Senior GNC AutoPilot

Posted Yesterday
Be an Early Applicant
Tucson, AZ, USA
In-Office
145K-190K Annually
Senior level
Aerospace • Artificial Intelligence • Defense
The Role
Lead design and verification of the autopilot and flight control system across gun-launch through supersonic/hypersonic flight. Perform stability and robustness analysis, develop control laws and gain scheduling in MATLAB/Simulink, specify actuators and control surfaces, support wind-tunnel and test planning, and own GN&C technical content for milestone reviews and verification.
Summary Generated by Built In

Senior Guidance Navigation & Controls Engineer 

Autopilot Design  |  Stability & Control  |  Supersonic / Hypersonic Flight Envelope

Job Title

Senior Guidance Navigation and Controls

Location

On-site preferred, Tucson, Arizona

Employment Type

Full Time

Department

GNC / Flight Dynamics & Controls

Reports To

Shawn Gilmore

Salary Range

$145,000 to $190,000

Equity

Yes


About Tiberius Aerospace

Tiberius Aerospace is a cutting-edge Aerospace and Defense company delivering advanced, mission-critical technologies for government and private sector customers. The company focuses on high-performance aerospace systems, secure engineering solutions, and the development of complex hardware built for demanding operational environments. Tiberius is scaling quickly and is looking for engineers who can operate with ownership, urgency, and technical discipline in a high-stakes environment.

Position Overview

Tiberius Aerospace is seeking a Senior Guidance Navigation & Controls Engineer to lead autopilot design, stability analysis, and control law development for Sceptre across its full flight envelope. This role owns the flight control system architecture from gun-launch transient dynamics through supersonic and hypersonic ramjet cruise, including control surface sizing, actuator specification, and  control law design. You will be the aerodynamic-control interface owner, the technical lead for all GN&C autopilot  milestone content, and the program's authority on vehicle stability, control authority, and autopilot performance.

What You'll Do

Lead flight control system design including autopilot architecture, control law development, and gain scheduling from transonic through hypersonic flight regimes.

Perform stability analysis using aerodynamic databases and define stability margin requirements for the Sceptre flight envelope.

Analyze gun-launch transient dynamics including muzzle exit stability, setback loads, and bore-rider interactions with control surfaces.

Define control surface geometry, placement, and actuation system requirements including hinge moment, torque, bandwidth, and slew rate.

Develop and validate control laws in MATLAB and Simulink and define requirements for embedded flight software implementation.

Lead control system performance verification covering closed-loop bandwidth, disturbance rejection margins, and robustness to aerodynamic uncertainty.

Support wind tunnel test planning for control surface effectiveness measurement and dynamic derivative data acquisition.

Lead GN&C autopilot technical content at milestone reviews and produce supporting technical documentation.

Technical & Flight Mechanics, Stability Analysis & Control Law Design

Develop and maintain linear analysis tools in order  to assess stability margins, bandwidth, and control authority.

Perform nonlinear simulation of the closed-loop flight control system in the 6-DOF trajectory simulation to evaluate autopilot robustness.

Analyze gun-launch and muzzle exit dynamics and define control surface deployment timing and authority constraints during the launch transient.

Define actuator bandwidth, slew rate, and torque requirements based on aerodynamic hinge moment data and closed-loop control performance requirements.

Develop gain scheduling logic for the full flight envelope and validate gain set transitions across

Perform sensitivity  analysis and evaluate control law robustness to aerodynamics , mass properties, propulsion, sensor and actuator errors and uncertainty. 

Support structural dynamics mode identification from test data and update structural notch filter designs to maintain stability margins.

Develop and maintain the flight control system requirements document and ensure flow-down to autopilot algorithm and flight software specifications.

Operational & Engineering Support

Interface with the aerodynamics team to define aero database format, coverage, and uncertainty bounds required for control law development.

Coordinate with the structures team on control surface structural design, hinge line loads, and fin deployment mechanisms.

Support propulsion team interfaces on ramjet throttle-body aerodynamic interaction and CG shift effects on stability.

Support range safety planning and define control system-related safing and flight termination logic for test activities.

Participate in design reviews and evaluate engineering changes for stability and control impact.

What You'll Bring

B.S. or M.S. in Aerospace Engineering or Mechanical Engineering.

8 or more years of flight dynamics and control law design experience on guided munitions, missiles, or high-performance aerospace vehicles.

Demonstrated expertise in classical and modern control design such as   PID, LQR, H-infinity, mu-synthesis, gain scheduling, and/or modeling following control.

Strong background in 6-DOF simulation and model integration for control law evaluation.

Proficiency in MATLAB and Simulink for control law design, linear analysis, system identification and nonlinear simulation.

Experience with stability analysis and robustness verification under model uncertainty.

Must be a U.S. citizen and eligible to obtain and maintain a U.S. government security clearance.

Preferred Experience

Experience with fin-stabilized or spin-stabilized gun-launched projectile dynamics including Magnus effect, spin-yaw coupling, and dynamic stability derivatives.

Background with ramjet or rocket-powered high-speed vehicle flight control design.

Familiarity with deployable or pop-out fin control surface design and hinge mechanism integration..

Experience with adaptive or robust control methods for vehicles with significant aerodynamic uncertainty.

Background in control-structures interaction analysis for flexible or articulated fin configurations.

Active U.S. Secret or Top Secret security clearance.

What We're Looking For

A flight controls engineer who can design a gain-scheduled autopilot for a supersonic ramjet system from first principles and defend the stability margins at a CDR.

Someone who understands gun-launch dynamics and can define what the control system must do in the first 50 milliseconds of flight.

A technically rigorous lead who owns the aerodynamic-controls interface and can identify control design risk early from aero data quality.

A high-ownership GN&C engineer who can deliver verified control laws and close formal stability margin requirements at a TRR.

Compensation & Benefits

Tiberius Aerospace offers competitive base compensation commensurate with experience, equity participation, comprehensive health benefits, and 401(k). Specific compensation will be discussed during the interview process.

Growth Opportunity

This role provides the opportunity to design the flight control system for a gun-launched ramjet munition with no direct precedent in the precision fires market. The Senior GN&C Engineer will define the control architecture, own the stability analysis, design and validate the gain schedule, and lead the flight controls program through formal verification. As Tiberius grows, this person will shape how the company builds its flight dynamics capability and may lead the GN&C function on follow-on programs.

Equal Opportunity Statement

Tiberius Aerospace Inc. is an Equal Opportunity Employer. The Company maintains policies and practices designed to prevent discrimination or harassment against any qualified applicant or employee to the extent prohibited by federal, state, and local laws and regulations.

Discrimination on the basis of race, ethnicity, color, religion, ancestry, national origin, citizenship, sex, age, marital status, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, military or veteran status, gender identity, gender expression, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law is prohibited.

Skills Required

  • B.S. or M.S. in Aerospace Engineering or Mechanical Engineering.
  • 8+ years of flight dynamics and control law design experience on guided munitions, missiles, or high-performance aerospace vehicles.
  • Demonstrated expertise in control design methods (PID, LQR, H-infinity, mu-synthesis, gain scheduling).
  • Strong background in 6-DOF simulation and model integration for control law evaluation.
  • Proficiency in MATLAB and Simulink for control law design, linear analysis, system identification, and nonlinear simulation.
  • Experience with stability analysis and robustness verification under model uncertainty.
  • Must be a U.S. citizen and eligible to obtain and maintain a U.S. government security clearance.
  • Ability to develop and validate control laws and define requirements for embedded flight software implementation.
  • Experience analyzing gun-launch transient dynamics, muzzle exit stability, and bore-rider interactions.
  • Experience with fin-stabilized or spin-stabilized gun-launched projectile dynamics (Magnus effect, spin-yaw coupling).
  • Background with ramjet or rocket-powered high-speed vehicle flight control design.
  • Familiarity with deployable/pop-out fin control surface design and hinge mechanism integration.
  • Experience with adaptive or robust control methods and control-structures interaction analysis for flexible fin configurations.
  • Active U.S. Secret or Top Secret security clearance.
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The Company
24 Employees
Year Founded: 2021

What We Do

Tiberius Aerospace is an aerospace and defense company developing mission-critical systems for government, private-sector, and allied customers. Its portfolio includes supersonic ramjet munitions, multi-mission missiles, autonomous vertical-launch systems, guided munitions, and AI-enabled lethality. The company operates a Defense-as-a-Service model that separates research and development from manufacturing to support rapid iteration, sovereign scalability, continuous innovation, and secure, compliant defense operations for national security.

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