Senior Director of Engineering – V-BAT Program

About the role

Shield AI is looking for a Senior Director of Engineering to lead all engineering efforts for V‑BAT, its Group 3 VTOL UAS program. The role oversees flight software, autonomy, ground control systems, aircraft, and payload development for an autonomous vertical‑takeoff aircraft already deployed worldwide.

Key responsibilities

• Build and lead a multidisciplinary engineering team covering flight software, autonomy, GNC, ground systems, avionics, propulsion, and payloads, defining vision, strategy, and system architecture.
• Establish engineering standards, technical governance, configuration management, CI/CD pipelines, automated testing, and modern DevOps practices while ensuring compliance with aerospace certification and regulatory requirements.
• Drive cross‑functional collaboration with flight test, operations, program management, supply chain, quality, and production to deliver high‑quality products on schedule.
• Report progress, risks, and technical decisions to senior leadership and engage with external partners, customers, and government stakeholders.

Required profile

• Minimum 15 years of experience with a Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in aerospace, mechanical, electrical, avionics, propulsion, or related fields.
• Proven experience building and leading multidisciplinary hardware and software engineering organizations in fast‑paced, mission‑driven environments.
• Strong leadership, communication, and stakeholder management skills.

Required skills

• CI/CD pipeline development and management.
• Automated testing frameworks.
• Modern DevOps practices.