Senior Flight Test Engineer

Who we are

Helsing is a defence AI company. Our mission is to protect our democracies. We aim to achieve technological leadership, so that open societies can continue to make sovereign decisions and control their ethical standards.

As democracies, we believe we have a special responsibility to be thoughtful about the development and deployment of powerful technologies like AI. We take this responsibility seriously.

We are an ambitious and committed team of engineers, AI specialists and customer-facing programme managers. We are looking for mission-driven people to join our European teams – and apply their skills to solve the most complex and impactful problems. We embrace an open and transparent culture that welcomes healthy debates on the use of technology in defence, its benefits, and its ethical implications.

The role

As a Senior Flight Test Engineer at Helsing, you will take ownership of our military flight test programmes, from initial concept and safety planning through to live execution and final reporting. You will serve as the critical bridge between our advanced AI-enabled systems and the live military aircraft they are integrated into, responsible for proving that mission systems, sensors, and weapon integrations perform as intended in the most demanding operational environments. You will define flight test strategy, lead complex campaigns including international live-fire exercises, and collaborate closely with engineering teams, test pilots, and armed forces partners. The output of your work is fielded capability that democratic militaries can trust.

The day-to-day

• Take overarching accountability for Helsing's flight test programmes, leading from initial planning, risk assessment, and safety case development through to execution and formal reporting
• Design and conduct rigorous military ground and flight test campaigns, including large-scale programmes on international military ranges involving live weapon firings
• Author and validate comprehensive ground procedures and flight test cards for advanced military systems, spanning weapons, electro-optical and radar sensors, and mission systems
• Lead on-aircraft ground testing of military systems to verify integration integrity, confirm safety standards, and establish mission readiness ahead of flight operations
• Collaborate with engineering teams, test pilots, and the Lead Flight Test Engineer (L-FTE) throughout flight test operations, and where qualified, act as L-FTE in the air to bring first-hand airborne insight into programme decisions

You should apply if you

• Have built a career in the flight testing of fast-jet or advanced military aircraft, with substantive hands-on programme experience across the full test lifecycle
• Bring deep expertise across complex military systems, including weapon integration, mission systems, military sensors (Radar, EO/IR, EW), tactical data links, and air-to-air and air-to-surface weapon systems
• Have planned, led, and delivered complex, multi-stakeholder flight test campaigns, including those conducted in international or live-fire environments, and can evidence the outcomes
• Approach flight safety with absolute rigour whilst maintaining the operational urgency required to deliver working technology on timelines that matter
• Communicate with clarity and precision across engineering, flight crew, and senior military stakeholder audiences, translating technical complexity into credible, actionable outputs

Note: We operate in an industry where women, as well as other minority groups, are systematically under-represented. We encourage you to apply even if you don't meet all the listed qualifications; ability and impact cannot be summarised in a few bullet points.

Nice to Have

• Graduated as a Flight Test Engineer or Test Pilot from an internationally recognised Test Pilot School, or hold an EASA Lead Flight Test Engineer (L-FTE) Category 1 qualification
• Have worked within or alongside European armed forces or NATO partner organisations on integrated flight test programm

Join Helsing and work with world-leading experts in their fields

• Helsing’s work is important. You’ll be directly contributing to the protection of democratic countries while balancing both ethical and geopolitical concerns

• The work is unique. We operate in a domain that has highly unusual technical requirements and constraints, and where robustness, safety, and ethical considerations are vital. You will face unique Engineering and AI challenges that make a meaningful impact in the world

• Our work frequently takes us right up to the state of the art in technical innovation, be it reinforcement learning, distributed systems, generative AI, or deployment infrastructure. The defence industry is entering the most exciting phase of the technological development curve. Advances in our field of world are not incremental: Helsing is part of, and often leading, historic leaps forward

• In our domain, success is a matter of order-of-magnitude improvements and novel capabilities. This means we take bets, aim high, and focus on big opportunities. Despite being a relatively young company, Helsing has already been selected for multiple significant government contracts

• We actively encourage healthy, proactive, and diverse debate internally about what we do and how we choose to do it. Teams and individual engineers are trusted (and encouraged) to practise responsible autonomy and critical thinking, and to focus on outcomes, not conformity. At Helsing you will have a say in how we (and you!) work, the opportunity to engage on what does and doesn’t work, and to take ownership of aspects of our culture that you care deeply about

What we offer

• Competitive salary and VSOP options

• Relocation support: up to €2,500 and 4 weeks temporary accommodation

• Learning: €500/£450 yearly allowance

• Health & wellness: gym membership and mental health support (Nilo.health)

• Social: regular company events and monthly social allowances

• Enhanced parental leave: 22 weeks fully paid for primary caregivers & 6 weeks for secondary caregivers

• Family support: 5 days of paid family emergency leave, 100% remote work option during pregnancy and phased return to work

• A hands-on onboarding program (affectionately labelled “Infraduction”), in which you will be building tooling and applications to be used across the company. This is your opportunity to learn our tech stack, explore the company, and learn how we get things done - all whilst working with other engineering teams from day one (Specifically for engineering and AI)

These are the core benefits across all locations, there may be additional benefits in certain locations.

Helsing is an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, disability or gender identity. Please do not submit personal data revealing racial or ethnic origin, political opinions, religious or philosophical beliefs, trade union membership, data concerning your health, or data concerning your sexual orientation.

Helsing's Candidate Privacy and Confidentiality Regime can be found here.

Helsing's Candidate Privacy and Confidentiality Regime can be found here.