Hypersonic Senior Systems Engineer

The Electronic Warfare Division has an opening for an experienced Hypersonic Systems Engineer.

Leidos is looking for experienced engineers with a Hypersonics Aerospace background to lead Systems development and Modeling and Simulation (M&S) efforts based in the DC Metro Area. This is a senior engineering position integrating multiple design concepts and defining analysis and test roadmaps to validate performance of hypersonic systems against system level requirements. This position will lead and develop system level critical thinking skill sets for less experienced engineers.

Candidates should have prior experience with hypersonic boost glide or air breathing systems and be able to articulate the technical challenges associated with high speed flight system design. Candidates should have experience in multiple domains crucial to hypersonic design including but not limited to aerodynamics, aerothermal, materials, thermal, structural, Loads & dynamics, or other relevant areas. Preferred candidates will have prior experience defining and integrated multiple domain analyses and tests results through the systems engineering processes starting with requirements generation and compilation through Verification and Validation activities and be able to provide guidance on both methodologies and resources to achieve the desired system level requirements.

Candidates should have experience with business development activities conveying Leidos design baselines and capabilities and aligning designs with customer needs. This includes experience with requirements analysis, concept design and assessments, work scope development (labor, material, facilities, etc...), technical volume writing experience, and supporting a total solution development and synthesis.

The Aerophysics group operates in a team environment where individual creativity is rewarded and continuous learning is the norm. Our engineers typically work directly with DOD personnel and regularly interact with leaders in the development of hypersonic weapons. Be a part of generating the designs for the next generation of hypersonic weapon systems in this high growth field.

Successful candidates will interact with internal and external stakeholders to define system level requirements. The candidates will then define plans including design requirements, allocations, and M&S plans for execution by Leidos and external team members. Finally, the candidate will integrate results of analysis and tests performed into a comprehensive customer deliverable demonstrating design capabilities and the ability to meet the customer needs.

Required Skills:

Experience Level: Candidates should have 15+ years' experience in addition to a bachelors in Aerospace Engineering (or similar) degree.

Candidates are expected to generate solutions for technical issues in hypersonic weapons system development. Candidates will also be expected to support development of junior team members (1 to 2) through a mentorship role.

Communication Skills: Successful candidates will effectively communicate issues and results to internal team members and internal and / or external customers. The candidate will develop a clear understanding of customer objectives and create execution plans / tasks required to satisfy them. The candidate will provide both written and verbal execution status on a regular basis.

Engineering Skills:

Experience with the following disciplines is required:

• System Requirements Generation and Decomposition
• Trade study execution
• System Integration and Interface Coordination
• Verification and Validation
• Experience in multiple of the domains listed below:
• Aerodynamics / CFD
• Aerothermal
• Trajectory simulation
• Material response
• Mechanical design
• Structural analysis (FEA)
• Thermal analysis
• Ground Test planning and execution
• Flight Test planning and execution
• Range safety analysis
• Payload integration

Active Secret clearance required, Top Secret preferred.

Desired Skills:

• System Architecture
• Aerodynamics/CFD (Cart 3D, FNS Tools suites)
• Trajectory simulation (OTIS, POST, or similar)
• Aerothermal & Material response
• Finite Element Analysis (ANSYS, NASTRAN, Sierra)
• CAD
• Matlab
• Tecplot, ParaView
• Planning, Execution, and Analysis of ground and/or flight test data

TRAVEL: Attend technical reviews, customer meetings, and professional conferences. 25%.

Come break things (in a good way). Then build them smarter.

We're the tech company everyone calls when things get weird. We don't wear capes (they're a safety hazard), but we do solve high-stakes problems with code, caffeine, and a healthy disregard for "how it's always been done."

Original Posting:
December 19, 2025

For U.S. Positions: While subject to change based on business needs, Leidos reasonably anticipates that this job requisition will remain open for at least 3 days with an anticipated close date of no earlier than 3 days after the original posting date as listed above.

Pay Range:
Pay Range $131,300.00 - $237,350.00

The Leidos pay range for this job level is a general guideline only and not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include (but are not limited to) responsibilities of the job, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity, alignment with market data, applicable bargaining agreement (if any), or other law.