{"id":1753795,"url":"https://alion.io/job/shield-ai-staff-engineer-thermal-engineering-r6172","title":"Staff Engineer, Thermal Engineering (R6172)","company":{"id":50,"name":"Shield AI","domain":"shield.ai","url":"https://alion.io/company/shield-ai","size_band":"1001-5000","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Lever","truth_index":{"grade":"B","score":74,"open_postings":76,"ghost_share":0,"stale_share":0.842,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":69,"computed_at":"2026-10-24T06:02:35Z"}},"role":"Industrial Engineering","role_family":"Industrial Engineering","seniority":"staff","employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Dallas, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":140000,"max":210000,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":210000},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":8,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"ANSYS","optional":false},{"name":"DO-160","optional":false},{"name":"MIL-STD-810","optional":false},{"name":"SolidWorks","optional":false},{"name":"STAR-CCM+","optional":false}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-10-03T03:23:47Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-10-03","last_verified_at":"2026-10-24T17:09:00Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":21,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":21},"description":"Job Description:\nAre you a passionate and innovative thermal engineer looking to help develop state of the art AI and aircraft products? Are you eager to make a positive difference in the world? Do you want to work alongside mission driven and values focused teammates? Shield AI is just the place for you!\nAs a Staff Thermal Engineer at Shield AI, you will be the technical authority for aircraft avionics thermal management and electronics cooling. You will define thermal architecture, set analysis and test standards, and carry avionics thermal solutions from concept through qualification and production.\nThis role is best suited for an engineer who solves problems from first principles, turns ambiguous, open-ended challenges into clear technical plans, and influences design decisions across mechanical, electrical, PCBA, and systems teams. You will mentor other engineers and raise the thermal capability of the organization.\nWhat you'll do:\nServe as technical owner and authority for avionics thermal management across V-BAT, from concept through design, analysis, qualification, and production.\nDefine avionics thermal architecture, derive thermal requirements, and establish thermal environments and interface requirements for avionics bays, enclosures, and components.\nDevelop, review, and approve analytical, numerical, and computational heat transfer and fluid flow models using hand calculations and CFD tools such as FloEFD. Set modeling standards, assumptions, and margin policies for the team.\nLead trade studies, system architecture decisions, and risk assessments. Balance thermal performance against power, weight, volume, cost, maintainability, and schedule.\nDefine qualification and verification strategy. Lead test planning, instrumentation, and data analysis, and correlate models with test data. Support environmental qualification to standards such as MIL-STD-810 and RTCA DO-160.\nInfluence electrical and PCBA design direction early, including component placement, power dissipation budgets, and thermal design rules.\nAuthor thermal specifications and statements of work. Evaluate suppliers and provide technical direction to them for thermal hardware such as heat sinks, cold plates, heat pipes, vapor chambers, and fans.\nLead thermal content at design reviews and produce clear, traceable technical reports and analysis records.\nMentor and develop junior and senior engineers. Review their analyses and test plans and guide cross-disciplinary teams in applying thermal and fluid fundamentals.\nIdentify program-level thermal risks early, propose mitigations, and drive them to closure.\nRequired qualifications:\nB.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related discipline.\nMinimum 8 years of professional experience in avionics or electronics thermal engineering, including technical ownership of thermal solutions carried through qualification and into production.\nExpert knowledge of heat transfer (conduction, convection, radiation) and fluid mechanics, with the ability to validate complex models using first-principles calculations.\nProven experience defining and integrating active and passive cooling solutions at component, subsystem, and system level.\nIn-depth knowledge of thermal management design elements, including TIMs, spreaders, heat sinks, cold plates, vapor chambers, heat pipes, and fans, and how they are selected, qualified, and manufactured.\nAdvanced proficiency with thermal analysis and CFD tools (e.g., ANSYS Icepak, FloEFD, STAR-CCM+), including setting up, reviewing, and correlating models against test data.\nExperience with CAD design tools such as NX, SolidWorks, or similar, and with PLM-controlled design release.\nDemonstrated experience planning and executing thermal qualification and verification testing, including instrumentation and data acquisition.\nTrack record of technical leadership: leading trade studies, presenting at design reviews, and influencing cross-functional design decisions.\nExperience mentoring engineers and reviewing their technical work.\nExcellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to communicate technical findings clearly to engineering teams, program leadership, and customers.\nProven ability to self-direct, prioritize without oversight, and deliver in a fast-paced, startup environment.\nPreferred qualifications:\nM.S. in a relevant engineering discipline.\nExperience with high-altitude aircraft avionics cooling and thermal design.\nExperience with aerospace environmental and airworthiness requirements, including MIL-STD-810, MIL-HDBK-310, RTCA DO-160, and MIL-HDBK-516.\nIn-depth knowledge of aircraft integration constraints (power, weight, volume, maintainability, safety).\nKnowledge of materials and manufacturing methods relevant to thermal management, including machined, cast, additively manufactured, and bonded thermal hardware.\nExperience with transient and duty-cycle thermal analysis, and with system-level thermal budgets across multiple avionics units.\nExperience with supplier development and technical oversight of thermal hardware 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