Flight Controls Engineer

Valinor is a new type of defense and government tech company focused on solving the problems others don't. Our model of centralized go-to-market and decentralized engineering lets us move fast: identify unmet needs, build right-sized solutions, and get products into the hands of users. While others chase the flashy problems, Valinor exists to solve the quiet, unaddressed ones, the small but significant problems that lead to cracks in the country's strength, stability, and security. Backed by General Catalyst, Founders Fund, and Friends & Family Capital, Valinor was founded in 2024 and has strategic partnerships with Palantir, Anduril, and Helsing. We're building the dream team, and we want you on it. ABOUT THE ROLE Valinor Condor is building the next generation of autonomous VTOL aircraft for defense and enterprise. We're a small, technical team moving fast. Our vehicle is flying, our customers are real, and the work spans simulation to the field. We're looking for a Flight Controls Engineer to own the guidance, navigation, and control stack on our VTOL platform. This is a senior individual contributor role with direct ownership of flight performance, from control law architecture to day-of-demo tuning. You'll work directly with the Chief Engineer as our technical authority on everything from transition logic and rate controller design to aero modeling and stability analysis. WHAT YOU'LL DO Flight Controls & Tuning - Own the full flight controls / GNC stack: PX4 code, VTOL transition logic, fixed-wing control laws (TECS, NPFG, attitude/rate loops), and the multicopter controller - Design, implement, and iterate on control laws; translate controller designs into flight-validated parameters and tune the aircraft in the field - Run structured flight test campaigns: define test cards, instrument logging, execute in-field, and close the loop with data-driven analysis - Debug flight anomalies from logs, root-causing across the sensor, estimator, controller, and actuator layers Dynamics & Aero Modeling - Build and maintain the flight dynamics model; extract and validate aero coefficients from flight data and CFD outputs - Write precise scopes of work for CFD contractors; review and integrate their outputs into the aero model - Develop and maintain a Simulink-based 6DOF simulation environment for control law prototyping, linearization, and stability margin analysis, de-risking parameter changes before they hit hardware Systems & Integration - Partner with the software team on autopilot integration, sensor fusion, and estimator config (EKF tuning, IMU/GPS/baro) - Support customer demonstrations; ensure the vehicle performs reliably under operational conditions WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR Required - 4+ years of hands-on flight controls / GNC experience on real flying hardware - Deep familiarity with PX4 (or a comparable open-source autopilot): you've tuned it, debugged it, and modified it - Fixed-wing or VTOL platform experience - Ability to read flight logs to diagnose control system issues (PX4 log analysis, PlotJuggler) - Familiarity with aero modeling pipelines (CFD output → stability derivatives → flight dynamics model) - Python for log analysis, simulation, and tooling; MATLAB/Simulink for control design and 6DOF modeling equally valued - Strong fundamentals: classical and modern control theory, rigid body dynamics, state estimation - Comfortable in the field. You've executed flight tests, not just designed them on paper Preferred - TECS, NPFG, or L1 guidance implementations - EKF-based state estimators (GPS/IMU/baro fusion) - MAVLink or similar UAV communication protocols - Familiarity with NDAA compliance for UAS hardware - Experience supporting operational customer demonstrations or field deployments WHAT VALINOR OFFERS - Competitive salary, equity, and benefits: health, dental, and vision fully covered for employees, 401(k), development stipends, and more - Unlimited PTO and a two-week company holiday at the end of every year - A…