Control Laws Engineer

What is JetZero?

Today's aircraft contribute around 2.5% of global CO2 emissions, equivalent to the emissions of 200 million cars. This is only going to increase: Air travel is forecasted to double by 2050, while meaningful efficiency gains using current airplanes have hit a wall.

JetZero is developing a blended wing aircraft. It uses 50% less fuel and can accommodate zero-emission hydrogen propulsion. JetZero is the inevitable solution to sustainable air travel.

Position Overview

We are seeking a dynamic and experienced Fly-by-Wire Aircraft Control Laws Engineer to join our team. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in control laws design, modeling, aircraft stability and control. If you're a hands-on engineer with a startup mentality, and you're passionate about aerospace innovation, we want to hear from you. This role is based in Long Beach, CA, reporting to the Head of Flight Control System.

Responsibilities

Control Laws

• Design control laws using classical or modern control techniques

• Tune inner and outer loops over the entire flight envelope

• Retune control laws based on pilot-in-the-loop feedback

• Attenuate vibration modes if present

• Extract linear and non-linear aircraft handling quality metrics from model

• Develop scripts for batch trimming, linearizing, testing, and automation

• Support Flight Test with test card generation and simulated runs

• Support design decisions with clear reports and mathematical derivations

• Participate in brainstorming sessions

Modeling

• Model rigid body dynamics, flexible modes, and aircraft systems in Simulink

• Analyze mechanics problems using free body diagrams, Newton and Euler equations, and rotating frame kinematics

• Develop unit tests for Simulink models

FBW

• Design signal conditioning of sensor or inceptor data using voting, filtering, state estimation, etc.

• Design control surface allocation scheme

• Understand failure modes, and simulate their effect in Simulink model

• Assess criticality of failure modes

Labs

• Set up and maintain flight simulator rigs

Systems Engineering

• Design and run control law validation tests in Simulink

• Ensure compliance with standards such as DO-178C/DO-331, ARP4754A, 25.1309, AC 25-7D

• Write, validate and verify requirements

Tools

• MATLAB/Simulink

• Git (revision control)

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related field

• Min. 5 years of experience in control laws MBD design (other than PID)

• Experience in aircraft, airborne, vehicle, boat, etc., control laws

• Experience with flexible modes and vibration suppression

• Experience with digital controller implementations

• Experience in writing code (in any language, MATLAB, C++, Python, etc.)

• Knowledge of aerodynamics of flight, stability and control (S&C)

• Piloting experience is a nice-to-have

The Benefits

• Competitive salaries

• Unlimited PTO

• 10 paid holidays

• 401(k)

• Medical, Dental, Life health insurance

• Disability Insurance

• Life Insurance

• Equity tax advisory services

• Supportive work culture

Location

This job will prioritize local applicants for on-site work in Long Beach, California.

Salary Range: $130,000 - $150,000