Autonomy & Flight Controls Engineer

About XTI Aerospace

XTI aerospace is an advanced aviation company developing the TriFan 600, a next-generation vertical takeoff and landing aircraft designed to transform regional air travel.

Through its acquisition of Drone Nerds, a leading U.S. enterprise drone solutions provider, XTI is expanding into the broader unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) market—building a comprehensive platform across both manned and autonomous flight.

Together, XTI is shaping the future of the Vertical Economy™, combining cutting-edge aircraft design with real-world drone operations and services.

Role Overview 

The Autonomy & Flight Controls Engineer is responsible for designing and implementing advanced flight control systems for commercial and military aircraft, including autonomous flight capabilities. Expertise in model-based design, simulation, and integration of adaptive control algorithms to enhance safety, control and stability, and level IV autonomy.   This Engineer will be responsible to set requirements for autonomous components and software, and have detailed knowledge of the autonomy ecosystem in order to select the best components and suppliers to support the mission. 

Key Responsibilities 

• Design and optimize flight control algorithms for next-generation UAVs, enabling autonomous takeoff, navigation, and landing  

• Generate Systems architecture for flight controls with autonomy  

• Must have experience using 6DOF models to generate flight control algorithms. 

• Perform source selection for flight and autonomous hardware and software 

• Lead team in simulating and testing flight dynamics to validate autonomous control performance. 

• Integrate flight control systems with avionics and navigation for seamless autonomous operation  

• Develop fault detection and isolation algorithms to improve reliability of autonomous systems  

• Conducted risk assessments and reliability analysis for autonomous flight control systems 

• Conduct risk assessments and reliability analysis for flight vehicles. 

Qualifications 

• A minimum of 10 years of UAV flight controls design and optimization experience 

• A minimum of 7 years experience flight and adaptive controls design 

• A minimum of 5 years experience in autonomy design 

• Utilize MATLAB and Simulink for model-based design and analysis. 

• Must have software development background. 

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.    

• Past experience designing flight control systems for UAV’s 

• Past experience in flight testing of manned and un-manned UAV systems 

• Must have or be able to obtain an FAA part 107 pilot’s certification. 

• Previous experience testing controls in a simulator using Xplane or similar software. 

Skills and Education 

• Degree in aerospace Engineering or equivalent (Master’s degree preferred) 

At XTI Aerospace, we are driven by innovation and the desire to reshape the future of air mobility. If you are passionate about cutting-edge aerospace technology and eager to make an impact on projects like the TriFan 600, we invite you to join our dynamic team. We offer a competitive benefits package, a collaborative work environment, and the opportunity to be at the forefront of sustainable aviation. 

XTI Aerospace is an equal opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusion. All qualified applicants will be considered without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, or veteran status. 

To apply, please submit your resume outlining your qualifications and experience. We look forward to exploring how you can contribute to our journey toward a more sustainable and innovative future in aviation. 

Note to Recruiters: XTI Aerospace does not accept unsolicited resumes or referrals from placement agencies, staffing vendors or other external parties seeking recruiting fees without a signed formal agreement.