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How much do flight controls engineer jobs pay per hour?

As of Jun 12, 2026, the average hourly pay for flight controls engineer in the United States is $82.24, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $77.40 and $90.87 per hour, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What are the typical day-to-day responsibilities of a Flight Controls Engineer?

Flight Controls Engineers spend their days developing, testing, and refining control systems that manage an aircraft’s stability and response. They often work closely with multidisciplinary teams including software developers, test pilots, and systems engineers to design algorithms and validate performance both in simulation and on real hardware. Regular tasks may include modeling flight dynamics, analyzing data from test flights, troubleshooting system anomalies, and preparing technical documentation. This role requires a high level of attention to detail and collaboration to ensure that flight control systems meet stringent safety and reliability standards.

What is a Flight Controls Engineer job?

A Flight Controls Engineer is responsible for designing, developing, and testing flight control systems that manage an aircraft's behavior in flight. This includes working on software, hardware, and control laws to ensure stability, performance, and safety. They collaborate with aerospace engineers, pilots, and regulatory agencies to meet industry standards. Their role often involves simulation, modeling, and real-world testing to refine control systems.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive in the Flight Controls Engineer position, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Flight Controls Engineer, you need a strong background in aerospace engineering, control systems theory, and experience with flight dynamics modeling, usually supported by a relevant engineering degree. Familiarity with MATLAB/Simulink, control law development tools, and industry certifications such as a Professional Engineer (PE) license or familiarity with DO-178C/DO-254 standards is highly valued. Excellent problem-solving abilities, teamwork, and effective communication skills help distinguish high performers in collaborative aviation environments. These skills are essential to ensure the safe, reliable design and integration of advanced flight control systems in modern aircraft.

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Flight Controls Engineer jobs near you
Senior GNC Engineer - Flight Controls & Autonomy

Senior GNC Engineer - Flight Controls & Autonomy

Hermeus

Los Angeles, CA

$150K - $204K/yr

Full-time

Medical, Retirement, PTO

Posted 22 days ago

Job description

Hermeus is a venture-backed defense aviation company reclaiming the lost art of rapid iterative prototyping to build the fastest aircraft in the world today. By prioritizing relentless hardware iteration, we deliver high-speed systems at the pace of the modern battlefield. We work with the Department of War to provide the high-speed capabilities our nation and its allies need to maintain a durable, asymmetric advantage.

About The Role:

As a Senior GNC Engineer at Hermeus, you will help develop and deploy the flight control, navigation, and autonomy systems that enable our aircraft to fly safely and perform reliably in demanding real-world environments. This role will focus heavily on flight controls development, controls modeling, state estimation, and autonomy for advanced aircraft applications, including autonomous takeoff and landing. 

You will work across simulation, software, hardware, and flight test to build and validate advanced control and estimation capabilities for high-speed aircraft. This role is ideal for an engineer who enjoys solving hard dynamic systems problems, moving quickly from analysis to implementation, and working closely with cross-functional teams to take algorithms from concept through validation and flight. 

Responsibilities:
  • Develop and improve flight control, guidance, and navigation algorithms for high-speed aircraft  
  • Design and implement control laws, estimation logic, and sensor fusion strategies for autonomous and piloted flight applications, with an emphasis on autonomous takeoff and landing  
  • Develop and analyze linear control models and dynamic system representations to support controller design, stability analysis, and performance assessment  
  • Build and refine high-fidelity models of vehicle dynamics, sensors, actuators, and control system behavior using MATLAB, Simulink, and related simulation tools  
  • Conduct 6-DOF simulation, Monte Carlo analysis, regression testing, and performance studies to validate system robustness across nominal and off-nominal conditions  
  • Support software and system integration across flight controls, navigation, avionics, and other vehicle subsystems  
  • Execute and analyze software-in-the-loop, hardware-in-the-loop, and system integration testing campaigns  
  • Support flight test planning, real-time test execution, and post-flight data analysis to validate and improve control and estimation performance  
  • Collaborate closely with avionics, software, test, and vehicle engineering teams to define requirements, interfaces, and system architecture  
  • Drive technical trade studies for sensors, estimators, control logic, and autonomy-related subsystems  
  • Contribute to verification strategies, test coverage definition, and system-level performance validation  
  • Document technical work clearly through reports, test reviews, and design presentations  
Requirements:
  • Bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, physics, or a related technical field  
  • 5+ years of professional experience in GNC, flight controls, autonomy, estimation, robotics, or closely related aerospace systems  
  • Strong fundamentals in dynamics, linear controls, stability analysis, and modeling and simulation  
  • Experience developing or integrating flight-critical algorithms for aircraft, spacecraft, missiles, UAVs, or other autonomous systems  
  • Proficiency in MATLAB, Simulink, Python, C++, or similar technical computing and software development tools  
Preferred Skills and Experience:
  • Experience with flight controls development for autonomous aircraft or other high-performance aerospace systems  
  • Experience with autonomous takeoff and landing system development, testing, or validation  
  • Experience with GNSS, INS/IMU, air data systems, and other aircraft navigation sensors  
  • Practical experience with Kalman filtering techniques, including EKF, UKF, or related estimation methods  
  • Experience with 6-DOF simulation, control law development, and flight dynamics modeling  
  • Experience with software-in-the-loop, hardware-in-the-loop, Monte Carlo testing, and regression-based validation  
  • Experience supporting flight test, post-flight analysis, and control system tuning  
  • Ability to solve complex technical problems with a high degree of ownership in a fast-paced development environment  
  • Strong written and verbal communication skills  
  • Passion for building advanced aircraft and enabling a faster pace of flight development 
$150,875 - $204,125 a year
The salary information provided is a general guideline only. Hermeus takes various factors into account, including, but not limited to, the position's scope and responsibilities, the candidate's professional background, education and training, essential skills, and market and business considerations, when presenting a job offer.
 
Salary is only one part of our total compensation and benefits package. Hermeus offers competitive salary and equity, unlimited PTO policy, paid parental leave, potential for year-end bonuses, and more!
 
100% employer-paid health care
401k & Retirement Plans
Unlimited PTO
Weekly Paid Office Lunches
End of Year Bonuses
Fully stocked breakrooms
Stock Options  
Paid Parental Leave
U.S. EXPORT CONTROL COMPLIANCE STATUS 
The person hired will have access to information and items subject to U.S. export controls, and therefore, must either be a "U.S. person" as defined by22 C.F.R. 120.62or otherwise eligible for deemed export licensing. US persons include U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, lawful permanent residents (green card holders), and asylees and refugees with such status granted, not pending. 
 
EQUAL OPPORTUNITY
Hermeus is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Employment decisions at Hermeus are based solely on merit, competence, and qualifications, without regard to race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability, or any other legally protected status.
 
We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans. If you would like more information about how your data is processed, please contact us.
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