Threat Countermeasures Chief Engineer

Description

The Optical Sensing and Countermeasures Division of the Defense Sector is seeking a Chief Engineer to technically guide a technical high-performance team researching and developing aircraft protection technologies for the US Air Force. In this role, you will oversee and apply the entire portfolio of Leidos technical solutions to help our customers address their demanding challenges. You will work with subject matter experts to develop and apply optimal and differentiated Leidos solutions in the technical areas of aircraft threat countermeasures. You will assist the Program Manager to ensure all technical work meets or exceeds customer requirements.

Primary Responsibilities

• Planning and managing the execution of Threat Countermeasures Branch technical activities to ensure customer research and development requirements are being met.
• Collaborating with technical staff, customer organizations, and other parts of Leidos to develop differentiated solutions and roadmaps for existing customers and new business opportunities
• Establishing Leidos best practices, lessons learned, and technological approaches related to threat sensing, threat countermeasures, and modeling and simulation, and ensuring they are pursued
• Assessing and mentoring technical talent to meet current needs and overcome future challenges
• Reporting on the technical status of numerous, simultaneous projects occurring at any one time.
• Ensuring the technical quality of the Threat Countermeasure Branch deliveries to the customer (models, software, reports, briefings, etc.)
• Pursuing opportunities to propose solutions that will address the challenges of current and future Threat Countermeasures Branch customers

Basic Qualifications

• U.S. citizen with an active Top Secret/SCI clearance.
• Experience in at least one or more of the following: Electro-optic (EO) and/or infrared sensing, IR threat countermeasures, threat countermeasure modeling and simulation, and foreign threat exploitation.
• Master's degree with at least 13 years of prior relevant experience or PhD with at least 10 years of prior relevant experience in engineering or physics.
• Strong technical breadth and depth in support of relevant government markets
• Demonstrated technical leadership

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience as a principal investigator or chief engineer of government research and development contracts
• Knowledge of hardware-in-the-loop testing
• Demonstrated ability to author, present, and articulate requirements and associated solutions in settings supporting customers and business development
• Experience in customer relationship building

NKE

If you're looking for comfort, keep scrolling. At Leidos, we outthink, outbuild, and outpace the status quo - because the mission demands it. We're not hiring followers. We're recruiting the ones who disrupt, provoke, and refuse to fail. Step 10 is ancient history. We're already at step 30 - and moving faster than anyone else dares.

Original Posting:
March 30, 2026

For U.S. Positions: While subject to change based on business needs, Leidos reasonably anticipates that this job requisition will remain open for at least 3 days with an anticipated close date of no earlier than 3 days after the original posting date as listed above.

Pay Range:
Pay Range $154,050.00 - $278,475.00

The Leidos pay range for this job level is a general guideline only and not a guarantee of compensation or salary. Additional factors considered in extending an offer include (but are not limited to) responsibilities of the job, education, experience, knowledge, skills, and abilities, as well as internal equity, alignment with market data, applicable bargaining agreement (if any), or other law.

About Leidos

Leidos is an industry and technology leader serving government and commercial customers with smarter, more efficient digital and mission innovations. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, with 47,000 global employees, Leidos reported annual revenues of approximately $16.7 billion for the fiscal year ended January 3, 2025. For more information, visit www.Leidos.com .

Pay and Benefits

Pay and benefits are fundamental to any career decision. That's why we craft compensation packages that reflect the importance of the work we do for our customers. Employment benefits include competitive compensation, Health and Wellness programs, Income Protection, Paid Leave and Retirement. More details are available at www.leidos.com/careers/pay-benefits .

Securing Your Data

Beware of fake employment opportunities using Leidos' name. Leidos will never ask you to provide payment-related information during any part of the employment application process (i.e., ask you for money), nor will Leidos ever advance money as part of the hiring process (i.e., send you a check or money order before doing any work). Further, Leidos will only communicate with you through emails that are generated by the Leidos.com automated system - never from free commercial services (e.g., Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail) or via WhatsApp, Telegram, etc. If you received an email purporting to be from Leidos that asks for payment-related information or any other personal information (e.g., about you or your previous employer), and you are concerned about its legitimacy, please make us aware immediately by emailing us at LeidosCareersFraud@leidos.com .

If you believe you are the victim of a scam, contact your local law enforcement and report the incident to the U.S. Federal Trade Commission .

Commitment to Non-Discrimination

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to sex, race, ethnicity, age, national origin, citizenship, religion, physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, pregnancy, family structure, marital status, ancestry, domestic partner status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, veteran or military status, or any other basis prohibited by law. Leidos will also consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories consistent with relevant laws.