Director of Engineering – UAS Development

About the role

Harmattan AI is seeking a Director of Engineering to lead the development of unmanned aerial systems (UAS). In this senior position you will build an engineering organisation from the ground up, own the full technical chain and guide the program from qualification through series production.

Key responsibilities

• Stand up the engineering group, including hiring key engineering roles and establishing processes.
• Act as project manager to deliver critical milestones on schedule.
• Own the technical chain across airframe, propulsion, avionics, launcher and ground segment, overseeing flight test and trials.
• Manage engineering managers, conduct regular design reviews across multiple disciplines, and mentor staff.
• Develop and maintain a robust supplier ecosystem to support production.

Required profile

• MSc in Mechanical, Aerospace, Electrical engineering or related field; extensive organisational building experience may substitute.
• Proven leadership progressing from engineer to manager of managers.
• 10+ years of experience, with at least 4 years in engineering management and a track record of scaling engineering sites.
• Demonstrated success taking a hardware system through qualification to series production, preferably in UAV, autonomous systems or advanced robotics.
• Broad technical credibility across all disciplines without needing deep expertise in each.
• Full commitment to Harmattan AI’s mission of autonomous defence systems.