# Staff Engineer, Landing Gear Systems - Ranger (R6294)

**Company**: Shield AI
**Location**: Seattle, Washington
**Work arrangement**: onsite
**Experience**: staff
**Job type**: Full Time Employee
**Salary**: USD 170,000-250,000 per-year-salary
**Category**: Engineering
**Industry**: Technology

**Apply**: https://jobs.lever.co/shieldai/4047ed49-c4fa-4e3f-963f-dd417234799f?utm_source=yubhub.co&utm_medium=jobs_feed&utm_campaign=apply
**Canonical**: https://yubhub.co/jobs/job_bf4ed0b3-b1d

## Description

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems.

As a Staff or Senior Staff Landing Gear Engineer, you will take full technical ownership of the landing gear architecture, kinematic mechanism design, structural analysis, and vehicle integration for a new UAV platform.

## Responsibilities

- Lead landing gear architecture definition and trade studies to meet vehicle mass, volume, and ground handling requirements.

- Own the full CAD design lifecycle from initial concept through drawing release, including complex linkage kinematics, clearance envelopes, structural load paths, material selection, and rigorous tolerance stack-ups.

- Perform first-principles classical stress and fatigue hand calculations, backed by finite element analysis and dynamic landing load assessments.

- Size and select wheels, tires, brakes, shock absorption systems, actuators, and nose wheel steering mechanisms tailored to vehicle landing and taxi envelopes.

- Author technical specifications and statements of work for landing gear components, evaluate vendors, and drive supplier technical execution.

- Define verification test plans, design mechanical test fixtures, support drop test campaigns, and execute functional validation against performance requirements.

- Support prototype assembly, ground taxi testing, and flight test operations to identify discrepancies, resolve mechanism anomalies via root-cause investigation, and implement rapid design changes.

## Requirements

- Minimum 7 years (L4) to 12 years (L5) of direct experience in aerospace mechanism design, aircraft landing gear systems, or primary structural development.

- B.S. or M.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related technical discipline.

- Deep mastery of classical solid mechanics, kinematics, dynamics, fatigue, materials selection, and GD&T/tolerance stack-up methodologies.

- Demonstrated capability performing closed-form hand calculations and FEA analysis for high-load mechanism and structural components.

- Extensive experience in 3D CAD modeling, mechanism layout, and drawing release with PLM workflows.

- Proven track record sourcing aerospace hardware, collaborating with specialized mechanism/actuator suppliers, and supporting physical builds and test rigs.

- Demonstrated ability to self-direct, prioritize technical tasks without oversight, and deliver functional hardware under tight timelines.

- Secret eligible

## Preferred Qualifications

- Direct experience with UAV, autonomous aircraft, or rotorcraft landing systems and arresting gear integration.

- Familiarity with aerospace structural, environmental, and mechanism drop-test standards.

- Hands-on machine shop, fabrication, or mechanical assembly experience in a prototype or rapid R&D environment.

## Benefits

- Pay within range listed + Bonus + Benefits + Equity

- Temporary employee offer package: Pay within range listed above + temporary benefits package (applicable after 60 days of employment)

Shield AI is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer.

## Skills

### Required
- aerospace mechanism design
- aircraft landing gear systems
- classical solid mechanics
- kinematics
- dynamics
- fatigue
- materials selection
- GD&T/tolerance stack-up methodologies
- FEA analysis
- 3D CAD modeling
- mechanism layout
- drawing release
- PLM workflows
- aerospace hardware sourcing
- supplier management

### Nice to have
- UAV landing systems
- autonomous aircraft
- rotorcraft landing systems
- arresting gear integration
- aerospace structural standards
- environmental standards
- mechanism drop-test standards
- machine shop experience
- fabrication
- mechanical assembly

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Source: [Apply at jobs.lever.co](https://jobs.lever.co/shieldai/4047ed49-c4fa-4e3f-963f-dd417234799f?utm_source=yubhub.co&utm_medium=jobs_feed&utm_campaign=apply)