Autonomous Vehicle Engineer Jobs in Illinois (NOW HIRING)

About Ascendion

Ascendion is a full-service digital engineering solutions company. We make and manage software platforms and products that power growth and deliver captivating experiences to consumers and employees. Our engineering, cloud, data, experience design, and talent solution capabilities accelerate transformation and impact for enterprise clients. Headquartered in New Jersey, our workforce of 6,000+ Ascenders delivers solutions from around the globe. Ascendion is built differently to engineer the next.

Ascendion | Engineering to elevate life

We have a culture built on opportunity, inclusion, and a spirit of partnership. Come, change the world with us:

• Build the coolest tech for world’s leading brands
• Solve complex problems - and learn new skills
• Experience the power of transforming digital engineering for Fortune 500 clients
• Master your craft with leading training programs and hands-on experience

Experience a community of change makers!

Join a culture of high-performing innovators with endless ideas and a passion for tech. Our culture is the fabric of our company, and it is what makes us unique and diverse. The way we share ideas, learning, experiences, successes, and joy allows everyone to be their best at Ascendion.

About the Role

Ascendion Air is looking for a Mechanical Engineer / Field Service Engineerto support commercial drone delivery operations by ensuring high system reliability and operational readiness. This role serves as the technical bridge between field operations and engineering, diagnosing complex hardware issues, supporting new site launches, and driving continuous improvement across autonomous drone systems.

You will partner with cross-functional engineering teams to troubleshoot mechanical, electrical, and software-related issues while ensuring drones are safely returned to service.

Multiple Locations: 3 positions available — 1 in Illinois (Chicago area), 1 in Florida (Tallahassee or Jacksonville), and 1 in Pennsylvania (Philadelphia or Allentown)

Key Responsibilities:

• Investigate and troubleshoot drone system failures observed during commercial operations.
• Perform system-level root cause analysis using engineering data and diagnostic tools.
• Support deployment of new Prime Air delivery sites by provisioning equipment and validating operational readiness.
• Configure systems and execute test/check flights before production launch.
• Work closely with Design Engineering, Service Engineering, Flight Operations, and Product Support teams.
• Analyze reliability data and recommend design improvements.
• Document engineering findings and communicate technical recommendations to stakeholders.
• Participate in rotating production support and on-call responsibilities.
• Travel to Prime Air operational sites as required (up to 30%).

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Robotics, Mechatronics, or equivalent.
• Experience troubleshooting complex engineering systems.
• Knowledge of scripting languages such as Python or similar.
• Strong project management and organizational skills.
• Excellent technical documentation and communication abilities.
• Ability to travel up to 30%.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience working with UAVs or drone systems.
• Aerospace or aviation industry experience.
• Robotics or autonomous vehicle experience.
• Experience supporting operations teams during critical production issues.
• Familiarity with Agile tools such as JIRA and Confluence.
• Experience working in cross-functional engineering environments.

Preferred Candidate Titles

• Field Service Engineer
• Product Support Engineer
• Systems Engineer
• Reliability Engineer
• Mechanical Engineer
• Robotics Engineer
• Aerospace Systems Engineer
• Flight Test Engineer
• Mechatronics Engineer

Salary Range: The salary for this position is between $70,000 - $80,000 annually. Factors which may affect pay within this range may include geography/market, skills, education, experience and other qualifications of the successful candidate.

Benefits : The Company offers the following benefits for this position, subject to applicable eligibility requirements: [medical insurance] [dental insurance] [vision insurance] [401(k) retirement plan] [long-term disability insurance] [short-term disability insurance] [personal days accrued each calendar year. The Paid time off benefits meet the paid sick and safe time laws that pertains to the City/ State] [12-15 days of paid vacation time] [6-8 weeks of paid parental leave after a year of service] [9 paid holidays and 2 floating holidays per calendar year] [Ascendion Learning Management System] [Tuition Reimbursement Program]

Position Information

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