Locum Aircraft Performance Engineer Jobs in Kentucky

Shield AI is a venture-backed defense-tech company with the mission of protecting service members and civilians with intelligent systems. Its products include Hivemind autonomy software, V-BAT and X-BATaircraft, and Aechelon simulation and synthetic reality technologies. With offices and facilities across the U.S., Europe, the Middle East, and Asia-Pacific, Shield AI's technology actively supports operations worldwide. For more information, visit www.shield.ai. Follow Shield AI on LinkedIn, X, Instagram, and YouTube.

Job Description:

We are seeking an Aerospace Engineer to own the flight performance, endurance, and mass properties for V-BAT. In this role, you will serve as the technical authority on aircraft performance—translating flight dynamics, aircraft configuration, and environmental conditions into validated models that guide design decisions, payload integration, and autonomous flight software. You will work at the intersection of design, propulsion, guidance and controls, flight test, and go-to-market teams to continuously improve the capability and reliability of the aircraft.

What you'll do:

• Performance & Endurance Analysis: Develop and refine endurance, range, loiter, and cruise performance calculations based on flight dynamics, aircraft configuration, and operating environment (altitude, temperature, wind, and mission profile).
• Weight & Balance Ownership: Own the aircraft weight and center-of-gravity (CG) model, including tracking, allocation budgets, and reporting throughout design changes and configuration updates, ensuring CG remains within stable flight limits.
• Aero & Engine Modeling: Create, validate, and maintain the aerodynamic (lift, drag, and stability) and propulsion (engine) models of the aircraft for use by the Guidance and Controls team, supporting continuous improvement of the flight computer and autonomy stack.
• Cross-Functional Design Collaboration: Partner with Mechanical and Propulsion Design engineers to assess the weight, drag, and aerodynamic performance impacts of proposed design changes to the airframe, wing, and control surfaces.
• Payload & Configuration Evaluation: Collaborate with Go-To-Market teams to evaluate new payloads and estimate endurance and performance for new or customer-specific configurations.
• Flight Test: Plan and drive flight test campaigns to validate operational envelopes, correlate aero/engine models against flight data, and characterize real-world aircraft performance across the flight envelope.
• Root Cause & Corrective Action: Participate in root cause analysis (RCA) of performance anomalies and test findings, and drive corrective actions to closure.
• Requirements & Envelope Definition: Analyze large flight and test data sets to establish and refine operational envelope requirements and performance specifications.

Required qualifications:

• B.S. in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering (or equivalent technical field).
• 3+ years of experience in the aerospace or defense industry.
• Demonstrated understanding of fixed-wing flight dynamics, aircraft performance, and aerodynamic/propulsion fundamentals.
• Proficiency in analyzing large data sets to define operational envelope requirements and validate models (e.g., Python, MATLAB, or equivalent).
• Experience developing or maintaining aircraft weight and CG models.
• Demonstrated ability to work with cross-functional teams to drive change.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to present technical findings to varied audiences.

Preferred qualifications:

• Full lifecycle experience taking a product from concept through development, flight test, and field sustainment.
• Direct experience with fixed-wing unmanned aerial systems (UAS/UAV) or autonomous aircraft.
• Experience building or tuning aero and engine models used by guidance, navigation, and control (GNC) systems.
• Hands-on flight test experience, including test planning, instrumentation, and data reduction.
• Familiarity with fixed-wing modeling and simulation tools (e.g., MATLAB/Simulink, XFLR5, AVL, or comparable aerodynamic/performance tools).
• Understanding of relevant airworthiness, safety, or defense acquisition standards.