Lead Hardware & System Engineer (UAV)

Azylio is a specialized recruitment firm for defense & Dual-use companies. We recruit the engineers and technical specialists behind Europe’s most critical defense technologies.
We work exclusively across Deftech, partnering with companies developing advanced systems across air, land and sea. From specialist engineering hires to hard-to-find technical leadership, we focus on the talent markets where expertise is scarce and the cost of getting a hire wrong is high.
For one of our clients, a company developing next-generation unmanned aerial systems, we are looking for a Lead Hardware & Systems Engineer (UAV) to lead the hardware and systems architecture, development, and integration across its aircraft platform.
This is a hands-on technical leadership role, combining practical hardware expertise with system-level ownership. You’ll guide key engineering decisions and bring together electrical, avionics, embedded software and communications systems to deliver a reliable, flight-ready platform.
Role & Mission
Lead the definition, design and integration of electrical, control and communications systems across their platform.
Own hardware architecture and integration decisions, including component selection, onboard computing, sensors, power distribution, and subsystem interfaces.
Provide technical direction across engineering disciplines, lead design reviews, and mentor engineers through complex development and integration challenges.
Translate product and operational needs into clear hardware and system requirements, maintaining traceability through design, implementation and verification.
Work closely with software, electronics, avionics and mechanical engineering teams to define interfaces and ensure robust integration across the aircraft.
Evaluate design trade-offs, balancing performance, reliability, safety, weight, power consumption and integration constraints.
Define and drive hardware and system verification activities, including bench testing, aircraft integration and support for flight testing.
Investigate system-level failures, identify root causes and lead corrective actions through to verified resolution.
Work alongside the Airworthiness team to ensure hardware and software solutions meet applicable certification and flight-safety requirements.
Produce and maintain technical documentation, including architecture diagrams, interface definitions, engineering specifications, and verification evidence.
Who We’re Looking For
A technically strong hardware and systems engineer who can take ownership of aircraft-level architecture while remaining close to the hardware. You’ll be comfortable setting technical direction, supporting other engineers, and solving complex problems across hardware, software, and communications:
Significant experience in hardware and systems engineering, ideally within aerospace, UAVs, robotics, autonomous systems, or another safety-critical environment.
Demonstrated experience leading technical projects, owning architecture decisions and coordinating engineering work across disciplines.
Strong hands-on experience with electronic hardware, embedded systems, avionics integration and hardware debugging.
Strong practical knowledge of communications protocols and architectures, particularly IP, CAN and serial communications; experience with MAVLink and DroneCAN is highly desirable.
Experience working with Real-Time Operating Systems and/or Embedded Linux.
A strong understanding of how hardware, software, sensors, power systems and onboard computing interact at platform level.
Experience defining requirements, managing interfaces and planning hardware and system verification.
The ability to diagnose complex integration issues and drive them through to resolution.
Sound engineering judgement, with the ability to balance technical performance, reliability, safety and delivery constraints.
Clear technical communication skills, a collaborative approach to leadership and professional fluency in English.
Interested in the opportunity?
Apply through Azylio for a first conversation about the role, the team, and the wider mission.

Work arrangement
Yes