Senior Manufacturing Engineer, Autonomous Airpower

Anduril Industries is a defense technology company with a mission to transform U.S. and allied military capabilities with advanced technology. By bringing the expertise, technology, and business model of the 21st century’s most innovative companies to the defense industry, Anduril is changing how military systems are designed, built and sold. Anduril’s family of systems is powered by Lattice OS, an AI-powered operating system that turns thousands of data streams into a realtime, 3D command and control center. As the world enters an era of strategic competition, Anduril is committed to bringing cutting-edge autonomy, AI, computer vision, sensor fusion, and networking technology to the military in months, not years.ABOUT THE TEAMThe Air Dominance and Strike Division is one of Anduril’s fastest growing, most technically complex divisions. We develop and build collaborative combat aircraft, missiles, and the software that powers these autonomous weapons. We are scaling production of autonomous aircraft across our manufacturing facilities. Manufacturing Engineering drives process development, production readiness, and the transition from prototype to rate — ensuring that what Design engineers create can be built reliably, repeatedly, and at scale.ABOUT THE JOBAnduril is seeking a Senior Manufacturing Engineer to join the Autonomous Airpower manufacturing team in Costa Mesa, California. You will lead the development and implementation of complex manufacturing processes from concept to production for autonomous aircraft hardware. This role spans the full breadth of manufacturing engineering disciplines and may focus on one or more of the following areas depending on your background: structures and composites, mechanical systems (landing gear, doors, actuators), fluid systems (hydraulic, fuel, pneumatic), propulsion integration, avionics, or harnessing and electrical integration.At this level, you operate independently and own outcomes for your subsystems with full accountability. You lead multiple high-impact projects simultaneously, drive technical decisions that shape how hardware gets built, and serve as a technical resource and mentor for the broader ME team. You bring deep manufacturing engineering expertise, a track record of designing and executing process improvements that deliver measurable results, and the ability to establish engineering standards and best practices from the ground up.WHAT YOU’LL DOLead the development and implementation of complex manufacturing processes from concept to production for autonomous aircraft subsystemsOwn the manufacturing value chain end-to-end for your subsystems — from DFM input through process development, work instruction authoring, tooling definition, and production supportDesign and execute process improvements that optimize workflow and increase production capacity across your subsystemsDevelop technical roadmaps for manufacturing technology advancement aligned with program and business objectivesEstablish engineering standards and best practices that become benchmarks for the ME organizationLead root cause analysis and corrective action (RCCA) for manufacturing non-conformances, driving systemic fixes rather than one-off dispositionsManage capital expenditure projects from justification through implementation and validation, controlling project budgets and delivering on timeDrive production readiness activities including MBOMs, process capability assessments, and rate-readiness planningLead cross-functional teams to resolve complex manufacturing issues spanning engineering, supply chain, quality, and productionMentor and develop junior and mid-level manufacturing engineers, serving as a technical escalation point for complex manufacturing issuesWHAT WE'RE LOOKING FOR7+ years of manufacturing engineering experience in aerospace, defense, or complex hardware production environmentsBachelor’s degree in Mechanical, Aerospace, Manufacturing, Electrical, or Industrial Engineering or equivalent hands-on manufacturing experienceDemonstrated ownership of manufacturing processes end-to-end — from process development through production supportTrack record of leading process improvements that delivered measurable gains in quality, throughput, or costExperience managing capital projects and production budgetsProficiency with CAD tools (CATIA, SolidWorks, NX, or equivalent) and production planning systems (ERP, MES, PLM)Strong DFM/DFA instincts — demonstrated ability to influence design decisions for manufacturabilityExperience leading cross-functional teams and mentoring engineersEligible to obtain and maintain an active U.S. Secret security clearancePREFERRED QUALIFICATIONSExperience in one or more of the following: composite structures, mechanical systems (landing gear, flight controls, doors), fluid systems (hydraulic, fuel, pneumatic), propulsion, avionics integration, or wire harness manufacturingExperience transitioning hardware from prototype or first-article builds to rate productionExperience with aircraft or autonomous vehicle assemblyKnowledge of AS9100, aerospace quality systems, and non-conformance management processesExperience with Lean manufacturing, Six Sigma, or structured continuous improvement methodologiesExperience working with Teamcenter, SAP, Oracle, or similar PLM/ERP platformsActive U.S. Secret security clearanceUS Salary Range$146,000—$194,000 USDThe salary range for this role is an estimate based on a wide range of compensation factors, inclusive of base salary only. Actual salary offer may vary based on (but not limited to) work experience, education and/or training, critical skills, and/or business considerations. Highly competitive equity grants are included in the majority of full time offers; and are considered part of Anduril's total compensation package. Additionally, Anduril offers top-tier benefits for full-time employees, including: BenefitsAt Anduril, we invest in our people. Our comprehensive, competitive benefits package (available at little to no cost to employees) ensures you’re supported in health, recovery, and whatever comes next. For more information, Explore Our Benefits.Protecting Yourself from Recruitment ScamsAnduril is committed to maintaining the integrity of our Talent acquisition process and the security of our candidates. We've observed a rise in sophisticated phishing and fraudulent schemes where individuals impersonate Anduril representatives, luring job seekers with false interviews or job offers. These scammers often attempt to extract payment or sensitive personal information.To ensure your safety and help you navigate your job search with confidence, please keep the following critical points in mind:No Financial Requests: Anduril will never solicit payment or demand personal financial details (such as banking information, credit card numbers, or social security numbers) at any stage of our hiring process. Our legitimate recruitment is entirely free for candidates.Please always verify communications:Direct from Anduril: If you receive an email from one of our recruiters, it will only come from an @anduril.com address.Via Agency Partner: If contacted by a recruiting agency for an Anduril role, their email will clearly identify their agency. If you suspect any suspicious activity, please verify the agency's authenticity by reaching out to View email address on click.appcast.io. Exercise Caution with Unsolicited Outreach: If you receive any communication that appears suspicious, contains grammatical errors, or makes unusual requests, do not engage. Always confirm the sender's email domain is @anduril.com before providing any personal information or clicking on links.What to Do If You Suspect Fraud: Should you encounter any questionable or fraudulent outreach claiming to be from Anduril, please report it immediately to View email address on click.appcast.io. Your proactive caution is invaluable in protecting your personal information and upholding the security and trustworthiness of our recruitment efforts.Data PrivacyTo view Anduril's candidate data privacy policy, please visit . By submitting your application, you consent to Anduril Industries using a third-party service provider to conduct pre-employment risk, integrity, and due diligence screening and assessing potential risks as part of your application process. This third-party service provider provides risk-intelligence services that may include analysis of sanctions and watchlists, adverse media, public-record information, and other lawful open-source or commercial data sources. This third-party service provider does not act as a consumer reporting agency. Use of this provider helps to ensure compliance with applicable laws and protect technology, intellectual property, and organizational security.