Senior Systems Engineer

Senior Systems Engineer

Date: Jun 24, 2026

Location:Luton, GB

Company: GKN Aerospace Careers

Fantastic challenges. Amazing opportunities.

GKN Aerospace is reimagining air travel: going further, faster and greener! Fuelled by great people whose expertise and creativity sets the standards in our industry, we’re inspired by the opportunities to innovate and break boundaries. We’re proud to play a part in protecting the world’s democracies. And we’re committed to putting sustainability at the centre of everything we do, opening up and protecting our planet. With over 16,000 employees across 33 manufacturing sites in 12 countries we serve over 90% of the world’s aircraft and engine manufacturers and achieved sales of £3.35 bn.in 2023. There are no limits to where you can take your career.

Job Summary

GKN Aerospace is an original aerospace innovator.  

It’s great to know you’re making a difference to the future of aviation! Whatever part you play you’ll be helping us deliver operational excellence to our customers. Based at our Luton manufacturing plant you’ll do just that. Established in 1993, GKN Aerospace in Luton is a world leader in commercial and military ice protection systems and transparencies. Offering a full range of capabilities; design, analysis, testing, certification and manufacture of electro-thermal ice protection, military fast jet canopies and flight deck windows to over 20 programmes including: Boeing 787, Dreamliner, Airbus A320, AgustaWestland, AW101, Eurofighter Typhoon and Lockheed, Martin F-22 Raptor. Our customers include Boeing, Airbus, Lockheed Martin, Bell Helicopters, Textron, BAE Systems, Pratt & Whitney, Leonardo. Our Luton site is home to 370+ employees and onsite facilities including onsite parking, food hub and vending machines.

We are seeking a Senior Engineer with a strong Systems Engineering background to join our Luton manufacturing team and contribute to the future of aviation.

The Senior Systems Engineer is responsible for developing, integrating, implementing, and verifying technical solutions and associated compliance documentation, ensuring alignment with all applicable customer, regulatory, and airworthiness requirements, while meeting agreed programme, schedule, and manufacturing constraints.

This is a very exciting and potentially career defining opportunity. You will be a leading member of the team embarking on a significant and challenging technology development project, where we are developing new Ice Detection Systems for aerospace applications.

Our core working hours at the Luton site are 07:30–16:30, Monday to Thursday, and 07:30–12:30 on Fridays. The role includes occasional national travel to support customer and supplier visits, as well as visits to our Global Technology Centre in Bristol. We also offer a hybrid working arrangement, with the opportunity to work from home for up to two days per week, depending on business needs.

Job Responsibilities

• Quality assurance reviewer of design deliverables created by the GKN Defence - Systems Engineering team
• Data analysis and reporting into qualification arguments and submissions for GKN Defence avionic, control systems and sub-systems
• Release of stakeholder and internal technical communications
• Technical work breakdown of program planning objectives
• Assure best practice development within systems engineering excellence
• Mentor and develop systems engineering team members
• System engineering inputs to technology incubator process

What You'll Bring

To help us make a difference, you’ll bring your passion and talent for what you do along with the following skills, experience, qualifications and attributes:
Essential:
• HNC, degree or equivalent experience in electrical or systems engineering
• Significant experience delivering designs for electro-mechanical, sensing OR controller systems within an engineering environment
• Electronics pcb design experience
• Proven design and delivery of high quality and reliable systems in a complex regulatory environment (e.g. MIL-STD, TUV cert, etc…)
• Proven track record (minimum 1 project), in compliance planning and verification & validation analysis for product release
• Advanced experience of the Systems Development Lifecycle process
• Intermediate experience of requirement decomposition and tools (e.g. DOORS)
• Intermediate experience defining system / modular architecture
• Advanced experience developing system control functions & logic models
• Ability to design and set-up experiments and fixtures for testing
• CATIA V5 interrogator (minimum)
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Applications.
Essential General Experience:
• Technical leadership - Ability to mentor develop functional team members
• Confident presenting technical information to a wider audience including senior stakeholders and internal customers
• Live the culture of Plan-Do-Check-Act and continuous improvement
• Hands-on approach – Have a real desire to be up close to the components and people that build our systems.

Desirable:
• Working experience delivering system designs using MBSE toolbox (e.g. SysML)
• Experience in safety assessment software/toolbox FTA and FMEA (e.g. ANSYS Medini, Isograph)
• Proficiency in multi-domain modelling/simulation packages (e.g. MATLAB, Simulink, Simscape, Amesim)

We are looking for people who want to make a difference, talented members with the skills and passions to become the best of the future in what they do. 

The position requires UK National Security Vetting (UKNSV) Security clearance (SC) due to the nature and responsibilities of the work carried out. In order for us to obtain an SC you usually need to have been resident in the UK for a minimum of 5 years to current date (but we do assess each case individually).

Note: Some GKN programmes are subject to regulatory restrictions which may impact certain nationalities. As part of the application process you will be asked to declare when applying for this role. 

What We'll Offer

Once you’re on board you’ll get the following perks and benefits:
• Competitive salary dependent on experience
• The opportunity to earn up to 15% bonus
• Industry Leading Pension Scheme = we’ll match your contributions up to 8% on a 1 : 1.5 basis
• Life Assurance 8 x salary
• 185 hours holiday + bank holidays
• Income protection
• Shopping discounts
• Cycle To Work Scheme
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Virtual GP Clinic for you and immediate family
• Electric Vehicle (EV) salary sacrifice scheme (Insurance, servicing, maintenance, roadside assistance and more included)
• Free onsite parking 
• Free airport parking 
• Enhanced family friendly leave
• A collaborative, dynamic working environment 

As well as a competitive package we’ll offer you a world of opportunity. We want to see your career fly! We’ll support your career progression by providing you with learning and development opportunities. That’s the beauty of being part of a global business, once you’re on board you never know where you career journey may take you! 

Join us and keep the world moving … click on the link below to apply

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We’ll offer you fantastic challenges and amazing opportunities. This is your chance to be part of an organisation that has proven itself to be at the cutting edge of our industry; and is committed to pushing the boundaries even further.  And with some of the best training on offer in the industry, who knows how far you can go?

A Great Place to work needs a Great Way of Working

Everyone is welcome to apply to GKN.  We believe that we can only achieve our ambitions through a coming together of diverse minds who enjoy collaborating in an inspirational environment. Through our commitment to diversity, inclusion and belonging and by living our five powerful principles we’ve created a culture where everyone feels welcome to contribute.  It’s a culture that won us ‘The Best Workplace Culture Award’.  By embracing and celebrating what makes us unique we encourage everyone to bring their full self to work.

We’re also committed to providing an accessible recruitment process, so if you require reasonable adjustments at any stage during our recruitment process please get in touch and let us know.

We are the place where human dreams, plus human endeavour, shape the future of aerospace innovation and technology.​
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