Staff ECS Thermal Analysis Engineer

Staff ECS Thermal Analysis Engineer

Archer is an aerospace company based in San Jose, California building an all-electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft with a mission to advance the benefits of sustainable air mobility. We are designing, manufacturing, and operating an all-electric aircraft that can carry four passengers while producing minimal noise.

Our sights are set high and our problems are hard, and we believe that diversity in the workplace is what makes us smarter, drives better insights, and will ultimately lift us all to success. We are dedicated to cultivating an equitable and inclusive environment that embraces our differences, and supports and celebrates all of our team members.

What You'll Do:

We are seeking a Staff ECS Thermal and Flow Analysis Engineer to join our Thermal Management team. This hands-on role will primarily focus on the design, analysis, and optimization of the Environmental Control System (ECS) and the overall fuselage ensuring cabin comfort, avionics cooling, and safe operation across all flight conditions. You will work closely with the ECS team, system architects, and test engineers to develop system-level and component-level flow and thermal models that inform design decisions and support verification, validation, and certification activities.

Responsibilities:

• Perform detailed 1D and 3D flow and thermal analyses for ECS and other ventilation systems for the cabin, electronic bays and the rest of fuselage
• Support ECS architecture definition including air distribution, heat exchanger sizing, and control strategies.
• Develop steady-state and transient thermal/fluid models using tools such as Ansys Fluent, Start CCM+, Matlab, and similar.
• Analyze pressure drops, mass flow distributions, and cabin air mixing under various flight and ground conditions.
• Evaluate heat loads from avionics, electronics, and cabin occupants to ensure temperature and humidity control targets are met.
• Evaluate solar loading on the structure and through transparencies
• Correlate analytical models with test data from component and system-level validation campaigns.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams (structures, avionics, powertrain, flight sciences) to ensure system integration and compliance with safety and environmental requirements (e.g., DO-160).
• Contribute to the development of requirements, test plans, and verification documentation for certification.

Required Qualifications:

• M.S. or Ph.D. in Mechanical or Aerospace Engineering (or related field).
• 5+ years of experience in thermal and flow analysis
• Strong proficiency in thermal/fluid modeling tools (Thermal Desktop, SINDA/Fluint, Flownex, GT-Suite, or CFD codes).
• Solid understanding of thermodynamics, fluid dynamics, and heat transfer.
• Experience with CFD tools such as ANSYS Fluent, Star-CCM+, or OpenFOAM for detailed flow assessments.
• Familiarity with DO-160 and environmental qualification standards for aircraft systems.
• Strong data analysis and scripting skills (Python or MATLAB preferred).
• Excellent communication and documentation skills.
• Preferred Qualifications:
• Experience with ECS and thermal management of aerospace systems
• Hands-on experience with system integration or testing (ECS pack, vapor cycle system, ram-air systems).
• Experience with certification and compliance documentation