Combustion & Thermal-Fluids Engineer

We are a small, fast-moving team building next-generation gas turbine engines to power the future of aerospace, defense, and energy. Backed by leading investors and led by proven founders, we're assembling a high-performance team to reinvent propulsion and power from the ground up. This is a rare chance to create genuinely new technology and to watch it go from a sketch on your screen to hardware coming off the line and into service. We design it, analyze it, build it, and test it, often in the same week.

About the Role

As our combustion and thermal-fluids engineer, you own the reacting-flow and thermal heart of the engine: the combustion system, the full-engine thermal model, and the aerodynamic and heat-transfer studies that set how the compressor, turbine, and hot section perform. You carry that work from first sizing calculations all the way to a running rig.

Responsibilities

• Design and develop the combustion system — combustor, fuel injection and atomization, ignition and relight — from concept through test and into production.

• Build and own the full-engine thermal model: secondary and cavity flows, conjugate and convective/radiative heat transfer, and conduction throughout.

• Run CFD across the machine — compressor and turbine aerodynamics, combustor reacting flow, ducts and secondary flows — and turn the results into design changes.

• Support cycle- and system-level modeling: performance decks, station analysis, and the thermodynamic trades that size the engine.

• Take hardware to the test stand: instrument it, run it, reduce the data, and reconcile predictions against measurement.

• Move fluidly across build and test, picking up whatever the program needs.

Qualifications

• B.S. or M.S. in mechanical, aerospace, or a related discipline, with roughly 5 - 7+ years of relevant experience.

• Deep fundamentals in thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, combustion, and heat transfer.

• Proven ability to build full-engine or full-system thermal models and defend the assumptions behind them.

• Hands-on CFD in ANSYS (Fluent / CFX) or comparable — ideally on turbomachinery (compressors, turbines) and/or reacting flows.

• Genuinely hands-on — comfortable instrumenting and testing real hardware, not just simulating it.

• Clear technical communication, and the instinct to back claims with data rather than assertion.

• Fluent with modern AI tools and able to use them to move faster — while staying appropriately skeptical: you verify what they produce, understand where they break down, and never let them substitute for your own engineering judgment.

Bonus points for any of

• Gas turbine or jet engine experience.

• Cycle- and system-modeling experience with station-based performance analysis.

• Fuel systems, atomization, spray modeling, or chemical kinetics.

• Conjugate heat transfer and cooling design for hot-section components.

• Turbomachinery aeromechanics or rotordynamics familiarity.

• Test-stand design, data acquisition, and instrumentation for propulsion rigs.

• Scripting and automation (e.g., Python) for analysis pipelines and data reduction.

• Working knowledge of high-temperature materials and coatings.

Estimated Salary Range: $160,00 - $220,00 plus equity

Compensation & Benefits

Compensation for this role is based on a range of factors including experience, education, critical skills, and business considerations. Actual offers may vary. Where a salary range is displayed, it reflects an estimate only. Highly competitive equity grants are included in most full-time offers.

We offer comprehensive benefits for full-time employees, including:

• Premium Healthcare Coverage: 100% company-paid medical, dental, and vision insurance for you and your eligible dependents

• Complete Protection: Full company-paid life insurance, short-term disability, and long-term disability coverage

• Flexible Time Off: Open PTO policy plus 13 paid company holidays

• Family Support: 8 weeks of paid parental leave and comprehensive leave options

• Wellness Resources: Access to mental health services, Employee Assistance Program, and financial coaching

• Pre-Tax Benefits: Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA), Health Savings Accounts (HSA), and commuter benefits

• Professional Growth: Development opportunities including mentorship and skill development

• Retirement Planning: 401(k) plan with company matching

The recruiter assigned to this role can share more information about the specific compensation and benefit details associated with this role during the hiring process.

You'll thrive here if you

• Own problems the moment you see them and drive them to resolution regardless of whose area they touch

• Lead by example at every level, and check your ego at the door. The best idea wins, full stop

• Can prioritize ruthlessly when the list is longer than the day

• Believe that discipline and rigor are what create the freedom to move fast — not obstacles to it

Joining a company this early is not for everyone. And the people who do their best work here tend to know exactly why they want it.

What makes it exceptional: you won't be maintaining someone else's legacy. You'll help define the architecture from first principles, follow your work all the way to fielded hardware. You will operate with almost no layers between an idea and a decision. Real breadth, real ownership, real stakes.

What's genuinely hard: ambiguity is the default, the intensity is real, and it carries startup risk. You'll often build the process before you can build the thing. Priorities shift as we learn. If that tradeoff sounds like exactly what you've been looking for, we want to hear from you.

Equal Opportunity Employment

We are an equal opportunity employer committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace. We foster a culture of ownership, initiative, inclusion, and mutual respect. All qualified applicants will be treated with respect and receive equal consideration for employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, disability, uniform service, veteran status, age, or any other protected characteristic per federal, state, or local law, including those with a criminal history, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws. We actively encourage members of recognized minorities, women, veterans, and those with disabilities to apply. If you're passionate about revolutionizing aerospace propulsion, we'd love to hear from you.

Security & Export Control

This position may require access to information protected under U.S. export control laws and regulations, including the Export Administration Regulations (EAR) and the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR). Please note that any offer for employment may be conditioned on authorization to receive software or technology controlled under these U.S. export control laws and regulations without sponsorship for an export license.

We will provide the federal government with your Form I-9 information to confirm that you are authorized to work in the U.S.