis (NPSS).