Lead Controls Engineer (UAVs)

Role Summary As Lead Controls Engineer, you will own the control systems architecture, guide algorithm development (attitude, trajectory, and mission-level control), and lead a team of controls engineers. This role combines technical depth in flight dynamics and control theory with leadership responsibilities, including mentoring, roadmap development, and cross-team collaboration with firmware, autonomy, and systems integration teams. Roles and

Responsibilities Control System Design & Development Architect, implement, and optimize control systems for attitude, altitude, velocity, and trajectory tracking. Develop both low-level controllers (motor commands, stabilization) and high-level controllers (trajectory following, waypoint tracking). Model and analyze UAV dynamics under variable payloads and flight conditions. Explore and implement advanced control methods (e.g., LQR, MPC, adaptive control, fault-tolerant control). Continuous Improvement & Research Stay updated with the state of the art in control systems, UAV dynamics, and adaptive/autonomous control methods. Drive innovation by evaluating new algorithms (e.g., AI/ML-enhanced control strategies). Ensure documentation, safety standards, and compliance with UAV regulatory requirements. Simulation, Testing & Tuning Lead the use of simulation environments (MATLAB/Simulink, Gazebo, AirSim, SITL/HIL) for validation. Define test cases and metrics for control performance, robustness, and safety. Oversee parameter tuning and log analysis during lab and field flight testing. Cross-Functional Collaboration Work closely with: Firmware engineers to ensure low-level control implementation on embedded hardware. Autonomy engineers to connect planners with trajectory controllers. Perception & sensor fusion teams to leverage accurate state estimation for stable control. Flight test team to validate and iterate in real-world conditions.

Requirements

Qualifications Master’s or Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering, Controls, Robotics, or related field. 6-10 years of experience in control systems for robotics or UAVs. Strong expertise in: Classical control (PID, cascaded loops). Modern control (LQR, MPC, nonlinear/adaptive control). State estimation and dynamics modeling. Proficiency in MATLAB/Simulink, C++, and Python. Hands-on experience with PX4, ArduPilot, or custom autopilot stacks. Proven experience with real-world tuning and analyzing UAV flight logs.

Preferred

Qualifications Experience leading small teams or projects. Familiarity with fault-tolerant and redundant control architectures. Knowledge of certifiable RTOS environments (SafeRTOS, INTEGRITY). Hands-on flight testing of UAVs (quadrotors, VTOLs, fixed-wing). Contributions to control-related research, publications, or open-source projects.

Benefits

What

We Offer Technical leadership role at the heart of Unmannd’s flight systems. Direct impact on real-world UAV performance and reliability. Access to real hardware platforms, flight ranges, and simulations. Collaborative startup culture with opportunities to grow into Head of Controls / Autonomy. Competitive salary and equity options.