Shield AI is seeking a Sr. Structural Analyst to support the analysis and testing of advanced UAVs. In this role, you will work closely with Mechanical Systems, Propulsion, Mechanisms, and other engineering disciplines to ensure the structural integrity of our lightweight, high-performance aircraft. You will contribute to the design, analysis, testing, and optimization of airframe structures and components, ensuring they meet performance, weight, and safety requirements.
This role is ideal for engineers with 5+ years of experience looking to gain expertise in finite element analysis (FEA), composite and metallic materials, and mechanical testing in a fast-paced, high-tech aerospace environment.
What you'll do:
- Assist in building and refining finite element models (FEM) to evaluate the structural performance of UAV components.
- Perform static, modal, fatigue, and vibration analyses to assess stress, deformation, and durability.
- Conduct hand calculations to validate FEA results, ensuring accuracy and structural reliability.
- Work with design engineers to optimize airframe structures, balancing weight, strength, and manufacturability.
- Support the development of test plans for structural validation, including quasi-static, vibration, and shock testing.
- Analyze flight telemetry and structural test data to improve modeling accuracy and correlate predictions with real-world performance.
- Assist in defining load cases, material properties, and design margins for UAV airframe and mechanical components.
- Document and present structural analysis reports and technical recommendations to engineering teams.
- Collaborate with cross-functional teams to ensure structural requirements align with system performance goals.
- Contribute to the continuous improvement of structural analysis methodologies, tools, and best practices.
Required qualifications:
- 5+ years of experience in structural analysis, finite element modeling, or aircraft loads analysis AND B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or related field. Alternatively, 3+ years of experience AND a M.S. in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering
- Experience with FEA tools (FEMAP, NASTRAN, HyperWorks, ANSYS, Patran, or similar).
- Ability to perform hand calculations for structural strength and stability analysis.
- Knowledge of composite materials and lightweight aerospace structures.
- Familiarity with mechanical testing methods (static, vibration, and/or fatigue).
- Proficiency with data analysis tools (Excel, MATLAB, Python, or similar).
- Strong problem-solving skills, attention to detail, and ability to work in a team environment.
- Ability to obtain a S//SAR level security clearance desired.
Preferred qualifications:
- Experience in aircraft structural design, UAV airframe development, or aerospace testing.
- Hands-on experience with structural testing.
- Exposure to CAD software (NX, Catia, SolidWorks) and PLM tools (Teamcenter or similar).
- Understanding of aerospace industry standards, structural certification processes, and material selection.
- Fatigue and damage tolerance (DaDT) experience including crack initiation and crack growth
Skills Required
- 5+ years of experience in structural analysis, finite element modeling, or aircraft loads analysis with a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field; alternatively, 3+ years of experience with an M.S. in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering
- Experience with FEA tools such as FEMAP, NASTRAN, HyperWorks, ANSYS, Patran, or similar
- Ability to perform hand calculations for structural strength and stability analysis
- Knowledge of composite materials and lightweight aerospace structures
- Familiarity with mechanical testing methods, including static, vibration, or fatigue testing
- Proficiency with data analysis tools such as Excel, MATLAB, Python, or similar
- Strong problem-solving skills, attention to detail, and ability to work in a team environment
- Ability to obtain an S//SAR level security clearance
- Experience in aircraft structural design, UAV airframe development, or aerospace testing
- Hands-on experience with structural testing
- Exposure to CAD software such as NX, CATIA, or SolidWorks and PLM tools such as Teamcenter or similar
- Understanding of aerospace industry standards, structural certification processes, and material selection
- Fatigue and damage tolerance experience, including crack initiation and crack growth
What the Team is Saying
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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Employees engage in a combination of remote and on-site work.
