Composite Structures Engineer
- Structures
- Rehovot, Israel
- Full-time
Why this role exists
At AIRLIFT One, the airframe is not just a load path — it is part of the acoustic system. Every panel that vibrates radiates, every joint that transmits structure-borne energy undoes work the rest of the vehicle did to stay quiet. You will design and substantiate the composite structure of a novel lift and propulsion architecture where laminate stiffness, ply-level damping, and transmission-path isolation are traded as deliberately as mass and strength — because our roughly fourfold acoustic advantage survives only if the structure carries it.
What you'll own
- Design composite primary and secondary structure — laminate definitions, ply schedules, core selections, bonded and bolted joints — from concept layout through released engineering definition.
- Build, run, and own detailed FEA models for static strength, buckling, and structural dynamics, and keep them correlated against coupon, element, and full-scale test evidence.
- Drive vibro-acoustic behavior of the airframe: characterize panel modal density, radiation efficiency, and structure-borne transmission paths, and turn stiffness and damping into deliberate acoustic design levers.
- Define and execute structural test campaigns — building-block coupon and element tests, modal surveys and ground vibration tests — including instrumentation plans, test readiness reviews, and post-test model correlation.
- Develop material allowables and laminate design values with materials and process engineers, and document the basis for every margin you claim.
- Write structural substantiation reports with traceable loads, methods, and margins of safety that will stand up to a certification authority, not just an internal review.
- Trade mass against transmission loss and damping treatments directly with the Acoustics team, and defend the structural side of those trades at vehicle-level design reviews.
- Support the build: assess layup and tooling feasibility, review first articles, and disposition manufacturing discrepancies on flight hardware.
What you bring
- B.Sc. in Aerospace or Mechanical Engineering; M.Sc. with a structures or structural dynamics focus preferred.
- 5+ years designing and analyzing composite airframe or primary structure on aircraft, rotorcraft, UAS, or comparable flight vehicles.
- Strong hands-on FEA capability in Nastran, ANSYS, or Abaqus across statics, buckling, and dynamics — with demonstrated correlation of models to physical test data.
- Solid command of classical laminate theory, composite failure criteria, and the design of bolted and bonded joints in laminated structure.
- Working fluency in structural dynamics: modal analysis, frequency response, and damping characterization, and an understanding of how these connect to radiated noise.
- Experience carrying structure through physical test — static, fatigue, or modal/GVT — from test planning and instrumentation through post-test reporting.
- Proficiency in Python or MATLAB for analysis automation, data reduction, and test-data processing.
- Fluency in 3D CAD (CATIA, NX, or SolidWorks) and GD&T, with the ability to release production-ready structural definition.
Even better if
- Composite airframe experience on an eVTOL, UAM, or light aircraft program, especially during the prototype-to-flight-test phase.
- Hands-on use of vibro-acoustic analysis tools such as Actran or VA One, or statistical energy analysis methods.
- Exposure to composite structural substantiation under CS-23/Part 23 or rotorcraft rules, including familiarity with AC 20-107B practice.
- A track record of owning structure at startup pace — from blank sheet to hardware on a test stand in months, not years.
- Publications or graduate research in structural acoustics, damped composite design, or vibration transmission in built-up structures.
Why this matters to quiet flight
Aerodynamic and propulsion noise sources get the headlines, but a structure that rings can hand back every decibel the rest of the vehicle earned. The laminates you define, the joints you detail, and the damping you design in determine whether our acoustic architecture survives contact with real hardware. If urban aviation is going to be quiet enough to be welcome, this is one of the places it gets decided.
Life at AIRLIFT One
Small team, total ownership
No layers between you and the aircraft. You own your domain end-to-end — analysis, hardware, test — and your decisions fly.
Aviation breathing culture
Work alongside aviation geeks—engineers, innovators, and builders who are passionate about shaping the future of flight.
Stealth, not isolation
We don't publish yet, but we argue, test, and review relentlessly inside. Intellectual honesty is a daily practice, not a poster.
Built in Rehovot
We work on-site, around the hardware, in one of Israel's deepest engineering talent pools.
Apply
Applications go directly to the engineering team — no portal, no parser. Tell us what you've built.
Don't see your discipline?
We are always interested in exceptional engineers who choose difficult problems. Tell us what you would own.
