Manager, RF Test Engineering

Worker Type

Regular

Job Description

Summary

AeroVironment (AV) is seeking an experienced RF Test Engineering Manager to lead RF test engineering activities supporting the development, integration, verification, and production of advanced RF and electronic systems. This position will provide technical leadership and personnel management for a geographically distributed team of RF test engineers and technicians located in Albuquerque, NM, and Germantown, MD. The team will be responsible for developing and executing test strategies, designing automated test solutions, troubleshooting complex systems, and ensuring product performance and compliance with technical requirements.

The RF Test Engineering Manager will work closely with multidisciplinary engineering teams across both locations to establish effective test methodologies, develop and maintain test infrastructure, and drive improvements in test efficiency, repeatability, and quality. The role spans the product development lifecycle, from early prototypes and engineering characterization through formal verification, qualification, transition to production, and ongoing production support.

The ideal candidate combines a strong technical foundation in RF and microwave engineering with hands-on experience in RF test equipment, automated test systems, and laboratory operations. This individual must also be an effective leader capable of mentoring engineers, coordinating resources across multiple programs and locations, fostering collaboration between sites, and establishing standardized test engineering practices.

Position Responsibilities

• Lead, manage, and develop a geographically distributed team of RF test engineers and technicians across Albuquerque, NM, and Germantown, MD, including personnel assignments, technical mentorship, performance management, professional development, recruiting, and fostering a cohesive team culture across both locations.
• Provide technical leadership for RF test engineering activities across multiple programs and sites, including development of test strategies, test plans, procedures, methodologies, and acceptance criteria for RF components, subsystems, and integrated systems.
• Oversee the design, development, integration, and maintenance of automated RF test systems, including hardware test fixtures, instrumentation, software, and data acquisition and analysis tools to improve test efficiency, repeatability, and reliability.
• Direct RF characterization, integration, troubleshooting, verification, and qualification activities for complex RF and microwave systems, including receivers, transmitters, phased arrays, antennas, frequency conversion systems, and associated digital and embedded electronics.
• Collaborate with systems engineering, RF design, electrical engineering, FPGA, software, mechanical engineering, manufacturing, and quality teams across both locations to ensure comprehensive test coverage, requirements traceability, effective defect resolution, and successful product development.
• Coordinate RF laboratory operations and test infrastructure across both sites, including equipment selection, procurement, calibration, maintenance, configuration, utilization, safety, and organization, while identifying opportunities to share resources, standardize capabilities, and support current and future programs.
• Support engineering design reviews, test readiness reviews, verification activities, and technical investigations by evaluating test results, identifying performance limitations, resolving technical issues, and communicating findings and recommendations to program leadership.
• Develop and implement standardized test engineering processes, documentation practices, automation frameworks, and continuous improvement initiatives across both sites to improve technical quality, consistency, throughput, and efficiency.
• Support program planning and execution by developing test engineering estimates, schedules, resource plans, equipment budgets, and technical risk assessments, while balancing personnel and laboratory resources across locations and monitoring progress against program commitments.
• Lead test engineering activities supporting transition to production, including production test strategy, acceptance test development, test equipment deployment, manufacturing troubleshooting, yield improvement, and coordination with manufacturing and quality personnel.

Basic Qualifications (Required Skills & Desired Experience)

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, RF Engineering, or a closely related technical discipline, with typically 8+ years of relevant engineering experience, including demonstrated technical leadership or personnel management responsibilities.
• Strong knowledge of RF and microwave engineering principles, including signal generation and analysis, gain, noise figure, sensitivity, linearity, phase noise, impedance matching, S-parameters, modulation, and RF system performance characterization.
• Demonstrated hands-on experience using RF test equipment such as vector network analyzers, spectrum analyzers, signal generators, vector signal analyzers, oscilloscopes, power meters, noise figure analyzers, and associated laboratory instrumentation.
• Experience developing and executing RF test plans, procedures, and automated test solutions, including proficiency with test automation and data analysis tools such as Python, MATLAB, LabVIEW, or similar environments.
• Experience with RF system integration, troubleshooting, verification, and validation, including the ability to interpret schematics, block diagrams, interface specifications, requirements, and test results to diagnose complex technical problems.
• Demonstrated ability to lead technical teams, coordinate engineering resources, establish priorities, mentor personnel, and communicate effectively with engineering disciplines, program management, and organizational leadership, including personnel working across multiple locations.
• Experience with engineering development processes, configuration management, test documentation, requirements-based verification, and structured technical reviews throughout the product development lifecycle.

Other Qualifications & Desired Competencies

• Master's degree in Electrical Engineering, RF Engineering, or a related technical discipline, and prior experience directly managing RF test engineering personnel in a multidisciplinary product development organization.
• Experience leading geographically distributed engineering teams, including establishing effective communication practices, maintaining consistent technical standards, coordinating resources, and supporting employee engagement and development across multiple sites.
• Experience testing advanced RF systems such as phased-array antennas, beamforming receivers, radar, electronic warfare systems, telemetry systems, software-defined radios, or complex wireless communications equipment.
• Experience with high-speed digital interfaces, FPGA-based systems, embedded software, RFSoCs, and digital signal processing, particularly as they relate to RF system integration and testing.
• Experience developing scalable automated test architectures, hardware-in-the-loop test systems, production test equipment, and reusable software frameworks for instrumentation control, data collection, analysis, and reporting.
• Familiarity with environmental and electromagnetic compatibility testing, including MIL-STD-461, MIL-STD-810, DO-160, or similar military and industry qualification standards.
• Experience supporting defense or aerospace programs, including formal verification and qualification testing, technical data packages, manufacturing transition, and customer-facing technical reviews.
• Experience managing RF laboratory facilities, equipment budgets, calibration programs, laboratory safety, test asset configuration, and capital equipment planning.
• An active (or active within the last 2 years) Secret or higher level of DoD security clearance is highly desired but not required. Must be willing and able to obtain and maintain a security clearance if needed.

Physical Demands

• Ability to work in an office and manufacturing environment (Constant)
• Required to sit and stand for long periods; talk, hear, and use hands and fingers to operate a computer and telephone keyboard (Frequent)

Clearance Level

No Clearance

The salary range for this role is:

$106,500 - $181,000

AeroVironment considers several factors when extending an offer, including but not limited to, the location, the role and associated responsibilities, a candidate’s work experience, education/training, and key skills.

ITAR Requirement:

This position requires access to information that is subject to compliance with the International Traffic Arms Regulations (“ITAR”) and/or the Export Administration Regulations (“EAR”). In order to comply with the requirements of the ITAR and/or the EAR, applicants must qualify as a U.S. person under the ITAR and the EAR, or a person to be approved for an export license by the governing agency whose technology comes under its jurisdiction. Please understand that any job offer that requires approval of an export license will be conditional on AeroVironment’s determination that it will be able to obtain an export license in a time frame consistent with AeroVironment’s business requirements. A “U.S. person” according to the ITAR definition is a U.S. citizen, U.S. lawful permanent resident (green card holder), or protected individual such as a refugee or asylee. See 22 CFR § 120.15. Some positions will require current U.S. Citizenship due to contract requirements.

Benefits: AV offers an excellent benefits package including medical, dental vision, 401K with company matching, a 9/80 work schedule and a paid holiday shutdown. For more information about our company benefit offerings please visit: http://www.avinc.com/myavbenefits.

We also encourage you to review our company website at http://www.avinc.com to learn more about us.

Principals only need apply. NO agencies please.

About AV:

AV isn’t for everyone. We hire the curious, the relentless, the mission-obsessed. The best of the best.

We don’t just build defense technology—we redefine what’s possible. As the premier autonomous systems company in the U.S., AV delivers breakthrough capabilities across air, land, sea, space, and cyber. From AI-powered drones and loitering munitions to integrated autonomy and space resilience, our technologies shape the future of warfare and protect those who serve.

Founded by legendary innovator Dr. Paul MacCready, AV has spent over 50 years pushing the boundaries of what unmanned systems can do. Our heritage includes seven platforms in the Smithsonian—but we’re not building history, we’re building what’s next.

If you're ready to build technology that matters—with speed, scale, and purpose—there’s no better place to do it than AV.

We are proud to be an EEO/AA Equal Opportunity Employer, including disability/veterans. AeroVironment, Inc. is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) employer and welcomes all qualified applicants. Qualified applicants will receive fair and impartial consideration without regard to race, sex, color, religion, national origin, age, disability, protected veteran status, genetic data, sexual orientation, gender identity or other legally protected status.

ITAR

U.S. Citizenship required. Must be willing to work on government contracts and have the ability to obtain a security clearance.