Lead Avionics Engineer - Flight Termination System

About the role

About Castelion

Castelion is bringing a new approach to defense
development and production: one that focuses on short, iterative design cycles,
rapid testing in development, and modern commercial manufacturing strategies
for production at scale. We're designing, building, and testing next generation
long range strike weapons systems to give America and its Allies a definitive
edge and deter future conflicts.

Lead Avionics Engineer - Flight Termination System

As the Lead Avionics Engineer specializing in Flight Termination Systems (FTS), you will be responsible for the design, development, testing, and qualification of systems that ensure the safe termination of a flight if it deviates from its planned trajectory. You will work with both hardware and software components, as well as coordinating with various key stakeholders.

Responsibilities

Own system and electrical architecture development and integration of Flight Termination System components (RF command interfaces, control boxes, electronic safe and arm devices, initiators, and destruct charges) for the Blackbeard vehicle.

Define detailed system design, including component selection, system interconnect schematics, RF interfaces, consumable budgets, harness and channel capabilities, fault tolerance, and reliability.

Execute system validation, including compatibility testing with range assets, system electrical testing in HITL, and flight test qualification.

Collaborate closely with regulatory partners and Range Safety to develop and maintain a tailored set of requirements specific to the Blackbeard program that defines FTS certification.

Design and analysis of safety-critical circuits for ordnance initiation and command destruct receivers.

Define test plans, processes, fixturing, test sequences, and generate technical reports to show compliance to strict regulatory standards.

Lead qualification and acceptance testing of components under rigorous test environments (shock, vibration, thermal cycle, etc.) that validate component reliability and functionality.

Conduct analyses to support reliability data and reduced scope of testing

Generate and maintain detailed system & component documentation and specifications

Act as the technical expert for the overall system and piece-part components, leading component & system anomaly root cause investigations and with data-driven rationale to determine hardware disposition & corrective

Challenge applicability of baseline requirements through understanding the intent of the regulatory requirement versus solely the face value as-written requirement.

Act as the responsible engineer for flightworthiness of the Flight Termination System all the way through launch, validating the as-built system is a GO for launch.

Basic Qualifications

Bachelors degree in electrical engineering

5+ years of experience with electrical component design, system level integration of electronic components, or system level testing

Preferred Skills and Experience

Strong interpersonal and collaborative skills, enthusiasm for problem solving, and desire to optimize modern defense production

3+ years of experience designing and analyzing electrical systems via professional work experience, project/research-based student experience, or a combination of both

Strong background in RF link design and validation, including antenna integration, link budget analysis, and EMI/EMC mitigation for high-reliability environments.

Skilled in designing low-noise, isolated power supplies, DCDC converters, and battery management systems for mission-critical hardware.

Deep familiarity with U.S. range safety standards (AFSPCMAN 91710, RCC 319, NASA 8719) and certification processes with FAA/AST and DoD ranges.

Experience designing, integrating, and troubleshooting FTS hardware with flight avionics, telemetry, and ordnance devices, including safe-arm devices and separation mechanisms.

Hands-on leadership of vibration, thermal, shock, and EMI/EMC test campaigns per MILSTD810 and related aerospace standards.

Proficient in hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) testing, RF link verification, and fault injection testing for destruct command reliability.

Strong project management skills and effective communication of technical concepts across multi-disciplinary teams

Leadership experience on a project or research team

Knowledge of electro-mechanical devices, actuators, motors, or explosives

Understanding of fundamental principles of explosives, solid mechanics, and dynamics

Experience with system design and testing for hardware sub-systems such as RF, power, communications, and sensors

Familiarity with electrical test equipment (multimeters, oscilloscopes, power supplies, etc.), and basic analysis techniques

Experience writing engineering software for test automation, data review, and design analysis, preferably in MATLAB or Python

Excellent verbal and written communication skills

Leadership Qualities

Bias to Action
and Creative Problem Solving. Desire and experience questioning assumptions in
ways that lead to break through ideas that are ultimately implemented.
Successfully bring in applicable processes/concepts/materials from other
industries to achieve efficiency gains. Ability to personally resolve
minor issues in development without requiring significant support.

High
Commitment, High Initiative. A successful candidate will have a genuine passion
for Castelion's mission and consistently look for ways to contribute to
the company's technical goals and prevent hardware blockers. Ability to
work in a fast paced, autonomously driven, and demanding atmosphere.
Strong sense of accountability and integrity.

Clear
Communicator. Proactively
communicates blockers. Trusted in previous roles to be voice of company
with regulators, suppliers, gate keepers and customers. Capable of
tactfully managing relationships with stakeholders to achieve
company-desired outcomes without compromising relationships. Emails, IMs
and verbal interactions are logical, drive clarity, and detailed enough to
eliminate ambiguity.

ITAR Requirements

To conform to U.S. Government
export regulations, applicant must be a (i) U.S. citizen or national, (ii)
U.S. lawful, permanent resident (aka green card holder), (iii) Refugee
under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, or (iv) Asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or be
eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of
State.

Employment with Castelion is governed on the basis of
competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race,
color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability
status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or
physical disability or any other legally protected status.

All employees are granted long-term stock incentives
as part of their employment at Castelion. All employees receive access to
comprehensive medical, vision, and dental insurance, and the company offers
four weeks of paid time off per year.