{"id":77442,"url":"https://alion.io/job/archer-aviation-lead-flight-controls-software-engineer-special-programs","title":"Lead Flight Controls & Software Engineer – Special Programs","company":{"id":6898,"name":"Archer Aviation","domain":"archer.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/archer","size_band":"1001-5000","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Greenhouse","truth_index":{"grade":"A","score":88,"open_postings":129,"ghost_share":0.109,"stale_share":0,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":92,"computed_at":"2026-10-17T05:46:00Z"}},"role":"Backend","role_family":"Backend","seniority":"lead","employment_type":null,"work_mode":"remote","remote_scope":"stated_countries","remote_scope_basis":"posting_text","remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["San Jose, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":["US"],"hiring_countries_total":1,"salary":{"min":138200,"max":190100,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":190100},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":8,"visa_sponsorship":true,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-07-30T18:32:40Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-09-02","last_verified_at":"2026-10-17T14:06:42Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":78,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":0,"flags":["company_stale"],"days_open":78},"description":"Headquartered in Silicon Valley, California, Archer is a leader in the next-gen aerospace sector building an end-to-end advanced air mobility platform that delivers air taxis, unmanned aircraft systems (“UAS”), aviation-related physical artificial intelligence (“AI”) solutions, and other technologies to customers worldwide across the commercial aerospace and defense sectors.\nOur sights are set high and our problems are hard, and we believe that diversity in the workplace is what makes us smarter, drives better insights, and will ultimately lift us all to success. We are dedicated to cultivating an equitable and inclusive environment that embraces our differences, and supports and celebrates all of our team members.\nAbout the Role\nSpecial Programs is Archer's rapid-prototyping, cross-functional engineering team supporting advanced and defense-focused development efforts. We operate as a small, empowered group capable of moving quickly across disciplines - from early technical assessment of new opportunities through hands-on design, analysis, and prototype development.\nThe Lead Special Programs Engineer - Flight Controls & Software brings deep flight controls and software engineering expertise as their organic core competency - control law development, flight dynamics, and the embedded flight control and autopilot software that implements them for prototype vehicles.\nWhat You’ll Do\nLead flight control law design and analysis for prototype vehicles, including control law development, flight dynamics modeling, and stability and control assessment\nLead development of embedded flight control and autopilot software, from architecture through implementation and flight test support\nSupport rapid prototyping efforts end-to-end, from concept modeling and simulation through hardware-in-the-loop test and flight test support\nOwn the flight controls and software discipline within Special Programs - setting technical approach, standards, and analysis/development methods used across the program’s flight controls and software work\nConduct technical feasibility assessments of new opportunities - evaluating whether emerging concepts, RFPs, or mission requirements are viable within your focus area and what approach they would require\nServe as a cross-functional technical contributor across Special Programs efforts outside your core focus area when program needs require it\nCollaborate with program leads, other Special Programs engineers, and broader Archer engineering teams to align technical approaches with program timelines and constraints\nProduce technical documentation, trade studies, and analysis packages supporting both design maturity reviews and opportunity/capture decisions\nRepresent Special Programs work in your focus area in internal reviews and, as needed, in discussions with government stakeholders\nWhat You’ll Need\nBachelor’s degree in Aerospace, Controls, Electrical, or Computer Engineering (advanced degree a plus)\nDemonstrated experience in flight control law development, flight dynamics, or stability and control analysis for aerospace platforms\nDemonstrated experience developing embedded flight control or autopilot software\nFamiliarity with relevant control design, simulation, and embedded software development tools\nDemonstrated ability to work across the full development lifecycle - concept through prototype - in a fast-paced, resource-constrained environment\nExperience or strong aptitude for evaluating technical feasibility of early-stage concepts, not just executing against defined requirements\nComfort operating as a generalist when needed - willingness and ability to contribute outside your core focus area in support of program needs\nAbility to work independently with significant technical ownership and no direct-report support structure\n8-12 years of relevant engineering experience (or equivalent demonstrated experience in rapid-prototyping / advanced-programs environments)\nMust be a U.S. Person (U.S. citizen, national, lawful permanent resident, asylee, or refugee), as defined by ITAR/EAR\nAbility to obtain and maintain a U.S. government security clearance\nAbility to travel up to 10% of the time.\nWhat Makes This Role Different\nThis isn’t a seat on Archer’s core flight controls & software team. Special Programs engineers are chosen for deep discipline expertise and the versatility to support wherever a program needs it - from early opportunity evaluation to hands-on prototype work across disciplines. You’ll have significant technical ownership and autonomy, working in a small team built to move fast on some of Archer’s most forward-looking defense efforts.\nAt Archer, we aim to attract, retain, and motivate talent with the skills and leadership needed to grow our business. We drive a pay-for-performance culture and reward performance that supports the Company’s strategy. For this position, we are targeting a base pay range of $138,200 - $190,100. Actual compensation offered will be determined by job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. \nArcher is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to job applicants with physical or mental disabilities, and those with sincerely held religious beliefs. Applicants who may require reasonable accommodation for any part of the application or hiring process should provide their name and contact information to Archer’s People Team at . Reasonable accommodations will be determined on a case-by-case basis.\nInformation collected and processed as part of any job applications you choose to submit is subject to Archer's Candidate Privacy Policy.\nCertain positions may be eligible for visa sponsorship.\nArcher is proud to be an Equal Opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusivity in the workplace. All aspects of employment are decided on the basis of merit, qualifications, and business needs. We do not discriminate based upon race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, gender identity or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.\nArcher Aviation does not engage with external recruiting agencies/individual recruiters with whom it does not have a prior written agreement. Archer reserves the right to make use of any unsolicited resumes that it receives and bears no responsibility for payment of any fees asserted from the use of unsolicited resumes. If you are a recruiting agency or individual recruiter wishing to do business with Archer, please reach out to . All employment processes are managed by the Archer People Team.","description_format":"text","description_chars":6634,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":8,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":{"level":"bachelor","optional":false},"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":[],"hiring_locations":[{"name":"United States","iso":"US","kind":"country"}],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Aerospace Manufacturing","Aircraft Manufacturing"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-07-30T18:32:40Z"}],"visa":[{"country":"US","licensed_sponsor":true,"evidence":"H-1B filings in 12 months: 91","filings_12m":91,"filings_prev_12m":0,"green_card_filings_12m":0,"median_offered_wage_usd":192500,"route":null,"cap_exempt":false,"checked_at":"2026-10-15T11:24:14+00:00","sources":["US Department of Labor: LCA disclosure data (H-1B, H-1B1, E-3)","US Department of Labor: PERM disclosure data (green cards)"],"filings_for_role_12m":10}],"liveness":{"score":47,"band":"ok","label":"Likely open","p_open":1,"p_active":0.786,"p_room":0.6,"age_days":78,"expected_fill_days":92,"reasons":["conf:1","velocity","win:late","crowd:brand"],"computed_at":"2026-10-17T05:46:00Z"},"pay":{"stated_usd_annual":190100,"is_top_pay":false},"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/archer-aviation-lead-flight-controls-software-engineer-special-programs","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/archer-aviation-lead-flight-controls-software-engineer-special-programs.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-10-17T14:49:05Z","cache_seconds":300,"methodology":"https://alion.io/methodology","terms":"https://alion.io/terms","contact":"https://alion.io/contact","api":"https://alion.io/developers","about":"Alion is a live layer of people, companies and AI agents: who they are, whether they are real and active right now, what they do and how to work with them, readable by people and by agents and paid per call.","catalog":"https://alion.io/catalog.json","usage":{"tier":"crawler_verified","counted_by":"address","units_charged":1,"used_today":20023,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-10-18T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002,"plus_per_slice":{"credits":0.05,"usd":0.005}},"unit":"per company, plus each slice with data","note":"the employer in depth","call":{"mcp_tool":"get_company","arguments":{"id":6898},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=6898"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Farcher-aviation-lead-flight-controls-software-engineer-special-programs"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":1,"usd":0.1},"unit":"per slice","note":"pay, demand and time to fill for this role and place","call":{"mcp_tool":"market_stats"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=market.stats&for=job%2Farcher-aviation-lead-flight-controls-software-engineer-special-programs"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002},"unit":"per posting in a list","note":"similar open postings","call":{"mcp_tool":"search_jobs"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=job.search&for=job%2Farcher-aviation-lead-flight-controls-software-engineer-special-programs"},{"id":"company.verify","title":"Is this company real and active right now","status":"pilot","price":null,"unit":"per company","request":{"url":"https://alion.io/catalog/request","method":"POST","body":"{\"offer\": \"company.verify\", \"for\": \"job/archer-aviation-lead-flight-controls-software-engineer-special-programs\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Farcher-aviation-lead-flight-controls-software-engineer-special-programs"}]}