Senior Propulsion & Ordnance Engineer

Why Castelion, Why Now 

Castelion is moving incredibly fast to develop and deliver advanced defense systems at a time when execution matters more than ever. We believe focus, ownership, and excellence are decisive advantages - and we're building a world-class team to turn bold ideas into real capability. 

This is a rare opportunity to join at an early stage, where you'll have significant ownership, collaborate with exceptional teammates, and make a direct, measurable impact on our mission and the future of the company - regardless of your function.  

Senior Propulsion & Ordnance Engineer

We are seeking a Senior Propulsion & Ordnance Engineer to design and deliver ignition and energetic systems for Castelion's long-range hypersonic strike vehicles. This role is critical to enabling reliable motor ignition, flight termination, and stage separation through robust, high-performance energetic devices. You will work hands-on with multidisciplinary engineering teams to design, analyze, build, and validate ignitors, detonators, destruct charges, linear shaped charges, and related systems in a fast-paced, hardware-driven environment.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop energetic systems, including rocket motor ignitors, detonators, AFTS destruct charges, and linear shaped charges for stage separation
• Lead the architecture and detailed design of ignition and ordnance hardware, including initiation chains, packaging, and integration with vehicle systems
• Perform thermal, structural, and energetic performance analyses to ensure reliable initiation, propagation, and output under extreme environments

  Develop and optimize ignition systems for consistent, repeatable motor start across a range of operating conditions

• Work closely with propulsion, AFTS, structures, avionics, and safety teams to ensure seamless integration of ordnance systems with vehicle architecture
• Support energetic material selection, handling, and processing in collaboration with materials and manufacturing teams
• Plan and execute ground test campaigns, including component-level and integrated system testing, and analyze results to drive design improvements
• Conduct failure analysis and root cause investigations related to ignition performance, initiation reliability, or ordnance function
• Ensure compliance with safety, handling, and mission assurance requirements for energetic systems
• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to best practices in propulsion and ordnance system design
• Partner closely with program leadership to make technical trades aligned with mission success

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor's, Master's, or PhD in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Materials Science, or related field
• 5+ years of experience in propulsion, ignition systems, or ordnance/energetics design for aerospace or defense applications
• Strong background in rocket motor ignitors, detonators, initiation systems, and/or explosive devices such as shaped charges or destruct systems
• Experience with energetic materials, initiation chains, and safe handling practices
• Familiarity with AFTS or flight termination systems and associated hardware
• Experience with ground testing of energetic systems, including instrumentation and data analysis
• Proficiency in analysis and modeling tools (e.g., MATLAB, ANSYS, or equivalent)
• Experience with hardware build, integration, and troubleshooting in a lab or test environment
• Strong problem-solving mindset, thriving in a fast-paced, hardware-rich, high test cadence environment

Preferred Skills and Experience

• Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

Castelion offers a generous benefits package. Please refer to the bottom of our Careers page for more details.  

Other Duties 

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice. 

Additional Eligibility Requirements 

This position may require access to classified information or restricted U.S. Government sites, systems, or information, as determined by the Company and/or applicable U.S. Government requirements. If the position is so designated, your employment in the role may be contingent upon your ability to obtain and maintain the required U.S. Government security clearance or other government authorization, and to satisfy any citizenship or other eligibility requirements imposed by applicable law, regulation, executive order, or government contract requirements. You will be notified if and when such requirements apply. 

Affirmative Action/EEO Statement 

Castelion is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all applicants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. 

Castelion is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities throughout the application and hiring process. If you require a reasonable accommodation to complete an application, participate in the interview process, or otherwise participate in the hiring process, please contact [email protected]. Requests for accommodation will be considered on an individual basis and handled in accordance with applicable law. 

Castelion is committed to fostering a workplace where employment decisions are based on qualifications, business needs, and the ability to perform the essential functions of the role, with or without reasonable accommodation. 

EAR/ITAR Requirements 

This position requires access to export-controlled information, and as such, employment (or hiring of a contractor) is contingent upon the candidate’s ability to access all applicable export-controlled information without additional export licensing being required by the Bureau of Industry and Security and/or the Directorate of Defense Trade Controls.