GNC Engineer H/F

About Alta Ares

Alta Ares is a deeptech startup founded in 2024, building real-time AI for defense operations - ISR, C-UAS, and autonomous systems. Our clients are NATO-aligned militaries and defence institutions, with regular deployments during live exercises and operational demonstrations. We raised €2M seed in May 2025, 50M in June 2026, and are expanding fast.

Our product suite includes:

Real-time AI ISR module deployable on drones and tactical platforms

Counter-UAS solution enabling autonomous drone takeover in GNSS-denied environments

Full-stack MLOps platform for training & deploying military-grade AI models

Data fusion and trajectory prediction

The GNC team is growing across Paris and Kyiv. As one of our early GNC engineers, you'll help shape the architecture of our autonomous systems from the earliest design studies through flight testing and final acceptance. We work in short iterations, with a strong culture of experimentation and field validation. Our engineers regularly work alongside operators and end users, ensuring that every algorithm is designed for real operational conditions: not just simulation.

Role & Mission

As a GNC Engineer, you will develop the guidance, navigation, and control capabilities that enable our autonomous platforms to operate reliably in challenging environments. You'll contribute across the entire development lifecycle - from system architecture and flight modelling to live flight testing and operational validation.

We are looking for engineers who enjoy taking ownership of their work, iterating quickly, and seeing their algorithms perform outside the lab.

Guidance, Navigation & Control

Design, develop, and improve guidance, navigation, and control algorithms for autonomous aerial systems.

Develop and maintain flight dynamics and vehicle models.

Contribute to system architecture, control strategies, and performance trade-offs from the earliest design phases.

Integrate and tune GNC software on target platforms.

Participate in flight-test campaigns and operational demonstrations.

Analyze flight data, investigate anomalies, and continuously improve system performance.

Work closely with software, AI, systems engineers, test pilots, and operators to validate solutions in real operational conditions.

Requirements

Minimum 3 years of professional experience in Guidance, Navigation & Control, flight control, robotics, or autonomous systems.

2–3 years of experience in flight modelling and dynamic simulation.

Strong experience with:

MATLAB & Simulink

Gazebo

Unreal Engine

Experience with one or more of:

Verification & Validation (V&V)

Software-in-the-Loop (SIL)

Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL)

Flight-test or system validation campaigns

Motivation to participate in field testing and work directly on deployed systems.

Strong analytical skills, engineering rigor, and ability to work autonomously in a fast-paced environment.

Nice to Have

Embedded software development experience.

Programming skills in C++ and Python.

Experience with UAVs, robotics, or autonomous systems.

Familiarity with ROS/ROS2 or real-time embedded systems.

Experience with state estimation, sensor fusion, or navigation algorithms.