Lead Systems Engineer – Guidance, Navigation, Control & Fusion

Your Impact

Leonardo is a global high-technology company and one of the key players in Aerospace, Defence and Security. We are seeking a talented and motivated

Job Description

Leonardo is a global high-technology company and one of the key players in Aerospace, Defence and Security. We are seeking a talented and motivated Guidance, Navigation, Control, & Fusion (GNCF) Engineer to join our growing engineering team developing next-generation defence and aerospace systems. This role is primarily focused on the design, development, integration and verification of navigation systems and algorithms for advanced airborne, maritime and land-based platforms. The successful candidate will work as part of a multidisciplinary team responsible for delivering robust Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) solutions capable of operating in challenging and contested environments. The role offers the opportunity to contribute across the full engineering lifecycle, from concept development and modelling through to system integration, verification and customer support.

Your Impact

Leonardo is a global high-technology company and one of the key players in Aerospace, Defence and Security. We are seeking a talented and motivated Guidance, Navigation, Control, & Fusion (GNCF) Engineer to join our growing engineering team developing next-generation defence and aerospace systems. This role is primarily focused on the design, development, integration and verification of navigation systems and algorithms for advanced airborne, maritime and land-based platforms. The successful candidate will work as part of a multidisciplinary team responsible for delivering robust Positioning, Navigation and Timing (PNT) solutions capable of operating in challenging and contested environments. The role offers the opportunity to contribute across the full engineering lifecycle, from concept development and modelling through to system integration, verification and customer support.

What You'll Do

As a Guidance, Navigation, Control, & Fusion Engineer, you will:

• Collaborate with hardware development teams to develop and implement advanced navigation technologies for military and civilian applications.
• Design and analyse integrated navigation solutions incorporating GNSS/GPS, Inertial Navigation Systems (INS), Inertial Measurement Units (IMU), vision-aided navigation systems, and other traditional and advanced sensor technologies.
• Work on advanced and complex filtering, and AI-enabled algorithms.
• Work towards intelligent and autonomous vehicle capabilities
• Be a part of an exciting and ambitious multi-disciplinary and multi-national project.

Key Responsibilities

• Navigation algorithm design and development.
• Sensor modelling and performance characterisation.
• Navigation system architecture definition.
• State estimation and sensor fusion development.
• Navigation simulation and analysis.
• Verification and validation planning and execution.
• Technical risk identification and mitigation.
• Development and exploitation of artificial intelligence
• Contribution to innovation, research and technology development initiatives.
• Support of system-level trade studies and performance assessments.

Essential

What You'll bring

• A degree in Engineering, Mathematics, Physics, Aerospace Engineering, Control Engineering, closely related discipline, or equivalent knowledge and experience.
• Understanding of navigation principles and estimation theory.
• Knowledge of:
• Inertial navigation systems
• GNSS/GPS technologies
• Coordinate transformations and reference frames
• Error propagation and uncertainty analysis
• Sensor fusion techniques
• Experience with Kalman Filters or related estimation approaches.
• Experience using MATLAB and Simulink for modelling and simulation.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to communicate complex technical concepts effectively.

Desirable

• Postgraduate qualification in Control, Navigation, Aerospace or Applied Mathematics.
• Experience developing navigation systems for defence, aerospace or autonomous platforms.
• Knowledge of resilient PNT technologies.
• Experience with:
• Advanced filters such as Extended Kalman Filters (EKF), Unscented Kalman Filters (UKF), or Particle Filters
• Multi-sensor fusion architectures, multi-modal and multiple-hypothesis filtering
• Visual-Inertial Navigation
• SLAM techniques
• GNSS/GPS simulation and integration
• Other software development experience (e.g. C++, Python or embedded environments).
• Familiarity with Systems Engineering principles, approaches and the engineering lifecycle.
• Knowledge of, Jira, Git and configuration management tools.
• Experience in collaborating with external customers and international partners
• Experience contributing to programme-level technical decision making, including system architecture trade-offs, technical risk management, and engineering governance activities.
• Experience providing technical leadership to engineering teams or work packages.

Security Clearance

This role is subject to pre-employment screening in line with the UK Government’s Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS). An additional range of Personnel Security Controls referred to as National Security Vetting (NSV) may apply, this could include meeting the eligibility requirements for The Security Check (SC) or Developed Vetting (DV). For more information and guidance please visit:

Why join us

At Leonardo, our people are at the heart of everything we do. We offer a comprehensive, company-funded benefits package that supports your wellbeing, career development, and work-life balance. Whether you're looking to grow professionally, care for your health, or plan for the future, we're here to help you thrive.

• Time to Recharge: Enjoy generous leave with the opportunity to accrue up to 12 additional flexi-days each year.
• Secure your Future: Benefit from our award-winning pension scheme with up to 15% employer contribution.
• Your Wellbeing Matters: Free access to mental health support, financial advice, and employee-led networks championing inclusion and diversity (Enable, Pride, Equalise, Armed Forces, Carers, Wellbeing and Ethnicity).
• Rewarding Performance: All employees at management level and below are eligible for our bonus scheme.
• Never Stop Learning: Free access to 4,000+ online courses via Coursera and LinkedIn Learning.
• Refer a friend: Receive a financial reward through our referral programme.
• Tailored Perks: Spend up to £500 annually on flexible benefits including private healthcare, dental, family cover, tech & lifestyle discounts, gym memberships and more.
• Flexible working: Flexible hours with hybrid working options. For part time opportunities, please talk to us about what might be possible for this role.

For a full list of our company benefits please visit our website.

Leonardo is a global leader in Aerospace, Defence, and Security. Headquartered in Italy, we employ over 53,000 people worldwide including 8,500 across 9 sites in the UK. Our employees are not just part of a team—they are key contributors to shaping innovation, advancing technology, and enhancing global safety.

At Leonardo we are committed to building an inclusive, accessible, and welcoming workplace. We believe that a diverse workforce sparks creativity, drives innovation, and leads to better outcomes for our people and our customers. If you have any accessibility requirements to support you during the recruitment process, just let us know.

Primary Location

GB - Edinburgh

Additional Locations

GB - Newcastle

Contract Type

Permanent

Hybrid Working

Hybrid

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