Staff Engineer, Core Flight Controls

About the role

You will architect and implement the core control logic that dictates how Merlin's aircraft behaves in flight, owning the full lifecycle of flight control algorithms from initial concept and modeling through rigorous simulation, hardware-in-the-loop testing, and real-world flight validation. This role requires you to dive deep into the intricacies of aircraft dynamics and translate high-level autonomy requirements into stable, high-performance control solutions that ensure safe and efficient operation. You will collaborate closely with perception, planning, and integration teams to ensure your control designs work seamlessly within the broader autonomous stack. You will be responsible for conducting detailed trade studies to evaluate control architectures and selecting the most appropriate methods for different flight regimes and mission profiles. You will lead the design, analysis, and verification activities for all flight control components, ensuring they meet stringent safety and performance criteria. You will mentor junior engineers, providing technical guidance and code review to elevate the entire team's capability and ensure consistent engineering excellence. You will own critical technical decisions and contribute directly to the technical roadmap for Merlin's autonomy platform, shaping the future of how aircraft are controlled. You will interface with certification authorities to ensure that the flight control system development adheres to relevant standards and provides the necessary evidence for regulatory approval.

Key facts

What you'll do

• Investigate and model complex aircraft dynamics to inform the development of robust control algorithms that handle real-world variability.
• Design and implement advanced control strategies for longitudinal, lateral, and directional stability across all phases of flight, from takeoff to landing.
• Conduct high-fidelity simulation campaigns to evaluate control performance and refine algorithms before any flight testing occurs.
• Integrate control software with the broader autonomy stack, ensuring tight coupling with path planning, decision-making, and sensor fusion modules.
• Perform detailed stability analysis using classical and modern techniques to guarantee robust performance under diverse atmospheric conditions.
• Develop and maintain comprehensive test cases in simulation and hardware-in-the-loop environments to validate control functionality and safety margins.
• Collaborate with hardware engineers to ensure that control algorithms are executable on target computing platforms with real-time constraints.
• Analyze flight test data to identify performance discrepancies and iterate on control designs to achieve desired handling qualities.
• Document all design choices, analysis results, and verification activities to create a clear and auditable engineering trail.
• Lead technical discussions with cross-functional teams to resolve complex interface and performance challenges.
• Mentor engineers in control theory best practices and code implementation standards to maintain high-quality deliverables.
• Partner with the certification team to generate evidence that the control system meets all required safety and performance standards.
• Drive the adoption of modern control methodologies where they provide clear benefits over classical approaches.
• Define and track key performance indicators for control system stability, accuracy, and robustness to ensure continuous improvement.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a closely related field is required; a Master's or PhD is preferred.
• You must have a minimum of 8 years of professional experience in flight controls engineering for aerospace applications.
• You must possess a deep understanding of classical control theory, including PID, linearization, and frequency domain analysis.
• You must be proficient in modern control design techniques such as LQR, MPC, or adaptive control methods.
• You must have extensive experience with flight simulation tools such as MATLAB/Simulink, FlightLab, or equivalent professional software.
• You must have a proven track record of developing flight control laws for real aircraft or high-fidelity simulators.
• You must be experienced with programming in C/C++ for real-time embedded systems and performance-critical applications.
• You must have a strong grasp of aircraft dynamics, stability, and control derivatives and how they impact handling qualities.
• You must be comfortable working with requirements and ensuring that your designs can be verified and validated against them.
• You must have excellent problem-solving skills and the ability to debug complex control system interactions.
• You must be able to communicate technical concepts effectively to both engineering and non-engineering stakeholders.
• You must be a self-starter who can manage multiple priorities in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment.
• You must have a strong commitment to safety and understand the critical nature of flight control software.
• You must be willing to travel to Merlin's global flight test facilities as needed to support testing activities.

Nice to have

• Experience with actuator modeling and control surface dynamics is a strong advantage.
• Familiarity with DO-178C or DO-254 level A/B software standards is beneficial.
• Knowledge of atmospheric modeling and wind shear or turbulence effects is preferred.
• Experience with optimization-based control design techniques is a bonus.
• Understanding of sensor noise characteristics and filtering techniques is helpful.
• Background in rotorcraft or VTOL vehicles is a plus if your passion aligns with those platforms.

Practical notes

You will need to travel to Merlin's flight test sites periodically to validate control algorithms in real-world conditions. This role may require occasional travel to Bedford, Massachusetts; Quonset Point, Rhode Island; and Kerikeri, New Zealand. There may be short-notice travel requirements to respond to test objectives or urgent issues. This position is eligible for standard U.S. employment authorization. Candidates must now or in the future be authorized to work in the United States for this role. This role is based in Boston, Massachusetts, with the option for remote work, and is eligible for standard U.S. employment authorization.