Flight Control & Avionics Hardware - Responsible Engineer

The Role

We're looking for someone to take ownership of our custom flight control hardware and avionics components across our UAS portfolio. Griffon hires engineers who have built things that fly and know what it means to carry a board from schematic to flight line. You'll own the spiral development lifecycle of our flight control hardware end-to-end.

You should know your way around an aircraft development program, understand what integration with flight software and airframes involves, and be comfortable working at a test bench or the flight line as easily as at a desk running analysis tools.

This role is responsible for ensuring flight control hardware reliability and airworthiness from concept through fielded sustainment, including new hardware development, sustaining engineering on deployed platforms, supplier oversight, and certification support. The ideal candidate combines hands-on avionics hardware expertise with the systems-engineering discipline needed to manage a critical subsystem through iterative spiral development and its full lifecycle.
Key Responsibilities
Design & Spiral Development Engineering
- Lead design, analysis, and iterative spiral development of custom flight control hardware and the avionics stack, including processing, sensor, power, and interface subsystems.
- Own root-cause investigations and corrective actions for hardware issues identified in test or in the field; manage engineering change requests through the full approval cycle across each development spiral.
- Balance size, weight, power (SWaP), redundancy, and reliability trade-offs specific to UAV flight control requirements.
- Collaborate with firmware, software, airframe, and manufacturing teams to ensure flight control hardware and avionics integration meets platform-level requirements.
- Provide technical support to production, field service, and customer support teams for fielded avionics hardware.
Reliability & Durability Testing
- Develop and execute test plans for environmental, EMI/EMC, vibration, and thermal qualification of flight control hardware and avionics.
- Define and track reliability metrics (MTBF, MTBUR) and failure modes across fielded avionics hardware; drive design and process changes from test and field data.
- Oversee bench and flight test instrumentation, data collection, and reporting for avionics and flight control test campaigns.
- Maintain engineering documentation, schematics, BOMs, and interface control documents in compliance with applicable military and industry standards.
- Prepare technical substantiation, test reports, and compliance evidence for customer and regulatory review.
Supplier & Vendor Management
- Identify, qualify, and manage suppliers of avionics components, custom PCBs, and flight control hardware, including source inspections and incoming quality requirements.
- Manage supplier corrective action requests (SCARs) and work with vendors to resolve quality, cost, and schedule issues.
- Support make/buy decisions and second-source strategies to reduce supply chain risk for critical flight control and avionics components.
What We're Looking For
Required
- Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related field.
- 7+ years of experience in electrical/avionics hardware design, development, or sustaining engineering, with direct hands-on experience in flight control or embedded avionics hardware.
- Demonstrated experience taking hardware through a qualification or certification process.
- Experience managing suppliers or vendors for custom PCBs or critical electronic components.
- Working knowledge of reliability engineering principles (FMEA, root-cause analysis, MTBF/MTBUR).
- Proficiency with EDA/schematic capture tools (e.g., Altium, OrCAD, or equivalent) and engineering documentation/PLM systems.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills, including experience preparing technical reports and customer-facing documentation.
- U.S. Citizenship required; ability to obtain and maintain a security clearance.

Strongly Preferred
- Experience with UAV/UAS flight control systems, autopilots, or other small, high-reliability embedded avionics.
- Familiarity with military airworthiness or certification standards (e.g., MIL-HDBK-516, DO-254, DO-160, AS9100 quality systems).
- Experience with avionics test bench design, instrumentation, and data acquisition systems.
- Background supporting DoD or government aerospace programs.
- Master's degree in a relevant engineering discipline.

The Kind of Person Who Thrives Here

You show up.

When something is broken in the field, you're on a plane. You don't manage from behind a screen.

You don't quit.

Problems are resolved, not deferred. You find a way or you make one.

You own the outcome but share the glory.

The whole thing. If the program is late, that's yours. If it delivers, the team is praised not just you.

You communicate first.

Plans, issues, and new data travel fast here.

What Griffon Offers

• Competitive salary commensurate with experience and clearance level
• Comprehensive benefits: medical, dental, vision, 401(k) with company match
• Paid time off and 10 federal holidays
• Relocation assistance available for qualified candidates
• A small company where your decisions matter and your fingerprints are on real hardware flying real missions