Principal Mechanical Engineer - Missile Defense

Akkodis is seeking a Principal Mechanical Engineer (Missile Defense & Hypersonic Systems) for a Contract-to-Hire position with a client in Centennial, CO.

Ideally, we are looking for candidates with extensive experience in missile defense, hypersonic flight vehicles, interceptor systems, kill vehicles, thermal protection systems (TPS), and flight vehicle mechanical integration within the aerospace and defense industry.

Rate Range: $60/hour to $81/hour; The rate may be negotiable based on experience, education, geographic location, and other factors.

Principal Mechanical Engineer Responsibilities Include

• Serve as the technical authority and subject matter expert for missile defense and hypersonic vehicle mechanical design across interceptor, kill vehicle, and advanced flight vehicle programs.

• Lead the full mechanical architecture lifecycle, including requirements definition, concept development, design, qualification, flight certification, and post-flight lessons learned.

• Define structural design philosophies, sizing criteria, and margins of safety for flight-critical structures operating in high-g, thermally coupled, and high-dynamic-pressure environments.

• Lead the design and integration of guidance, navigation, and control (GN&C) hardware, seeker packaging, and precision optical/RF sensor assemblies.

• Own thermal protection system (TPS) design strategy, including material selection, aeroheating trades, qualification planning, and integration of ablative, ceramic, and composite materials.

• Lead mechanical integration of propulsion systems, including solid rocket motors, divert and attitude control systems (DACS), thrust vector control (TVC), and associated structural interfaces.

• Develop and maintain interface control documents (ICDs), mass properties reports, and configuration baselines.

• Lead vehicle-level design reviews including SRR, PDR, CDR, TRR, and FRR while managing technical risks and cross-functional engineering activities.

• Establish and enforce GD&T standards, CAD best practices, and drawing conventions across engineering teams.

• Collaborate closely with systems engineering, propulsion, thermal, aerodynamics, and GN&C teams to ensure successful design execution and verification.

• Support qualification testing, anomaly resolution, non-conformance investigations, and flight hardware certification efforts.

• Mentor junior engineers and contribute to proposal development, resource planning, and new business pursuits.

Desired Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related engineering discipline.

• 7–15+ years of experience in mechanical design, with significant experience supporting missile defense, hypersonic vehicle, aerospace, or advanced flight systems programs.

• Strong expertise in flight vehicle structural design for high-temperature, high-g, and high-speed environments.

• Experience with seeker integration, optical/RF sensor packaging, vibration isolation, alignment retention, and EMI mitigation.

• Deep knowledge of thermal protection systems (TPS), high-temperature materials, and hypersonic or re-entry vehicle applications.

• Experience integrating propulsion systems including solid rocket motors, DACS, and thrust vector control architectures.

• Advanced proficiency with Siemens NX and/or SolidWorks, including large assembly management and configuration control.

• Strong command of GD&T, aerospace drafting standards, and configuration management practices.

• Familiarity with aerospace and defense standards such as MIL-STD-810, MIL-STD-1540, and AIAA standards.

• Experience with Teamcenter, Windchill, or other PLM/MES tools.

• Excellent communication, leadership, presentation, and stakeholder management skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree or PhD in Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related discipline.

• 10+ years of experience supporting interceptor systems, kill vehicles, hypersonic flight vehicles, or missile defense programs.

• Prior experience as a Lead Mechanical Engineer, Principal Engineer, or Chief Engineer.

• Experience with spacecraft or satellite mechanical design and space environment applications.

• Familiarity with structural analysis tools such as NASTRAN and ANSYS.

• Experience supporting DARPA, MDA, AFRL, or other advanced defense programs.

• Active U.S. Security Clearance (Secret or TS/SCI) or the ability to obtain one.

If you are interested in this role, then please click APPLY NOW. For other opportunities available at Akkodis, or any questions, feel free to contact me at 6106524256 or ***email_hidden***

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.

We value diversity of experience, knowledge, backgrounds and perspectives and harness these qualities to create extraordinary impact. True Anomaly is committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of sex, race, religion or belief, ethnic or national origin, disability, age, citizenship, marital, domestic or civil partnership status, sexual orientation, gender identity, pregnancy, maternity or related condition (including breastfeeding) or any other basis as protected by applicable law. If you have a disability or additional need that requires accommodation, please do not hesitate to let us know.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled

Benefit offerings available for our associates include medical, dental, vision, life insurance, short-term disability, additional voluntary benefits, an EAP program, commuter benefits, and a 401K plan. Our benefit offerings provide employees the flexibility to choose the type of coverage that meets their individual needs. In addition, our associates may be eligible for paid leave including Paid Sick Leave or any other paid leave required by Federal, State, or local law, as well as Holiday pay where applicable. Disclaimer: These benefit offerings do not apply to client-recruited jobs and jobs that are direct hires to a client.

To read our Candidate Privacy Information Statement, which explains how we will use your information, please visit https://www.akkodis.com/en/privacy-policy.

The Company will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records in accordance with federal, state, and local laws and/or security clearance requirements, including, as applicable:

· The California Fair Chance Act

· Los Angeles City Fair Chance Ordinance

· Los Angeles County Fair Chance Ordinance for Employers

· San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance