General Dynamics Mission Systems engineers a diverse portfolio of high technology solutions, products and services that enable customers to successfully execute missions across all domains of operation. With a global team of more than 13,000 top professionals, we partner with the best in industry to expand the bounds of innovation in the defence and scientific arenas. In the UK, we are leading the way in avionics and communication systems. Given the nature of our work and who we are, we value trust, honesty, alignment and transparency.
Job DescriptionGeneral Dynamics Mission Systems UK is looking for an experienced Principal Safety Engineer to lead and deliver safety engineering activities across complex defence programmes, product development initiatives, and customer-funded projects.
This is a senior technical leadership role, responsible for ensuring the effective application of safety engineering principles across military land, maritime and air domains. You will manage Safety Management Programmes, develop robust Safety Cases, and provide expert guidance to programmes and stakeholders, ensuring compliance with regulatory, customer and company requirements.
You will bring extensive experience in safety-critical environments, a strategic mindset, and the ability to influence both programme delivery and the continued growth of the organisation's safety capability.
QualificationsYou will be an experienced Safety Engineering professional with a proven track record of leading safety engineering activities within large-scale, complex or safety-critical systems. You will be comfortable operating at a strategic level while remaining technically hands-on, providing expert guidance and leadership across multiple projects and programmes.
Essential Skills & Experience
- Demonstrable experience in Safety Engineering for product based large-scale systems.
- Proven ability to lead and develop a Safety Engineering capability.
- Strong experience developing and managing:
- System and Product Safety Case Plans and Reports.
- Safety Cases and Safety & Environmental Cases.
- Software Safety programmes.
- Strong working knowledge of:
- Fault Tree Analysis (FTA)
- Event Tree Analysis (ETA)
- HAZOP Studies
- Common Cause Analysis (CCA)
- Occupational Health Hazard Assessment (OHHA/OSHA)
- COSHH and Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS)
- Environmental Management principles
- Safety Integrity Levels (SILs)
- Modular Safety Cases and Goal Structuring Notation (GSN)
- Knowledge of relevant standards and frameworks including:
- Def Stan 00-051, 00-055 and 00-056
- IEC 61508
- DSA02.DLSR.LSSR
- DO-254
- DO-178B/C
- Strong understanding of current and emerging safety and environmental legislation.
- Excellent communication, stakeholder management and relationship-building skills.
- Strong analytical, organisational and decision-making abilities.
- A systems-thinking approach with the ability to innovate and solve complex problems.
- Commitment to continuous learning and professional development.
Salary for this position is £59,000 to £85,000, depending on experience plus our excellent flexible benefits package.
We offer hybrid working - for this role we expect a minimum of 2 days per week on site, averaged over a month period.
We pride ourselves in being a great place to work with a shared sense of purpose, offering impressive benefits:
- A compressed nine-day fortnight and compressed hours - which means every other Friday off.
- A personalized career development plan, alongside regular progress reviews - supporting and valuing your progression within the Company.
- A flexible working environment where your contributions are recognized and rewarded with flexible benefits
We believe in maintaining a diverse workplace - inclusive of beliefs, cultural background, job experiences, thoughts and ideas. If who we are and what we do resonates with you, we welcome you to join our inclusive team!
Our success is fuelled by our colleagues and the wide variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills they bring to the Company.
We are a Disability Confident Employer, as such we offer an interview to disabled people who meet the minimum criteria for the job.
Please email [email protected] if you would like your application to be considered under the DC Scheme.
All successful/appointed applicants must be able to obtain a level of UK Security clearance that is appropriate for the role and undertake suitable Right to work checks
Every application matters to us. We want you to know that each application we receive is reviewed by a real person—not just an algorithm. Our screening questions are also carefully considered to help us understand your experience and fit for the role.
We appreciate the time you take to apply.
Skills Required
- Experience in Safety Engineering for product based large-scale systems.
- Proven ability to lead and develop a Safety Engineering capability.
- Experience developing and managing System and Product Safety Case Plans and Reports.
- Experience developing and managing Safety Cases and Safety & Environmental Cases.
- Experience with Software Safety programmes.
- Working knowledge of Fault Tree Analysis (FTA).
- Working knowledge of Event Tree Analysis (ETA).
- Working knowledge of HAZOP Studies.
- Working knowledge of Common Cause Analysis (CCA).
- Working knowledge of Occupational Health Hazard Assessment (OHHA/OSHA).
- Working knowledge of COSHH and Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS).
- Knowledge of Environmental Management principles.
- Knowledge of Safety Integrity Levels (SILs).
- Knowledge of Modular Safety Cases and Goal Structuring Notation (GSN).
- Knowledge of Def Stan 00-051, 00-055 and 00-056.
- Knowledge of IEC 61508.
- Knowledge of DSA02.DLSR.LSSR.
- Knowledge of DO-254 and DO-178B/C.
- Strong understanding of current and emerging safety and environmental legislation.
- Excellent communication, stakeholder management and relationship-building skills.
- Strong analytical, organisational and decision-making abilities.
- Systems-thinking approach with ability to innovate and solve complex problems.
- Commitment to continuous learning and professional development.
- Ability to obtain appropriate UK security clearance and pass right-to-work checks.
General Dynamics Mission Systems Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about General Dynamics Mission Systems and has not been reviewed or approved by General Dynamics Mission Systems.
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Retirement Support — Retirement benefits stand out with immediate 401(k) vesting and a dollar-for-dollar match up to 6% of pay, which is repeatedly positioned as a key strength of the total rewards package.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — Time-off offerings are described as robust, including seeded PTO for new hires, a bank of holidays, and multiple leave types such as bereavement, jury duty, and military leave.
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Flexible Benefits — Schedule and work-setup flexibility is emphasized through options like a 9/80 arrangement and remote/hybrid availability in some roles, often treated as an important part of overall rewards.
General Dynamics Mission Systems Insights
What We Do
At General Dynamics Mission Systems, a business unit of General Dynamics, we develop mission critical C4ISR solutions across the land, sea, air, space and cyber domains, but that doesn’t tell our whole story. When downed pilots are isolated in enemy territory, our equipment gives them a lifeline to call home. When a student opens a textbook to learn about the universe, they’re looking at data and pictures sent using our technology. When the government needs to share crucial top-secret information, our products help them keep this information out of the wrong hands. When sailors need to locate underwater mines, our technology allows them to find explosives with unmanned underwater vehicles. Delivering C4ISR technology is what we do but we think why we do it is more important.
