The Role
Own the mechanical design, structural analysis, and aircraft integration of an airborne payload platform. Responsibilities include CAD development, mass and center-of-gravity optimization, thermal assessment, material and process selection, DFM/DFA, drawings and GD&T, tolerance analysis, manufacturing support, assembly, environmental and flight testing, and analysis correlation. The role requires close collaboration with electronics, RF, payload, systems, flight operations, manufacturers, and vendors to deliver reliable, flight-ready hardware.
Summary Generated by Built In
You will be joining the team building our payload platform, and will own the mechanical design and analysis of the airborne payload and its integration with the host aircraft. You will be responsible for structural integrity, mass and centre of gravity efficiency, manufacturability, and field reliability of the platform across its operating envelope.
The role involves working across the full development lifecycle, from concept trade studies and mechanical analysis through manufacturing support, assembly, and flight-readiness testing. This is a hands-on role suited to an engineer who is comfortable taking a design from CAD to hardware, and who wants to see their work fly.
Responsibilities :
- Own the mechanical design and analysis of the payload platform, including primary and secondary structures, enclosures, mounts, and mechanisms.
- Design the payload to airframe interface, covering mounting strategy, load paths, vibration isolation, and quick-release or field-serviceable features where required.
- Drive mass and centre of gravity optimisation against endurance and flight performance targets, and maintain the mass budget for the platform.
- Assess thermal paths and airflow for airborne electronics, and support heatsink, enclosure venting, and sealing decisions.
- Perform material and process selection based on stiffness-to-weight, strength, environmental durability, and ingress protection requirements.
- Apply DFM/DFA principles to ensure designs are manufacturable and assembly-friendly at low to medium volume.
- Develop CAD models, manufacturing drawings, GD&T, BOMs, and assembly documentation.
- Conduct tolerance stack-up analysis and fitment validation for subsystem integration.
- Work closely with manufacturing teams and vendors for fabrication, surface treatments, and build planning.
- Support environmental, functional, and flight test campaigns, including fixtures, instrumentation, and correlation of test data against analysis models.
- Collaborate with electronics, RF, payload, systems, and flight operations teams to ensure integrated platform performance.
- Demonstrate hands-on know-how in using relevant measuring, inspection, and assembly instruments, and work effectively with vendors to translate design requirements into manufacturable hardware.
Requirements
Must-have Qualifications :
- Bachelor's or Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field.
- 2-3 years of experience in mechanical design and analysis for defence and aerial platforms, such as UAVs, drones, airborne pods, or other aircraft-mounted systems.
- Strong proficiency in SolidWorks for CAD modelling, complex assemblies, sheet metal, and detailed drafting.
- Hands-on experience with FEA tools such as Simcenter 3D, ANSYS, or NASTRAN for structural and dynamic analysis.
- Strong understanding of:
- Mechanics of materials
- Structural dynamics and vibration environments
- Flight and operational load conditions
- Fatigue and margin of safety calculations
- Familiarity with materials and manufacturing processes for lightweight airborne structures including machining, sheet metal, bonding, composites, inserts, and surface treatments.
- Familiarity with drawing standards, GD&T, and production-ready documentation.
- Experience working closely with manufacturing and assembly teams to take designs to hardware.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
Good-to-have :
- Experience with satellite or spacecraft structures, or exposure to space qualification environments.
- Experience with payload pods, gimbals, pointing mechanisms, or antenna structures.
- Exposure to MILSTD, DGQA, BIS/QCI, or DAP 2020 standards and qualification processes.
- Familiarity with thermal-structural coupling analysis.
- Experience supporting vibration, shock, and environmental test campaigns.
- Experience working in private aerospace, defence, or hardware-focused startups.
Skills Required
- Bachelor's or Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field
- 2-3 years of mechanical design and analysis experience for defense and aerial platforms, such as UAVs, drones, airborne pods, or aircraft-mounted systems
- Strong proficiency with SolidWorks for CAD modeling, complex assemblies, sheet metal, and detailed drafting
- Hands-on experience with FEA tools such as Simcenter 3D, ANSYS, or NASTRAN for structural and dynamic analysis
- Understanding of mechanics of materials, structural dynamics, vibration environments, flight and operational loads, fatigue, and margin-of-safety calculations
- Familiarity with materials and manufacturing processes for lightweight airborne structures, including machining, sheet metal, bonding, composites, inserts, and surface treatments
- Familiarity with drawing standards, GD&T, and production-ready documentation
- Experience collaborating with manufacturing and assembly teams to take designs to hardware
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills
- Experience with satellite or spacecraft structures or space qualification environments
- Experience with payload pods, gimbals, pointing mechanisms, or antenna structures
- Exposure to MIL-STD, DGQA, BIS/QCI, or DAP 2020 standards and qualification processes
- Familiarity with thermal-structural coupling analysis
- Experience supporting vibration, shock, and environmental test campaigns
- Experience in private aerospace, defense, or hardware-focused startups
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The Company
What We Do
GalaxEye is an Indian space-tech startup developing advanced Earth-observation technologies. Its flagship Drishti Mission uses a multisensor imaging satellite combining optical and Synthetic Aperture Radar data to produce high-resolution imagery, including through cloud cover and at night. The company applies artificial intelligence, computer vision, and geospatial analysis to support governments, defense organizations, and industries with actionable insights.
