Build and lead the Test & Evaluation organization that proves a new class of autonomous aircraft is safe, reliable, and mission-effective — from simulation and lab through ground test, flight test, and operational missions. Grex Defense builds autonomous systems for air dominance, the capability that keeps deterrence credible when it counts. The character of conflict is changing, with autonomy, mass, and software now deciding outcomes. The advantage goes to whoever can field new capability first, and Grex Defense exists to provide rapid capability solutions for hard defense problems. Grex Defense is seeking a Director of Test & Evaluation to build and lead the organization responsible for proving the performance, safety, reliability, and operational effectiveness of a new class of autonomous aircraft. This is a hands‑on leadership role in a fast-moving startup. You will serve as the company's senior technical authority for test planning, readiness, execution, and reporting, ensuring testing identifies risk early, informs critical decisions, and delivers capabilities safely, on schedule, and within budget. As an early member of the program team, you will establish the company's test engineering team, processes, and infrastructure while owning the strategy for maturing capabilities from simulation and laboratory testing through aircraft integration, ground test, flight test, and operationally representative missions. Within your first year, you will have established a capable T&E team, scalable processes, essential test infrastructure, and an integrated strategy aligned with program cost and schedule. Your organization will identify risk early, accelerate learning, and provide objective evidence that new autonomous capabilities are safe, reliable, mission-effective, and ready for customer operations. In your first 30 days Build and lead the company's T&E organization, including its people, processes, tools, infrastructure, and technical standards. Recruit, develop, and lead a multidisciplinary team of test engineers, flight‑test engineers, test conductors, and analysts. Develop an integrated T&E strategy spanning simulation, SIL, HIL, integration laboratories, ground test, flight test, and operational missions. Partner with government customers, stakeholders, test ranges, and airworthiness authorities to plan and execute test activities. In your first 60 days Translate customer needs and system requirements into executable test plans, success criteria, and traceable verification evidence. Establish and enforce readiness criteria, configuration control, safety‑of‑flight requirements, hazard mitigations, and go/no‑go processes. Develop the roadmap for test infrastructure, instrumentation, telemetry, simulation environments, data systems, and automated testing. Develop resource‑loaded test schedules and budgets that account for technical risk, aircraft availability, range access, and program dependencies. Establish scalable T&E practices aligned with applicable DoD developmental and operational test expectations. In your first 90 days Serve as the senior technical authority for test readiness, execution, risk recommendations, and progression between test phases. Coordinate test execution across engineering, autonomy, flight operations, safety, program leadership, suppliers, and external partners. Prepare for flight‑test campaigns for Group 5 autonomous aircraft, including envelope expansion, autonomy evaluation, payload integration, and threat‑representative operations. Establish the airworthiness certification basis and compliance approach using MIL‑HDBK‑516C, MIL‑STD‑882E, and other applicable aerospace standards. Support hardware and software integration, integration‑laboratory testing, and system‑level anomaly resolution.
Compensation: $175,000–$230,000, plus bonus and benefits.
What we look for:
Bachelor's degree in engineering, computer science, or a related technical discipline, and typically 15 or more years of relevant experience.
Demonstrated experience building or leading multidisciplinary test teams and establishing effective engineering processes.
Proven success developing and executing integrated test strategies for complex aerospace or defense systems.
Extensive experience with aircraft integration, ground testing, flight operations, test readiness, and post‑test analysis.
Experience with system‑level verification and validation across simulation, SIL, HIL, laboratory, ground, and flight‑test environments.
Demonstrated authority over test planning, readiness, execution, risk management, and test‑progression decisions.
Strong understanding of flight‑test safety, airworthiness, configuration management, hazard analysis, and mission assurance.
Ability to integrate technical scope, schedule, cost, resources, and risk while coordinating government, range, supplier, and engineering stakeholders.
Excellent technical judgment and communication skills, willingness to travel, U.S. citizenship, and the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government security clearance.
