Senior Lead Engineer Electronic Warfare and Survivability

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 programm 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

We are seeking an experienced Senior Lead Engineer Electronic Warfare & Survivability to drive the sensor integration and tactical capability development for our Unmanned Combat Aerial Vehicle (UCAV) program. In this senior technical role, you will define how our airborne platform perceives, interprets, and responds to the electromagnetic battlespace—translating raw sensor data into actionable tactical situational awareness.

You will own the architecture of sensor interaction and cueing logic, as well as the pre-mission workflows that prepare the airborne platform for the threat environment—ensuring it delivers a coherent tactical picture across all mission phases.

The day-to-day

• Define sensor fusion and cueing strategies across EO/IR Targeting Systems (EORTS), Radar Warning Receivers (RWR), and the Multifunctional Radar to generate a unified Tactical Situational Picture for the airborne platform.

• Develop the Concept of Operations (CONOPS) specifying what each sensor must achieve, when, and against which red force assets across the mission timeline.

• Define pre-mission workflows, including EW library/mission data file generation, threat library population, and sensor configuration to prepare the airborne platform for the expected operational environment.

• Establish cross-sensor cueing logic—defining how detections from one sensor task, slew, or confirm another to maximize detection, identification, and engagement effectiveness.

• Define and translate operational threat scenarios into sensor performance requirements and engagement priorities against defined red asset sets.

• Lead trade studies on sensor tasking, coverage, timing, and prioritization to optimize survivability and mission success.

• Collaborate with platform, autonomy, mission systems, and flight test teams to ensure sensor behavior aligns with overall mission objectives .

• Define and validate detection, identification, and tracking requirements through modeling, simulation, and test campaigns.

• Mentor and provide technical leadership to the sensor and SW engineering teams.

You should apply if you

• Hold a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Systems Engineering, Physics, or related field.

• Have 8+ years of experience in EW, sensor systems, or mission systems engineering, preferably on airborne platforms.

• Possess a deep understanding of EW principles, RWR operation, radar systems, and EO/IR sensor capabilities.

• Have proven experience defining multi-sensor fusion and cueing architectures.

• Have experience with pre-mission planning and EW library/mission data file generation.

• Possess strong knowledge of threat systems (red force assets), their signatures, and engagement envelopes.

• Have experience authoring CONOPS and operational requirements for complex defense systems.

• Are familiar with the kill chain (Find, Fix, Track, Target, Engage, Assess) and how sensors support each phase.

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.

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 : regularly 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

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 .