Senior Lead Engineer Electronic Warfare and Survivability
Helsing · Munich
No salary listed. Estimated from 1122 salary-disclosed Engineering roles on this board: $201K–$307K (interquartile range; estimate, not the employer's figure).
Apply at HelsingFind your warm intro on LinkedInHelsing 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 roleWe 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.
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Develop the Concept of Operations (CONOPS) specifying what each sensor must achieve, when, and against which red force assets across the mission timeline.
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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.
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Establish cross-sensor cueing logic—defining how detections from one sensor task, slew, or confirm another to maximize detection, identification, and engagement effectiveness.
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Define and translate operational threat scenarios into sensor performance requirements and engagement priorities against defined red asset sets.
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Lead trade studies on sensor tasking, coverage, timing, and prioritization to optimize survivability and mission success.
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Collaborate with platform, autonomy, mission systems, and flight test teams to ensure sensor behavior aligns with overall mission objectives .
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Define and validate detection, identification, and tracking requirements through modeling, simulation, and test campaigns.
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Mentor and provide technical leadership to the sensor and SW engineering teams.
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Hold a Bachelor's or Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, Systems Engineering, Physics, or related field.
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Have 8+ years of experience in EW, sensor systems, or mission systems engineering, preferably on airborne platforms.
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Possess a deep understanding of EW principles, RWR operation, radar systems, and EO/IR sensor capabilities.
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Have proven experience defining multi-sensor fusion and cueing architectures.
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Have experience with pre-mission planning and EW library/mission data file generation.
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Possess strong knowledge of threat systems (red force assets), their signatures, and engagement envelopes.
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Have experience authoring CONOPS and operational requirements for complex defense systems.
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