Mechanical Design Engineer (II) (Pelican)

Job Description

Job Description

About Pyka

Pyka’s goal is to provide society with a new form of safe, clean, and cost-effective transportation enabled by autonomous electric aviation.

To get there, we’re taking a different approach than most. We're applying our technologies to every industry where autonomous electric aircraft can be useful, starting with the highest value and most dangerous jobs. In doing so, we're building game-changing products manufactured at scale, while perfecting the safety, reliability, and capabilities of our autonomy engine and electric propulsion systems. 

We design, develop and manufacture an ecosystem of technologies including proprietary flight control software, avionics, high power density motors, motor controllers, batteries, and custom carbon-fiber composite airframes.

Today, we supply autonomous electric aircraft for cargo transport and crop protection to real-world customers across four separate continents and have secured industry-first regulatory approvals from the FAA. Our cargo aircraft enables remote connectivity, enhances express delivery networks, and ensures fast and reliable shipping of critical supplies to areas in need. Our crop protection aircraft offers agricultural services providers and farmers an autonomous tool to make aerial application safer, more precise, and less harmful to surrounding environments. Both vehicles are highly economical to operate, easy to deploy, and significantly reduce CO2 emissions in their respective industries. 

What you work on at Pyka makes people’s lives better now and brings the future of electric aviation one step closer each day. 

Role Overview

Pyka is looking for a Mechanical Design Engineer to join our experienced and enthusiastic team of engineers. In this role, you will take ownership over a variety of mechanical components and subsystems on the aircraft and support them from conceptualization through serial production.

Our Mechanical Engineering team members work closely with Manufacturing Engineers, Flight Test Engineers, and other Mechanical Engineers to design, test, and iterate on mechanical components and assemblies. This role is not for the faint of heart -- the Pyka ME team handles the same amount of hardware as teams 10x the size. You’ll have the opportunity to work with a team that moves extremely quickly with significant opportunities for ownership/contribution, professional development, and growth. 

Some of the first projects you will work on include:

• Improve the design of several existing components for better manufacturability, useability and durability.
• Thoroughly validate environmental requirements on aircraft parts, materials and assemblies
• Lead the investigation, root causing, solution creation, and solution validation  of hardware bugs that come up during field testing.
• As a Mechanical Engineer at Pyka, you will be central to supporting our existing fleet of aircraft as well as developing the next generation through continuous learning and iteration.

Responsibilities

• Take on “Design Responsible Engineer” responsibilities for several mechanical design components. You will take these from initial requirement definition, all the way through serial production and support of the product in the field.

• Work with Senior Engineers on the conceptual design, prototyping, testing, iteration and documentation of flight critical mechanical parts and assemblies.

• Create and maintain 3D CAD, drawings and manufacturing documents with meticulous attention to detail.

• Work with manufacturing teams to build tools and processes to facilitate the manufacture of in-house parts and subsystems.

• Communicate closely with external suppliers and fabricators to ensure receipt of quality products, on time.

Preferred Qualifications

• 1-4+ years of professional experience in mechanical design
• An inquisitive attitude with an ability to quickly and deftly research new topics, and try new things.
• Experience designing, performing structural analysis, and supporting the manufacture of composite structures.
• Experience designing parts for a wide range of manufacturing processes including 3D printing, CNC machining, injection molding, and sheet metal
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills; the ideal candidate is not afraid to ask for clarification or give feedback.
• Experience in any 3D CAD package (Solidworks, NX, Inventor). 
• Experience using FEA and hand calculations to validate a wide variety of mechanical design decisions (stress/strain, thermal, fatigue).
• Excitement to be in a prototyping shop building things with your hands.

Compensation & Benefits

• Mechanical Engineer: $101,000 - $121,000 + equity.
• Mechanical Engineer II: $118,000–$142,000 + equity. Compensation will vary depending on location, job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. Salary ranges are subject to change.
• Employer-sponsored health, dental and vision insurance
• FSA with employer matching
• 401(k)
• Paid holidays, generous PTO, and additional unpaid time off
• Voluntary short-term disability, long-term disability, and life insurance
• Pre-tax commuter benefits
• Free catered lunch and plenty of snacks

Export Control Requirements

This position requires access to technology, software and other information that is subject to governmental access control restrictions, due to export controls.  Employment in this position is conditioned on the continued availability of government authorization to authorize release of such items, to the extent required, including without limitation an export license, or other documentation required to establish authorization to receive access to such items. 

Company may delay commencement of employment, rescind an offer of employment, terminate employment, and/or may modify job responsibilities, compensation, benefits, and/or access to Company facilities and information systems, as Company deems appropriate, in order to ensure compliance with applicable government access control restrictions.

 

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We do not work with external recruiters; if you are an external recruiter, please do not reach out.

We may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support parts of the hiring process, such as reviewing applications, analyzing resumes, or assessing responses. These tools assist our recruitment team but do not replace human judgment. Final hiring decisions are ultimately made by humans.