Working Student – Flight Software Engineering (PX4 / Autopilot)
Primary stack
Nice to have's
Job description
About the Position
Working Student – Flight Software Engineering (PX4 / Autopilot)
Germany
About Us
STARK is a European defence technology company building the next generation of unmanned systems. We design, develop, and manufacture software-defined, mass-scalable, and cost-effective platforms that give NATO operators a decisive edge in highly contested environments. We are focused on delivering deployable, high-performance capability - not future promises. In a time of rising threats, our work strengthens the technological edge of NATO Allies and their Partners.
About the Team
You will join our hardware engineering team, working closely with engineers across propulsion, power systems, testing, and aircraft development to turn measured data into better-performing unmanned systems.
Your Mission
Your mission is to work hands-on with the parts of the aircraft that turn stored energy into flight: the motors, the batteries, and the propulsion and power components that decide how far, how fast, and how long our platforms fly. You support the hardware team from bench characterisation through data analysis in MATLAB and Python.
You aren't just swapping components on a bench; you are helping generate the measured evidence that decides what actually flies - and learning how unmanned hardware is designed, tested, and pushed to its limits.
Responsibilities
- Support characterisation and bench testing of motors, propellers, batteries, and power components for our UAS platforms.
- Help set up test rigs and instrumentation, and capture clean, repeatable measurement data.
- Assist with component selection and trade-offs by turning test data into clear comparisons.
- Reduce and analyse test data in MATLAB and Python - efficiency, thrust, endurance, thermal, and discharge behaviour.
- Visualise results so the engineering team can make decisions from them quickly.
- Keep test setups, measurements, and findings documented and traceable.
Qualifications
- Currently enrolled in a Bachelor's or Master's in Electrical, Mechanical, Aerospace, or a comparable engineering field.
- Working knowledge of MATLAB and Python for data analysis.
- Interest in and some exposure to UAS, electric propulsion (motors / ESCs), or battery / power systems.
- Must be a citizen of a NATO member state (due to export control and security regulations).
- Practical, hands-on mindset - comfortable at the bench and with a multimeter as much as in a script.
- Good written and verbal communication skills in English; German is a plus.
- Hands-on: You like building, measuring, and finding out what really happens.
- Rigorous: You trust clean measurements over assumptions.
- Curious: You want to understand why a component behaves the way it does.
Nice to Have
- Experience with test benches, DAQ, or measurement instrumentation.
- Familiarity with battery testing, thermal behaviour, or motor/propeller characterisation.
- Personal projects with drones, RC aircraft, batteries, or robotics.
Apply for this Job
Interested in building your career at STARK? Get future opportunities sent straight to your email.
© STARK. This job description was sourced from the employer's public career page. TheJob is not the employer — we index the posting and route candidates to the source. All content rights and hiring decisions belong to the employer.
defence
STARK Defense is a young, fast-growing defense-tech company operating in one of the most sensitive and security-critical industries. With our cutting-edge systems and technology, we support national and European defense capabilities. In this highly regulated environment, a reliable, secure, and high-performing IT infrastructure is critical to our daily operations.