UK - Lead Systems Engineer – Autonomous Systems

We are looking for a Lead Systems Engineer to support the development, integration and verification of an advanced Interceptor UAV system. This role is equivalent to a 'Principal or Senior-Principal' position in most traditional defence/aerospace companies and is hands-on not a managerial position. The role will ensure the Interceptor operates as a coherent system across air vehicle, avionics, GNC, autonomy, sensors, communications, software and ground systems. The Systems Engineer will manage requirements, architecture, interfaces, system performance and verification, working closely with specialist engineering teams throughout the development lifecycle. This is an opportunity to take ownership for and shape Systems Engineering on the project - from the tools we use to the methods and processes.

Responsibilities

• ​Lead the project Systems Engineer effort starting from an almost blank page
• Capture, develop and manage system and subsystem requirements.
• Develop and maintain the UAV system architecture and functional decomposition.
• Define and manage key hardware, software, electrical and communications interfaces.
• Maintain requirements traceability and support configuration/change control.
• Develop system performance budgets covering areas such as mass, power, endurance, communications, processing and sensor performance.
• Conduct system-level trade studies and identify technical risks and dependencies.
• ​Support integration of GNC, avionics, sensors, communications, autonomy and payload systems.
• Define and support Verification & Validation (V&V) activities across simulation, laboratory, ground and flight testing.
• Support SIL, HIL and system integration testing.
• Analyse system-level issues and coordinate resolution across engineering disciplines.
• Support technical design reviews, test readiness reviews and qualification activities.
• Work with Simulation, GNC, Software, Electronics and Flight Test teams to assess and improve overall UAV performance.
• ​Support field testing and customer demonstrations - travel required.

Requirements

• Degree in Systems, Aerospace, Electronic or Mechanical Engineering, Physics, or a related technical discipline.
• Experience applying Systems Engineering to complex multidisciplinary products, ideally within UAVs, aerospace, robotics, autonomous or mission-critical systems.
• ​Experience across the full V-model engineering lifecycle, or a substantial proportion of it, from requirements definition through integration, verification and validation.
• Strong experience in requirements capture, decomposition, allocation and traceability.
• Experience developing system architectures and defining/managing subsystem interfaces.
• ​Good understanding of hardware/software integration, system integration and testing.
• ​Practical experience of Verification & Validation (V&V), including SIL/HIL and ideally flight-test activities.
• Experience with MBSE/SysML and requirements-management tools such as DOORS, Jama or Polarion.
• ​Familiarity with MATLAB/Simulink and modelling/simulation environments.
• ​Understanding of system safety, FMEA/FMECA and technical risk management.
• Experience integrating AI/ML-enabled perception or autonomous functionality is desirable.
• Ability to support customer bids and proposals, including interpreting and responding to new customer requirements.
• Experience using AI-based engineering tools, such as LLMs and agent-based systems, to improve analysis, documentation or engineering productivity.
• ​Strong analytical, technical communication and problem-solving skills.
• Full driving licence.