Senior Aerodynamics Engineer
Inversion
$137,000 - $193,000 / year
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Description
Advanced Reentry Technologies
Who We Are:
Inversion is an aerospace and defense company pioneering advanced reentry technology to enable next-generation capabilities from space. By combining high-performance materials, precision aerodynamics, and mission-driven autonomy, Inversion is transforming reentry into an operational capability for an entirely new class of missions.
The company’s highly maneuverable reentry spacecraft, Arc, is designed for rapid global cargo delivery, hypersonic testing, and other national security missions that require precise, controlled flight through the atmosphere. Arc creates an entirely new transportation domain, unlocking unprecedented speed and global reach.
Headquartered in Los Angeles, Inversion designs, manufactures, and integrates its spacecraft under one roof, enabling the company to move rapidly from concept to flight. The company is backed by leading investors including Y Combinator, Spark Capital, and Lockheed Martin Ventures, with customers across the U.S. government and commercial space industry.
Position Overview:
Inversion's reentry vehicles fly from orbital velocity to a precision landing, and every design decision, simulation, etc. along the way rests on an accurate characterization of how the vehicle flies. As a Senior Aerodynamics Engineer, you will generate and database the aerodynamic characteristics of our vehicles across the full flight envelope, aggregating data from high-fidelity CFD, lower-order methods, and wind tunnel testing into database products that drive system-level simulations. In this role, you will:
Key Responsibilities:
- Develop and maintain aerodynamic force and moment databases spanning the full flight envelope, from hypersonic entry through terminal flight
- Predict the aerodynamic forces and moments acting on Inversion reentry vehicles using high fidelity CFD tools across their flight envelopes.
- Apply lower-order tools panel codes, Newtonian aerodynamics, and handbook methods to efficiently populate the broader envelope
- Aggregate data of varying fidelity into coherent database products and define associated uncertainties to drive 3-DOF and 6-DOF system-level simulations
- Support downstream users across GNC, simulation, and mission design in applying the databases correctly
- Build and mature the tooling and automation behind database generation and delivery
- Refine models using wind tunnel and flight-testing data
Required Qualifications:
- Bachelor's degree in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering, or equivalent experience
- Typically, 5+ years of experience in aerodynamic analysis of aerospace vehicles (reentry, hypersonic, missile, launch, or high-performance aircraft systems)
- Experience with high-fidelity CFD analysis of compressible external flows (e.g., FUN3D, OVERFLOW, CART3D, US3D, Kestrel, or similar)
- Experience with lower-order aerodynamic prediction methods, such as panel codes and Newtonian/modified Newtonian aerodynamics
- Experience with handbook methods and empirical aerodynamic correlations
- Experience aggregating aerodynamic data from sources of varying fidelity into an overall database product used to drive vehicle simulation and design
- Strong fundamentals in compressible aerodynamics across speed regimes and in vehicle static and dynamic stability
- Proficiency in programming languages like Python, MATLAB, C++, or Fortran for analysis tooling and automation
- Proven ability to work effectively in a fast-paced environment, including prototyping and rapid iteration of new products
- Must have the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government Secret/Top Secret security clearance.
Desired Qualifications:
- Master's or PhD in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering, or an equivalent field
- Experience with the aerodynamics of reentry, hypersonic, or lifting-body vehicles
- Experience with uncertainty quantification and the definition of aerodynamic dispersions for Monte Carlo simulation
- Experience reconciling aerodynamic models against flight test data, including aerodynamic parameter identification
- Familiarity with Fidelity Pointwise, Link3D, or equivalent meshing software for generating high-quality meshes
- Experience with high-performance computing environments and large-scale CFD campaign automation
- Experience with wind tunnel testing, including test planning, execution, and/or data reduction
- Familiarity with 6-DOF flight simulation as a downstream consumer of aerodynamic databases
- Prior experience working in startups and/or small independent teams
Our office headquarters is located in Playa Vista, CA. This position requires in-office presence.
The California annual base salary for this role is currently $137,000-$193,000. Pay Grades are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data. Individual pay will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: interviews and an assessment of several factors that are unique to each candidate, job-related skills, relevant education and experience, certifications, abilities of the candidate and internal equity.
Benefits
- stock options
About this role
Inversion is building spacecraft designed to deliver payloads from orbit to anywhere on Earth in under an hour, operating through extreme reentry conditions with precision landing. As Senior Aerodynamics Engineer, you'd own the aerodynamic characterization that underpins every design decision—generating and maintaining force and moment databases across the full flight envelope, from hypersonic entry through terminal descent. Your work would directly feed the system-level simulations and GNC algorithms that make these missions possible.
The role demands depth across multiple aerodynamic tools and methods. You'll run high-fidelity CFD analysis using tools like FUN3D or OVERFLOW, apply lower-order methods like panel codes and Newtonian aerodynamics to cover the broader envelope efficiently, and aggregate data of varying fidelity into coherent database products with defined uncertainties. You'll also build and automate the tooling behind database generation, support downstream teams in applying the databases correctly, and refine models using wind tunnel and flight test data.
This is a senior position requiring at least five years of aerospace aerodynamics experience—ideally in reentry, hypersonic, or missile systems—plus strong fundamentals in compressible aerodynamics and programming proficiency in Python, MATLAB, C++, or Fortran. You'll work in-office in Playa Vista, California, and must be able to obtain a U.S. government security clearance. The salary range is $137,000–$193,000.
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Pay for this role
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