Engineering Manager - Control Laws

About the company

Electra develops hybrid-electric eSTOL aircraft with distributed electric propulsion and blown lift, turbine genset in-flight recharging, carrying 7–9 passengers or ~3,000 lb from very short unimproved runways.

About this role

<div class="content-intro"><p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>About Electra</strong></span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">At Electra, we’re building the EL9 — a nine-passenger, hybrid-electric aircraft that takes off and lands in 150 feet. Our Ultra Short technology unlocks thousands of new operating locations and enables what we call Direct Aviation: quiet, point-to-point regional travel that gets people from where they are to where they want to go, without the congestion of major airports or the noise of conventional aviation.</span></p> <p><span style="font-size: 12pt;">A global company, headquartered in Manassas, VA, Electra is backed by Lockheed Martin, Honeywell, and Safran, has filed for FAA Part 23 type certification, and carries 2,000+ intent to purchase from operators worldwide. We’re a team of ~100 people moving fast toward first EL9 test flights in 2027 and certification by late 2029 or 2030. Every hire matters at this stage — and this role is no exception.</span></p></div><p><strong>The Role</strong></p> <p>As the Engineering Manager – Control Laws, you will serve as both the engineering lead and people manager responsible for development of the Control Laws for the EL9 Ultra Short aircraft.</p> <p>You will inherit a baseline concept and prototype implementation and lead your team in finalizing preliminary design, driving detailed design execution, and maturing the system to a certifiable configuration.</p> <p>This role requires deep expertise in flight controls and control theory as well as strong leadership capabilities to build and scale a high-performing team. You will collaborate with the flight control system team, airframe team, and flight physics team, and play a central role in bringing a novel aircraft configuration through certification.</p> <p><strong>What You'll Do</strong></p> <ul> <li>Own the end-to-end Control Law development for the EL9 aircraft, from preliminary design through certification.</li> <li>Lead development and validation of the control law software, ensuring alignment across systems, performance, and structures.</li> <li>Build and lead a high-performing flight controls team, providing technical direction while delivering on program cost, schedule, and milestones.</li> <li>Support control law integration into the Flight Control system, including verification, and flight test</li> <li>Ensure that the control laws meets performance, safety, and handling quality requirements at the aircraft level.</li> </ul> <p><strong>What You'll Bring:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Bachelor's degree and 10+ years of relevant experience, or equivalent combination of education and experience.</li> <li>Proven ability to lead a team and drive complex programs to execution.</li> <li>Strong understanding of flight dynamics, aircraft control theory, and handling qualities.</li> <li>Experience with model-based development, simulation environments, and control law verification.</li> <li>Experience deploying safety-critical software to a real-time embedded platform</li> <li>Experience with modeling aircraft and aircraft systems, aerodynamics, aero-elastic effects, actuators, sensors, and propulsion systems.</li> <li>Strong communication and stakeholder management skills.</li> <li>Ability to balance deep technical involvement with strategic leadership responsibilities.</li> </ul> <p><strong>Bonus Points</strong></p> <ul> <li>Experience leading control law development for novel or highly integrated aircraft configurations (e.g., STOL, eVTOL, hybrid-electric aircraft).</li> <li>Experience developing algorithms for fly-by-wire and/or stability augmentation systems, from initial concept through flight testing.</li> <li>Familiarity with industry-standard aerospace development and certification practices (DO-178, DO-331) applicable to flight software development.</li> <li>Familiarity with automated testing, CI/CD pipelines</li> <li>Experience with redundant and fault-tolerant control system architectures.</li> <li>Experience building, scaling, and managing high-performing engineering teams, including hiring, mentoring, and driving technical excellence and accountability.</li> </ul> <p><strong>Compensation</strong></p> <p>$153,000 – $185,000 annually. This range reflects the anticipated hiring range across all eligible locations; actual compensation is determined based on your relevant experience, skills, and geographic location. Total compensation includes performance bonus and comprehensive benefits.</p> <p><strong>What We Offer</strong></p> <ul> <li>Competitive salary and equity</li> <li>Medical, dental, and vision insurance; STD, LTD, and life insurance</li> <li>Generous PTO, sick leave, and company holidays</li> <li>Paid winter break</li> <li>401(k) with immediate vesting</li> <li>Free catered lunches, coffee, snacks, and drinks at our Manassas headquarters</li> </ul> <p>&nbsp;</p><div class="content-pay-transparency"><div class="pay-input"><div class="description"><p>This range reflects the anticipated hiring range across all eligible locations; actual compensation is determined based on your relevant experience, skills, and geographic location. Total compensation includes performance bonus and comprehensive benefits.</p></div><div class="title">Compensation Range</div><div class="pay-range"><span>$153,000</span><span class="divider">—</span><span>$185,000 USD</span></div></div></div><div class="content-conclusion"><p><span style="font-size: 12pt;"><strong>What We Offer</strong></span></p> <ul> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Competitive salary and equity</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Medical, dental, and vision insurance; STD, LTD, and life insurance</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Generous PTO, sick leave, and company holidays</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><span style="font-size: 12pt;">Paid winter break</span></li> <li style="font-size: 12pt;"><spa