{"id":2826800,"url":"https://alion.io/job/wardstone-lead-mechanical-engineer","title":"Lead Mechanical Engineer","company":{"id":3806068,"name":"Wardstone","domain":"wardstone.space","url":"https://alion.io/company/wardstone-2","size_band":"51-200","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Gem","truth_index":{"grade":"B","score":75,"open_postings":4,"ghost_share":0,"stale_share":1,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":null,"computed_at":"2026-10-20T05:45:00Z"}},"role":"Industrial Engineering","role_family":"Industrial Engineering","seniority":"lead","employment_type":"full_time","work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["El Segundo, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":180000,"max":240000,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":240000},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":7,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-10-18T19:19:04Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-10-18","last_verified_at":"2026-10-20T23:06:48Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":2,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":2},"description":"Overview\nYou will own every structural and mechanical system on the interceptor: the airframe, internal structure, mechanisms, and the interface to the launcher. You will lead a team of ~5 mechanical engineers.\nThe vehicle has to survive extreme launch, aerodynamic, vibration, and thermal loads. It also has to fit hard volume and interface limits set by existing launchers. You’ll work directly with the founders and with the propulsion, aerodynamics, controls, and electrical engineers. You’ll take hardware from first concept through ground test to live flight.\nWhat You Will Do\nLead the Mechanical Team\nLead, mentor, and grow the mechanical engineering team, including hiring, setting priorities, and reviewing designs.\nSet the team’s engineering standards: CAD and drawing practices, GD&T, design reviews, analysis documentation, and configuration control.\nOwn the mechanical schedule and technical risks, and give clear tradeoffs to founders and other teams.\nDesign our Interceptors\nSize the airframe and structures for launch, flight, and maneuver loads.\nLead structural, vibration, shock, and aeroelastic analysis across every phase of flight.\nOwn the outer mold line (OML) together with the aerodynamics team, balancing aerodynamic performance, kinematics, and internal volume.\nDesign primary and secondary structures, hardpoints, brackets, and mechanisms, including [fin actuation, separation, and canister/launcher interfaces].\nOwn the master vehicle CAD assembly and mass properties.\nIntegrate with other teams\nWork with propulsion and aerodynamics to handle thermal loads, structural margins, and drag.\nWork with electrical and controls to package, route, and mount avionics, harnesses, and actuators.\nBuild and test\nChoose materials for high-performance applications, such as composites, high-strength alloys, and high-temperature materials.\nManage vendors and machine shops, and hold them to quality and tolerance requirements.\nDesign and run structural, vibration, and environmental tests, and build the fixtures and rigs to support them.\nGet hands-on in our in-house shop when speed matters.\nRequired Qualifications\nB.S. in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field.\n7+ years of experience designing flight or high-load hardware.\nExperience leading engineers or owning a major subsystem from design through test.\nExpert in CAD, including large, complex vehicle assemblies.\nExpert in structural analysis, including FEA for static, dynamic, and vibration loads.\nStrong material selection experience for high-stress aerospace applications.\nComfortable working hands-on with hardware in a shop and test environment.\nMust be a U.S. person as defined by ITAR (U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident, or protected individual).\nNice to Haves\nHardware experience on missiles, rockets, UAVs, or other high-speed aerospace vehicles.\nManual or CNC mill and lathe proficiency.\nExperience with MIL-STD environmental testing (e.g., MIL-STD-810: thermal, vibration, shock).\nExperience designing and building your own structural test rigs.\nPrior early-stage startup experience.\nCompensation\nThe base pay range for this role is $180,000 - 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