Autopilot Software Engineer - Hybrid (Southampton / Portsmouth)

Location: Southampton / Portsmouth (Hybrid working available)
Contract: Full-time, permanent
Sector: Autonomous Systems / Aerospace / Robotics

Are you passionate about building advanced autonomy for next-generation unmanned aircraft? Join a high-growth engineering team developing large autonomous fixed-wing UAVs for logistics, humanitarian, and defence applications. You’ll contribute directly to creating robust, reliable, and safe flight-control systems for real-world missions.

About the Role

We’re looking for an Autopilot Software Engineer to help accelerate the development of our autonomy and flight-control capabilities. You’ll work across embedded software, behavioural autonomy, flight-control logic, and the full testing ecosystem - from unit tests to real flight trials.

Essential Requirements

• Professional experience in software engineering with strong embedded C/C++ skills
• Practical, applied understanding of aerospace control systems
• Ability to develop behavioural/application-level autonomy software
• Experience with version control (Git) within an agile team, including documentation
• Strong skills with STM32 microcontrollers and associated toolchains (IDEs, debuggers, compilers)
• Knowledge of low-level interfaces: CAN, SPI, IC, UART, PWM, ICU, etc.
• Complementary understanding of embedded hardware
• Ability to support a full testing ecosystem - from automated unit testing to flight testing
• Flexibility, ownership mindset, and ability to deliver high-quality, real-world-ready software
• Experience with open-source autopilot ecosystems (e.g., Betaflight, Ardupilot, PX4, MissionPlanner)

Nice to Have

• Background or interest in aviation or RC model aircraft
• Willingness and ability to travel, plus a driving licence and access to a vehicle

Key Responsibilities

• Requirements capture and creation of technical specifications
• Development of safety-critical flight-control software to exceptionally high reliability standards
• Support test activities: automated unit tests, hardware-in-the-loop, field tests, and flight trials
• Assist with issue identification, debugging, and system-level fault investigation

Employment Details

• Contract Type: Full-time, permanent
• Location: Southampton / Portsmouth area, with hybrid working available
• Department: Engineering