Senior Aerodynamics Engineer

Department: Airframe

Location: San Francisco

Compensation: $160K – $215K

Employment Type: FullTime

ABOUT US:

Astro Mechanica is a vertically integrated aerospace company building a faster, more connected future. Our mission is to democratize high-speed flight by making supersonic travel flexible, accessible, and sustainable. We believe that rapid, on-demand, point-to-point global mobility will become the new standard for moving people and goods across the planet. To achieve this, we are integrating our advanced airframe and engine technologies—which include Duality™, our proprietary dual-use propulsion system—with a new flight operations model to make supersonic transport as efficient and economical as commercial air travel is today. In the near term, we are developing adaptable, high-speed systems to close aircraft performance gaps for the United States government.

WHO WE ARE:

We’re a team of passionate engineers dedicated to advancing aerospace. We’re generalists with specialist depth, united by a flat structure and a shared obsession with building things that work well. We move fast, stay pragmatic, and let engineering excellence speak louder than hierarchy.

WHO YOU ARE:

You are an aerodynamicist who moves seamlessly between first-principles physics, computational analysis, and experimental validation- using each to inform and challenge the others. You take ownership of complex, ambiguous problems and drive them to ground truth, making sound engineering judgments while balancing speed and rigor. You are deeply technical but not siloed- comfortable working across disciplines, contributing wherever needed, and focused on the end goal of building and flying real hardware. In a fast-paced, hands-on environment, you care about what works, not just what models say, and you are motivated by the opportunity to directly shape the performance of high-speed flight systems.

WHAT YOU’LL DO:

• Perform design and analysis of aircraft aerodynamics across subsonic, transonic, and supersonic flight regimes

• Conduct computational fluid dynamics (CFD) analysis using multiple solvers, including gridding and post-processing methods

• Develop and apply advanced optimization techniques to enhance aerodynamic performance

• Create and utilize parametric geometry models for design and analysis purposes

• Support the design, fabrication, testing, and data analysis of wind tunnel models

• Work closely with cross-functional teams to refine concepts, conduct trade studies, and develop multidisciplinary design, analysis, and optimization (MDAO) systems

• Lead concept refinement, cross-discipline trade studies, and develop a highly skilled flight sciences team

WHAT WE’RE LOOKING FOR:

• Minimum of a Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, or a related field

• 10+ years of experience in aerodynamic design and analysis, CFD analysis, and optimization techniques

• Proficiency in CFD solvers, parametric geometry modeling, and wind tunnel testing

• Experience with high-fidelity aerodynamic shape optimization using adjoint-based methods and heuristic methods

• Experience synthesizing a variety of computational, experimental, and multi-fidelity data sources into cohesive aerodynamics models for design, performance, stability and control, flight simulator development, and experimental flight testing

• Expertise in architecting multidisciplinary design, analysis, and optimization (MDAO) frameworks for transonic and supersonic configurations, integrating various solvers and models

• Proficiency with high performance computing (HPC) environments, mesh adaptation, adjoint-based optimization; implementation of HPC via AWS, Azure, Google HPC

• Proven ability to lead multidisciplinary teams and manage complex projects

• Ambition to work in a fast-paced environment

PERKS & BENEFITS:

• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance, including Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA)

• 401(k) program and transparent stock option plan

• Self-managed and flexible time-off policy, including PTO, paid holidays, and sick time

• Flexible work environment

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

At Astro Mechanica, we highly value in-office work to foster collaboration and strengthen our company culture. We consider working in the office five days a week an essential part of the employee's role.

Astro Mechanica is an equal opportunity employer. We proudly recruit and hire a diverse workforce and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.