Senior​/Principal Aerospace Engineer, Flight Mechanics - Onsite

Senior/ Principal Aerospace Engineer, Flight Mechanics - Onsite

Sandia National Laboratories is the nation’s premier science and engineering lab for national security and technology innovation, with teams of specialists focused on cutting‑edge work in a broad array of areas. Some of the main reasons we love our jobs:

Challenging work with amazing impact that contributes to security, peace, and freedom worldwide

Extraordinary co‑workers

Some of the best tools, equipment, and research facilities in the world

Career advancement and enrichment opportunities

Flexible work arrangements for many positions include 9/80 (work 80 hours every two weeks, with every other Friday off) and 4/10 (work 4 ten‑hour days each week) compressed workweeks, part‑time work, and telecommuting (a mix of onsite work and working from home)

Generous vacation, strong medical and other benefits, competitive 401k, learning opportunities, relocation assistance and amenities aimed at creating a solid work/life balance*

World‑changing technologies. Life‑changing careers. Learn more about Sandia at: http://(Use the "Apply for this Job" box below)..gov

* These benefits vary by job classification.

What Your Job Will Be Like:

Sandia National Laboratories Flight Mechanics Department is seeking highly qualified and passionate aerospace engineers to explore and develop new and existing flight system concepts. In this exciting position, you will be asked to apply your knowledge and experience in aerodynamic models, flight mechanics, trajectory simulation, and flight system design to enable advanced concepts to be demonstrated in the national interest.

You will have the opportunity to:

Work as a member of driven, passionate, multi‑disciplinary teams

Communicate directly with internal and external customers

Support the design, development, and flight testing of advanced aerospace flight systems, including hypersonic flight vehicles, reentry bodies, and rocket systems

Develop aerodynamic models used during all phases of flight vehicle design from early concept development through high fidelity flight demonstration

Perform trajectory design and mission planning

Create and optimize 3

DOF/6

DOF trajectory simulations of complex multi‑body flight systems for performance analysis and mission requirement verification / development

Contribute to development and application of Sandia’s 3

DOF/6

DOF trajectory simulation tool TAOS

Create system models and apply multi‑disciplinary design and optimization methods/tools for conceptual design trade space analysis

Conduct flight safety analysis and support flight test operations at launch sites and remote ranges

Some travel is required for this position. Due to the nature of the role, this candidate must be able to work onsite.

Salary Range:

$117,500 - $235,700

* Salary range is estimated, and actual salary will be determined after consideration of the selected candidate’s experience and qualifications, and application of any approved geographic salary differential.

Qualifications We Require:

A Bachelor's degree in a relevant discipline and five (5) years of directly relevant experience, or an equivalent combination of directly relevant education and engineering or scientific experience that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and ability to perform independent research and development.

The ability to acquire and maintain a DOE Q‑level security clearance

Qualifications We Desire:

The ideal Aerospace Engineer candidate for Sandia National Laboratories will in addition possess the following:

Graduate degree in Aerospace Engineering, Aeronautical Engineering, or a highly related field where an independent research project was a graduation requirement (e.g., independent project, thesis, or dissertation).

Experience in applied aerodynamics, flight mechanics, or trajectory simulation with application to the design, modeling, simulation, optimization, and analysis of aerospace flight systems.

Experience with the capabilities, use, and application of MATLAB®, Simulink®, Python, C/C++, or other modern programming languages and repositories in technical analysis/computing and software development.

Proven ability to work and communicate effectively in a collaborative and…