Principal Mechanical Engineer

Principal Mechanical Engineer

Irvine, CA

Aerospace is at a turning point — costs are rising, supply chains are strained, and old ways of building can't keep up. At Neon Aero, we're breaking that mold. We move fast, think big, and combine start-up agility with aerospace expertise to design, build, and scale aircraft in ways the industry has never seen. Our team leverages automation, AI-driven tools, and a fully connected digital backbone to accelerate innovation and reduce barriers to production.

Here, you won't just take a job — you'll help reinvent how the world flies. If you're ready to solve complex problems, push technology further, and work alongside some of the brightest minds in aerospace, this is your chance to make a real impact.

Build the mechanical backbone of next-generation electromechanical platforms.

We're looking for a Principal Mechanical Engineer who loves the hard stuff: ambiguous requirements, tight trade spaces, and high-performance hardware that has to work every time, at scale. This is a deeply hands-on role for a senior technical expert who can architect and integrate complex mechanical systems, lead teams through critical decisions, and drive designs from concept to production with rigor and speed.

You'll collaborate across electrical, thermal, manufacturing, quality, and supply chain, working in spaces like aerospace, transportation, robotics, and advanced mobility. This role has no direct people management, but it requires real technical leadership: setting the bar, owning outcomes, and influencing across disciplines.

Why This Role Matters:

In this role, you will:

• Own system-level mechanical architecture and integration for advanced electromechanical platforms.
• Lead design, analysis, prototyping, and production release of complex mechanical systems.
• Drive DFM, DFA, Design for Automation, and Design for Cost across programs.
• Set and enforce best-in-class standards for GD&T, tolerance stack-ups, and production drawing release.
• Run subsystem trade studies balancing performance, weight, reliability, cost, and manufacturability.
• Partner with suppliers to industrialize components across processes like sheet metal, die casting, precision gear manufacturing, high-precision machining, and other scalable methods.
• Oversee first article builds and production validation, including yield improvement and root-cause resolution.
• Apply advanced mechanical analysis (FEA, thermal, structural, dynamic) to validate performance and inform design decisions.
• Support environmental and reliability qualification (e.g., vibration, thermal, durability testing) as needed.
• Mentor engineers through design reviews and tough technical problems—while staying close to the work and the hardware.

What You'll Bring:

• Minimum of 12 years of experience in developing and shipping complex mechanical systems.
• Bachelor's or Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering preferred; relevant professional experience may be accepted in lieu of a degree
• Expert proficiency in Siemens NX (required).
• Deep expertise in GD&T, tolerance analysis, and production drawing release.
• Proven track record taking products from concept → industrialization → shipment.
• Strong understanding of quality systems and production metrics: IQC, OQC, ORT, CP/CPK, SPC.
• Experience spanning multiple manufacturing technologies and scaling hardware into production.
• Ability to lead system-level technical decisions across cross-functional teams through influence and clarity.

Preferred experience

• Background in aerospace, transportation, robotics, consumer hardware, motorsports, or other high-performance industries.
• Familiarity with environmental qualification standards such as DO-160 (nice to have).
• Experience with electric or hybrid systems.
• Working knowledge of MATLAB or Python for analysis/automation.
• Experience in fast-paced R&D or startup environments with rapid iteration cycles.

What We Value:

• Engineers who have shipped product repeatedly.
• First-principles depth paired with practical execution.
• High standards for manufacturability, reliability, and cost discipline.
• Comfort operating in ambiguity while driving clarity for others.
• Strong technical ownership without relying on formal authority.
• A bias toward building and validating real hardware.

Why Join Us:

• Work alongside elite engineering talent and innovators from across aerospace and tech.
• Be part of a team moving faster than the industry standard.
• Shape solutions that are lower-cost, autonomous, and scalable — the future of aviation.
• Competitive compensation, including equity participation, growth opportunities, and full health benefits (health, vision, dental, 401K) designed to support you in and out of work.

This is the expected compensation range for this role. Final compensation will be based on role scope, experience, skills, internal equity and location. This role may also be eligible for bonus/equity/benefits, if applicable.

$210,000 - $325,000 USD

Neon Aero, Inc is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, veteran status, or any other protected status under applicable law.

We believe that diverse perspectives drive innovation, and we welcome candidates from all backgrounds to apply.

All final candidates must successfully complete a background check and drug screening as a condition of employment.

At this time, Neon Aero and its divisions are not accepting unsolicited resumes from third-party recruiters or staffing agencies.