Shield AI is seeking an Aerostructures Design Engineer II to support the development of structural components for our next-generation autonomous aircraft. As a key contributor on the Mechanical Engineering team, you will design and develop high-performance structural components from concept through production release.
You’ll work cross-functionally to ensure structural integrity, manufacturability, and system integration across one of the most advanced autonomous aircraft platforms being built today. This role is ideal for an aerospace mechanical engineer who thrives in hands-on design environments and is eager to take increasing ownership of flight-critical designs.
What you'll do:
- Design and develop structural components and assemblies for Shield AI’s next-generation UAV platform, supporting both primary and secondary aircraft structures.
- Execute all stages of the design lifecycle including conceptual development, initial CAD modeling, detailed design, and drawing release.
- Perform hand calculations for stress or strain with limited basic FEA analysis, with guidance from senior engineers as needed.
- Collaborate closely with aerodynamics, propulsion, avionics, payload, and manufacturing teams to support system integration across airframe interfaces.
- Support structural validation efforts including coupon testing, subcomponent testing, and system-level verification.
- Generate high-quality design documentation, drawings, interface definitions, and analysis reports in compliance with aerospace standards.
- Partner with manufacturing and flight test teams to resolve build issues and support hardware through test and deployment.
- Participate in design reviews and technical discussions, presenting work clearly and incorporating feedback effectively.
- Continuously improve personal technical depth in structural layout, joints, fasteners, tolerancing, and structural optimization.
Required qualifications:
- Bachelor’s or Master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related discipline.
- 2+ years of experience in aircraft structural design or closely related aerospace structures.
- Experience designing and releasing structural components in development or production environments.
- Working knowledge of composite and metallic structures, including fasteners, bonded joints, and load paths.
- Proficiency in CAD tools (NX, CATIA, SolidWorks, or similar).
- Understanding of GD&T, tolerance stackups, and DFMA principles.
- Strong written and verbal technical communication skills.
- Demonstrated ability to operate in fast-paced, high-ownership engineering environments
- Ability to get a S//SAR level security clearance desired
Preferred qualifications:
- M.S. degree in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering.
- Experience supporting UAV, DoD, or aerospace vehicle programs.
- Familiarity with aerospace standards (MIL-STD, ASME Y14.5, FAA).
- Experience supporting hardware through test, failure analysis, and design iteration.
- Exposure to composite design and manufacturing methods.
- Experience using FEA tools (ANSYS, Abaqus, NASTRAN, or similar) for linear structural analysis
Skills Required
- Bachelor's or Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related discipline
- 2+ years of experience in aircraft structural design or closely related aerospace structures
- Experience designing and releasing structural components in development or production environments
- Working knowledge of composite and metallic structures, including fasteners, bonded joints, and load paths
- Proficiency in CAD tools (NX, CATIA, SolidWorks, or similar)
- Understanding of GD&T, tolerance stackups, and DFMA principles
- Strong written and verbal technical communication skills
- Demonstrated ability to operate in fast-paced, high-ownership engineering environments
- Ability to get a S//SAR level security clearance
- M.S. degree in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering
- Experience supporting UAV, DoD, or aerospace vehicle programs
- Familiarity with aerospace standards (MIL-STD, ASME Y14.5, FAA)
- Experience supporting hardware through test, failure analysis, and design iteration
- Exposure to composite design and manufacturing methods
- Experience using FEA tools (ANSYS, Abaqus, NASTRAN, or similar) for linear structural analysis
What the Team is Saying
Shield AI Compensation & Benefits Highlights
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Healthcare Strength — Healthcare coverage includes medical, dental, vision, and mental-health support, with company materials describing excellent coverage. Feedback suggests these offerings are comprehensive and consistently highlighted across official and third-party benefit lists.
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Equity Value & Accessibility — Equity is granted to all full-time hires, with RSU structures and tools like Carta Tax intended to improve understanding and tax timing. Feedback suggests this broad-based ownership approach is a notable component of total rewards.
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Parental & Family Support — Benefits include paid parental leave, fertility support, childcare benefits, family medical leave, and onsite resources such as a Mother's Room. Feedback suggests the family-oriented offerings are more expansive than basic coverage.
Shield AI Insights
What We Do
At Shield AI, you won't wait years to see your work reach the field. You'll build hardware and software that operates in the real world right now, in the hands of the people who depend on it. Hivemind, our AI pilot, has been flying since 2018. It has flown more than 30 platforms, including an F-16, and it now sits under a U.S. Air Force production contract for Collaborative Combat Aircraft. When you write code or shape a system here, you contribute to technology with a proven flight record and a clear production future. V-BAT flies intelligence, surveillance, and reconnaissance missions with an operational record that stretches from Ukraine to the Indo-Pacific. It delivers eyes where they matter most, in the most demanding conditions on earth. The teams behind it watch their work get tested where the stakes are real. X-BAT takes its first flight this year. It's an AI-piloted fighter that needs no runway, built to operate where traditional aircraft can't. Join now and you help shape a program at its earliest, most formative stage. That's the kind of ground-floor work that defines a career. Do the most impactful work of your life, on problems that matter. Autonomy at this level asks a lot of you. You'll take on problems in perception, planning, and control that few teams anywhere are equipped to solve. You'll work across disciplines, from aerospace and robotics to machine learning and systems engineering, alongside people who hold themselves to an exacting standard and expect the same from you. Our mission is clear: protect service members and civilians with intelligent systems. That purpose runs through every decision, every design review, and every deployment. It's why the work here carries a weight you can feel. Ready to join our mission? Explore our open roles and find where you fit.
Why Work With Us
Founded in 2015 by a former Navy SEAL, Shield AI builds AI pilots and uncrewed aircraft. Veterans aren't an afterthought here, they're at every level. It's why the work carries weight: AI pilots and uncrewed aircraft flying real missions, from Ukraine to the Indo-Pacific, protecting service members and civilians.
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Hybrid Workspace
Employees engage in a combination of remote and on-site work.
