Senior Staff Engineer – Structural Analysis

About the role

Shield AI is looking for a senior technical leader to drive structural analysis and validation of next‑generation UAV airframes. You will act as the subject‑matter expert for airframe structures, guiding analysis, test correlation, and design trade‑offs throughout development, flight test, and production.

Key responsibilities

• Lead structural analysis for UAV airframes, major substructures, and critical components.
• Define and execute finite element modeling approaches, load cases, assumptions, and margin assessments.
• Perform static, modal, fatigue, vibration, and damage‑tolerance analyses.
• Establish hand‑calculation practices, model validation, and analysis‑to‑test correlation.
• Drive structural optimization for weight, cost, performance, and manufacturability.
• Support structural test strategy, define requirements, participate in execution, and correlate results.
• Review analysis deliverables, test reports, and technical documentation for design reviews.
• Mentor and guide structural analysts across experience levels.

Required profile

• B.S. in Mechanical, Aerospace Engineering or related field.
• 10+ years of experience in structural analysis of aircraft or UAV systems.
• Proven ability to lead complex technical workstreams and influence design decisions.
• Strong communication skills for presenting findings to engineering leadership.
• Ability to obtain a S//SAR level security clearance (desired).

Required skills

• Expertise with FEA tools such as ANSYS, NASTRAN, HyperWorks.
• Advanced hand‑calculation skills for strength, fatigue, and damage tolerance.
• Experience with composite and lightweight aerospace structures.
• Familiarity with CAD and PLM engineering toolchains.
• Proficiency in finite element analysis methodology.