Principal Engineer - Performance

About EDGE

Role overview

Responsibilities

• Translate mission and system requirements into measurable performance objectives, constraints, mission profiles, and analysis cases.
• Lead aircraft and aerospace vehicle performance analysis across sizing, takeoff, landing, climb, cruise, range, endurance, ceiling, speed, maneuver, and degraded conditions.
• Develop models for point performance, mission analysis, trajectories, sizing, optimization, and performance prediction.
• Integrate engineering and operational data; conduct trade, sensitivity, optimization, and uncertainty analyses; identify performance drivers and quantify design impacts.
• Manage performance budgets, allocations, margins, reserves, and uncertainty; verify and validate models and maintain traceability and configuration control.
• Support ground and flight testing, data reduction, test correlation, and model updates; prepare substantiation and technical reports.
• Support engineering reviews and program milestones, lead work packages, develop recovery options, mentor engineers, and improve methods, standards, models, automation, and digital engineering.

Basic qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Aerospace, Aeronautical, Mechanical, Systems, Electrical, Energy, Applied Mathematics, or a closely related engineering discipline.
• Typically 10+ years of relevant aircraft, aerospace vehicle design, flight mechanics, sizing, or performance engineering experience.
• Substantial experience predicting or substantiating performance for complex aerospace vehicles or systems.
• Experience in constraint, mission, and trajectory analysis; fuel or energy estimation; performance modeling; performance diagrams; trade studies; sensitivity analyses; budgets; and technical reports.
• Experience with vehicle performance parameters and integrating aerodynamic, propulsion, mass, structural, systems, and operational data.
• Experience with uncertainty, margins, reserves, risk, model verification, validation, benchmarking, and correlation.
• Proficiency with MATLAB, Python, Modelica, or equivalent engineering computation and data-analysis tools.
• Familiarity with CAD or parametric geometry, CFD, flight dynamics, systems engineering, requirements management, PLM, and configuration management.
• Experience supporting aerospace reviews, testing, qualification, substantiation, and controlled engineering documentation.
• Ability to lead a significant technical or performance work package with limited supervision.
• Professional proficiency in written and spoken English and ability to work in multidisciplinary, safety-critical, quality-controlled, security-sensitive environments.

Preferred qualifications

• A master's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Aircraft Design, Propulsion, Systems Engineering, Multidisciplinary Design Optimization, or a related field is preferred.
• Preferred experience includes technical leadership in vehicle sizing, performance, mission analysis, or substantiation on a major aerospace program.
• Experience across fixed-wing, UAV/UAS, eVTOL, rotorcraft, missile, high-altitude, supersonic, or hypersonic vehicle classes is preferred.
• Preferred advanced areas include multidisciplinary design optimization, trajectory simulation, advanced energy architectures, propulsion-airframe integration, aerodynamic database work, flight testing, certification, and operational performance data.
• Experience with formal engineering lifecycle reviews, configuration-controlled engineering software, automated regression testing, model governance, digital engineering, mentoring, or safety- and export-controlled environments is preferred.

Benefits and development

• EDGE describes learning opportunities, career support, collaboration, and competitive tax-free salaries; benefits may include family visas, annual flight tickets, medical insurance, and education allowances, depending on role and seniority.