Head of Flight Sciences

What is JetZero? Today’s aircraft contribute around 4% of global CO2 emissions, equivalent to the emissions of 200 million cars. This is only going to increase: Air travel is forecasted to double by 2050, while meaningful efficiency gains using current airplanes have hit a wall. JetZero is developing a blended-wing body (BWB) aircraft. It uses up to 50% less fuel and will be built to accommodate zero-emission hydrogen propulsion. JetZero is the inevitable solution to sustainable air travel. The JetZero Team We are experienced aerospace professionals and engineers, excited about the future. That future will only be possible if we share our vision and what it means to people’s lives: carbon-free flight that' is better for both passengers and airlines around the world. The Head of Flight Sciences will lead JetZero’s Flight Sciences organization, with responsibility for aerodynamics, aircraft performance, stability and control, loads, and wind tunnel testing for the Z4 blended wing body aircraft. This leader will be accountable for both the technical integrity of the aircraft’s aerodynamic and flight-dynamics characteristics and for building the organization, methods, and decision-making discipline required to mature the Z4 from configuration development through 14 CFR Part 25 certification. The role requires a leader who can set technical direction, develop high-performing teams, drive cross-functional decisions, and create clarity in areas of significant technical uncertainty. The ideal candidate combines deep transport-category flight sciences expertise with demonstrated leadership of multidisciplinary engineering organizations on complex or clean-sheet aircraft programs. This role reports directly to the Chief Product Officer and will be based onsite in Long Beach, CA. What You’ll Do Lead the Flight Sciences Organization • Build, lead, and develop a high-performing Flight Sciences organization spanning aerodynamics, aircraft performance, stability and control, and experimental aerodynamics. • Establish clear technical ownership, priorities, standards, and ways of working across the organization. • Recruit, develop, and mentor technical leaders and engineers, building both deep functional expertise and strong aircraft-level judgment. • Create a culture of technical rigor, constructive challenge, rapid learning, and accountability for results. • Translate program and product objectives into clear Flight Sciences priorities, plans, staffing needs, and execution strategies. Own Flight Sciences Technical Strategy and Certification • Serve as the senior technical authority for the aerodynamic, performance, and flight-dynamics characteristics of the Z4, from conceptual sizing through certification. • Define and lead the Flight Sciences strategy for 14 CFR Part 25 compliance, including engagement with the FAA on aerodynamics, performance, and stability and control findings. • Ensure analysis, modeling, test, and certification activities form a coherent technical maturation strategy rather than independent workstreams. • Identify the highest-risk technical uncertainties early and drive the analysis and testing required to retire them. • Represent Flight Sciences in major program, product, and technical reviews and communicate technical status, risk, and decisions clearly to executive leadership. Drive Aircraft-Level Decisions • Lead Flight Sciences participation in aircraft-level trades involving performance, weight, cost, operability, certification, and schedule. • Partner closely with the Product Architect, Flight Controls, Loads, Structures, Propulsion, Systems, Test, and Certification organizations to drive integrated aircraft decisions. • Establish the analysis and evidence required to make timely decisions under uncertainty and ensure assumptions and risks are explicit. • Provide clear recommendations at PDR, CDR, flight readiness, and other major program decision gates. • Ensure Flight Sciences priorities remain aligned with aircraft-level product requirements and customer value. Aerodynamics • Set the technical direction for aerodynamic and high-lift development of the blended wing body configuration, including CFD, configuration shaping, optimization, and experimental validation. • Establish standards and technical governance for CFD methods, turbulence modeling, meshing, HPC workflows, and aerodynamic databases. • Ensure aerodynamic development balances aircraft performance, controllability, structural integration, manufacturability, certification, and program objectives. • Guide the team in determining where additional fidelity, analysis, or testing creates value—and where it does not. Aircraft Performance • Own the integrity of aircraft performance models and substantiation across takeoff, climb, cruise, descent, and landing. • Ensure mission performance, payload-range, fuel burn, reserves, field performance, and obstacle-clearance analyses accurately support aircraft design and customer commitments. • Partner with Product, Sales, Operations, and other stakeholders to ensure externally communicated aircraft performance is technically credible and appropriately substantiated. Stability and Control • Own the technical strategy for Z4 flight dynamics, stability, controllability, and handling qualities across the full flight envelope. • Direct the development and validation of linear and nonlinear flight-dynamics models. • Partner closely with Flight Controls to establish control authority, control-surface architecture, and control-law requirements appropriate for a blended wing body configuration. • Ensure stability-and-control considerations are incorporated early into configuration and aircraft-level design decisions. Wind Tunnel and Flight Test • Define the overall experimental validation strategy for Flight Sciences, including wind tunnel and flight-test campaigns. • Ensure test objectives are tied directly to key technical uncertainties, model validation, certification needs, and aircraft decisions. • Own the strategy for correlation among CFD, wind tunnel, Pathfinder, Jet1, and eventual Z4 flight-test data. • Drive disciplined incorporation of test results into analytical models, design decisions, and technical risk retirement. What You Bring • 15+ years of experience in flight sciences for transport-category or similarly complex aircraft, including significant leadership responsibility. • Demonstrated success building, leading, and developing multidisciplinary technical organizations. • Deep expertise in aerodynamics, aircraft performance, and/or stability and control, coupled with sufficient breadth to lead the integrated Flight Sciences function. • Strong aircraft-level technical judgment and experience making consequential decisions across competing performance, weight, cost, risk, and schedule objectives. • Experience leading technical work through major aircraft development milestones and preferably through certification. • Working knowledge of 14 CFR Part 25 requirements affecting aerodynamics, performance, and flight characteristics, including experience engaging with certification authorities. • Experience defining and executing integrated analysis, wind tunnel, and flight-test strategies. • Ability to operate effectively in a fast-moving clean-sheet development environment with incomplete information and evolving requirements. • Proven ability to communicate complex technical issues, alternatives, and recommendations clearly to engineers, executives, regulators, and other stakeholders. • Bachelor’s, Master’s, or PhD in Aerospace Engineering or a related field. Preferred Skills & Experience • Experience with blended wing body or other unconventional aircraft configurations. • Experience at a startup or scale-up • Experience with innovate tool development • Experience through a full clean-sheet aircraft development and certification program. • Experience leading organizations through significant configuration maturation or technical convergence. • Working knowledge of loads, aeroelasticity, flutter, flight controls, and their interaction with aerodynamic design. • Familiarity with multidisciplinary design optimization and high-performance computing environments. • Background in experimental aerodynamics and flight-test correlation. • Familiarity with airline operations, product requirements, and aircraft economic performance. Compensation: Our compensation package is a blend of base salary and equity options for eligible employees. The range for this role is $210,000 - $280,000. We consider a number of factors when presenting a final offer, including geography, internal equity and years of experience and expertise. Benefits • Generous PTO • 12 paid holidays • 401(k) • Medical, Dental, Vision insurance • Disability Insurance • Life Insurance • Equity tax advisory services • Supportive work culture The Interview Process We want our interview process to be a true reflection of our culture: transparent and collaborative. Throughout the interview process, your recruiter will guide you through the next steps and ensure you feel prepared every step of the way. • Our First Chat: During this first conversation, you’ll meet with a recruiter or hiring team member to chat through your background, what you could bring to our team, what you are looking for in your next role, and who we are. • The Hiring Manager Interview: You will meet with your potential future boss to really dive into the role, the team, expectations, and what success means at JetZero. This is your chance to really nerd out with someone in your field. • The Panel: Learn more about the team, responsibilities, and workflows. You should be prepared to speak about past projects, how you collaborate and communicate with others, and how you live our values. Depending on the team and role you are interviewing for, you may meet with several teammates as well as cross-functional partners. • The Executive Review: A chance to meet an executive and view JetZero from a different lens. Be prepared to ask well-thought-out questions about the company, culture, and more. Depending on the position you are interviewing for, there may also be a Take Home Exercise as part of the interview proccess. Our assessments seek to test the hard skills required to do the job. Your recruiter will inform you of which assessment you will be assigned and ensure you are fully prepared for your big day. JetZero does not sponsor visas for US positions unless specified. Only applicants with current work authorization will be considered. At JetZero, we value diversity and are an equal opportunity employer by choice. We consider all qualified applicants equally for employment & do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, protected veteran status, religion, physical or mental disability, marital status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, or any other basis protected by federal, state or local laws, ordinance, or regulation.