Senior Thermal Engineer – Hypersonic Air Vehicles

About the role

This contract position focuses on thermal design and analysis for unmanned hypersonic air vehicles, supporting all phases from concept to detailed design. The role may be onsite in Costa Mesa, CA, with remote options for exceptional candidates.

Key responsibilities

• Develop thermal system architectures, select materials, and perform CFD/FEA thermal analyses for high‑speed flight regimes.
• Conduct transient thermal analyses, ground‑test planning and execution, and post‑flight thermal data analysis.
• Collaborate with aerodynamics, structures, electrical, and systems engineers to deliver integrated solutions.
• Present thermal status at formal reviews and prepare specifications, test procedures, and technical reports.

Required profile

• MS or higher in Aerospace, Mechanical Engineering, or Applied Physics with a focus on heat transfer and fluid dynamics.
• 5+ years of aerospace thermal engineering experience on rocket, aircraft, or missile programs.
• U.S. citizenship and ability to obtain a Top Secret security clearance.

Required skills

• Thermal analysis using CFD tools (STAR‑CCM+, ANSYS Fluent) and thermal FEA solvers.
• Strong programming in MATLAB and Python for model development.
• Experience with thermal‑structural coupling and ground‑test instrumentation.
• CAD proficiency with SolidWorks or Siemens NX.