Lead Controls Engineer (UAVs)

About Us We're building deeply intelligent UAVs for defense forces - designed to out-think, outmaneuver, and dominate even in contested environments. Our mission is to give the armed forces an undeniable edge and help safeguard peace across borders. We move fast, challenge limits, and obsess over building technology that redefines what’s possible. If you are driven to build something truly transformational — then this is it.

Role Summary As Lead Controls Engineer, you will own the control systems architecture , guide algorithm development (attitude, trajectory, and mission-level control), and lead a team of controls engineers . This role combines technical depth in flight dynamics and control theory with leadership responsibilities , including mentoring, roadmap development, and cross-team collaboration with firmware, autonomy, and systems integration teams.

Roles And Responsibilities

• Control System Design & Development

• Architect, implement, and optimize control systems for attitude, altitude, velocity, and trajectory tracking.

• Develop both low-level controllers (motor commands, stabilization) and high-level controllers (trajectory following, waypoint tracking).

• Model and analyze UAV dynamics under variable payloads and flight conditions.

• Explore and implement advanced control methods (e.g., LQR, MPC, adaptive control, fault-tolerant control).

• Continuous Improvement & Research

• Stay updated with the state of the art in control systems, UAV dynamics, and adaptive/autonomous control methods.

• Drive innovation by evaluating new algorithms (e.g., AI/ML-enhanced control strategies).

• Ensure documentation, safety standards, and compliance with UAV regulatory requirements.

• Simulation, Testing & Tuning

• Lead the use of simulation environments (MATLAB/Simulink, Gazebo, AirSim, SITL/HIL) for validation.

• Define test cases and metrics for control performance, robustness, and safety.

• Oversee parameter tuning and log analysis during lab and field flight testing.

• Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work closely with:

• Firmware engineers to ensure low-level control implementation on embedded hardware.

• Autonomy engineers to connect planners with trajectory controllers.

• Perception & sensor fusion teams to leverage accurate state estimation for stable control.

• Flight test team to validate and iterate in real-world conditions.

Requirements Qualifications

• Master’s or Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering, Controls, Robotics, or related field.

• 6–10 years of experience in control systems for robotics or UAVs.

• Strong expertise in:

• Classical control (PID, cascaded loops).

• Modern control (LQR, MPC, nonlinear/adaptive control).

• State estimation and dynamics modeling.

• Proficiency in MATLAB/Simulink, C++, and Python.

• Hands-on experience with PX4, ArduPilot, or custom autopilot stacks.

• Proven experience with real-world tuning and analyzing UAV flight logs.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience leading small teams or projects.
• Familiarity with fault-tolerant and redundant control architectures.
• Knowledge of certifiable RTOS environments (SafeRTOS, INTEGRITY).
• Hands-on flight testing of UAVs (quadrotors, VTOLs, fixed-wing).
• Contributions to control-related research, publications, or open-source projects.

Benefits What We Offer

• Technical leadership role at the heart of Unmannd’s flight systems.
• Direct impact on real-world UAV performance and reliability.
• Access to real hardware platforms, flight ranges, and simulations.
• Collaborative startup culture with opportunities to grow into Head of Controls / Autonomy.
• Competitive salary and equity options.