Sr. Guidance, Navigation & Control Engineer

APPLY NOW TYPE — FULL TIME

LOCATION — Vijayawada, INDIA

Experience: 5+ Years

CTC: ₹9–15 LPA ABOUT THE ROLE As a Guidance, Navigation & Control (GNC) Engineer, you will lead the development, validation, and deployment of the complete GNC architecture for AnduraX's reusable re-entry vehicle. You will be responsible for designing autonomous flight algorithms covering all mission phases, from high-altitude release and atmospheric glide to parafoil recovery, precision landing, and future orbital re-entry missions. Working closely with Systems Engineering, Aerodynamics, Avionics, Flight Software, Structures, and Test teams, you will develop robust guidance, navigation, estimation, and control algorithms that ensure safe, reliable, and repeatable autonomous flight.

You will own the complete algorithm development lifecycle, from mathematical modelling and simulation to hardware integration, flight validation, and post-flight performance analysis. This role demands deep expertise in flight dynamics, estimation, control theory, autonomous systems, and real-world flight testing. You will play a critical role in enabling India's first privately developed reusable re-entry vehicle.

This role combines office-based engineering with laboratory, workshop, integration, and field-test activities. Candidates should be comfortable transitioning between analytical work, software development, hardware integration, and outdoor flight operations.

RESPONSIBILITY Guidance Systems

Develop guidance algorithms for atmospheric flight, glide, parafoil descent, and precision landing.

Design trajectory generation and optimization algorithms.

Develop waypoint navigation and path-following algorithms.

Implement guidance logic for nominal, abort, contingency, and emergency flight modes.

Develop wind compensation and energy management algorithms.

Design flare and terminal landing guidance strategies.

Support future orbital de-orbit guidance and entry trajectory development. Navigation & State Estimation

Develop robust sensor fusion algorithms using IMU, GNSS, magnetometers, barometers, and other onboard sensors.

Design Extended Kalman Filters (EKF), Unscented Kalman Filters (UKF), and complementary filtering architectures.

Develop fault detection, isolation, and recovery (FDIR) logic.

Perform sensor characterization, calibration, and error modelling.

Improve navigation performance under degraded or GPS-denied conditions.

Develop high-fidelity vehicle state estimation pipelines. Simulation & Modelling

Develop and maintain high-fidelity 6-DOF flight simulation environments.

Integrate aerodynamic, propulsion, sensor, actuator, and environmental models.

Conduct Monte Carlo analyses and robustness studies.





Perform sensitivity analysis and uncertainty quantification.

Support Software-in-the-Loop (SIL) and Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) validation.

Generate flight performance predictions for mission planning.

Flight Control

Systems

Design and tune attitude, rate, and trajectory control algorithms.

Develop classical and modern control architectures (PID, LQR, MPC, adaptive control)

Model actuator dynamics for control surfaces, airbrakes, and parafoil actuators.

Analyze stability margins and closed-loop performance.

Design fault-tolerant and robust control systems.

Support control allocation for multiple flight configurations.

Flight Test

Operations

Support mission planning and flight sequence development.

Participate in vehicle integration and ground testing.

Monitor real-time telemetry during flight campaigns.

Perform post-flight trajectory reconstruction and performance analysis.

Validate simulation models against flight data.

Recommend improvements based on flight-test observations. Cross-Functional Leadership

Work closely with Systems Engineering, Aerodynamics, Structures, Avionics, Flight Software, Propulsion, and Test teams.

Mentor junior GNC engineers and interns.

Support engineering recruitment and technical interviews.

Develop GNC standards, documentation, and best practices.

Contribute to technical reviews including SRR, PDR, CDR, TRR, and FRR.

REQUIREMENTS Education & Experience

B.Tech/M.Tech/PhD in Aerospace Engineering, Control Systems, Robotics, Avionics, Mechanical Engineering, or related disciplines.

5+ years of experience developing GNC systems for spacecraft, launch vehicles, re-entry vehicles, missiles, UAVs, aircraft, or autonomous systems.

Technical

Competencies

Strong understanding of

Flight Dynamics

Guidance Algorithms

Navigation Systems

State Estimation

Sensor Fusion

Classical & Modern Control Theory

Nonlinear Dynamics

Flight Mechanics

Trajectory Optimization

Experience developing EKF, UKF, or equivalent estimation algorithms.

Experience tuning flight control systems on real hardware.

Experience developing high-fidelity simulation environments.

Strong understanding of autonomous flight systems.

Excellent analytical thinking and structured problem-solving ability.

Strong technical communication and documentation skills.

PREFERRED SKILLS Experience With

Experience with

Re-entry vehicles

Entry, Descent & Landing (EDL) systems

Parafoil guidance and control





Precision landing systems

Autonomous aerospace vehicles

Lifting-body flight vehicles

High-altitude flight systems

Flight-test data analysis

Fault-tolerant GNC architectures

Mission planning and trajectory optimization Proficiency In

Proficiency in

MATLAB/Simulink

Python (NumPy, SciPy, Matplotlib)

C/C++

PX4

ROS2

STM32-based flight controllers

Gazebo, JSBSim, or equivalent simulation environments Familiarity With

Familiarity with

Flight Software integration

Aerodynamic modelling

CFD-GNC coupling

Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL)

Software-in-the-Loop (SIL)

GNSS, MEMS IMUs, FOGs, and navigation sensors

NASA, ESA, ECSS, or ISRO standards

Prior experience with Indian or international aerospace programs (ISRO, DRDO, private space tech firms, startups) will be considered an added advantage. ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS Ability to work in a fast-paced startup environment where responsibilities evolve with program needs.

Comfortable working across multiple engineering disciplines and contributing beyond a narrowly defined role.

Willingness to travel for flight tests, supplier visits, customer meetings, government reviews, conferences, and technical demonstrations as required.

Ability to work outdoors during integration campaigns, launch operations, and recovery activities under varying weather conditions.

Comfortable standing, walking, bending, and working for extended periods during hardware integration and testing activities.

Ability to safely lift and carry engineering equipment and hardware weighing up to 20 kg, with appropriate assistance when required.

Willingness to occasionally work outside regular business hours during integration campaigns, flight tests, critical milestones, or mission operations.

Strong commitment to documentation, configuration control, schedule discipline, and maintaining high-quality program records.

Ability to obtain and maintain any security clearances or background verifications required for defence, strategic, or government-sponsored projects (subject to applicable regulations).

Demonstrate a strong safety-first mindset and adherence to laboratory, workshop, propulsion, and flight-test safety procedures.

Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills with the ability to coordinate multidisciplinary engineering teams.

Self-driven, proactive, and capable of independently driving complex technical programs from concept through demonstration.

Close attention to detail, excellent organizational skills, and the ability to manage multiple priorities simultaneously.

Passion for aerospace, space exploration, reusable launch systems, and advanced flight technologies, with a willingness to continuously learn and adapt to current challenges.

📌 Senior Guidance, Navigation & Control Engineer (Vijayawada)
🏢 Andura Expeditions
📍 Vijayawada