Chief Engineer in Farnborough

At AALTO, we take pride in building and offering an exceptional work environment that values your well-being and rewards your dedication. We believe in recognising your hard work and commitment, which is why we provide a fantastic bonus scheme that rewards your contributions. Additionally, we understand the importance of financial security and support your future with a competitive pension plan. When you join us, you become part of a workplace that not only encourages your professional growth but also cares about your personal fulfilment and financial stability.

AALTO is a global leader in Stratospace. Based in Farnborough, AALTO is an Airbus subsidiary that manufactures, operates, and delivers services with its solar-powered, stratospheric platform: Zephyr. Zephyr’s persistence enables continuous flight for months at a time. Its current flight-time record is over 67 days in the stratosphere. From above 60,000+ft, or 20km above ground, AALTO can deliver several applications including direct-to-device connectivity and high-resolution Earth observation. AALTO operates in a new operational layer between most of air traffic and low-Earth orbit, Stratospace. This is where high-altitude platforms led by Zephyr deliver services to commercial and government partners. We can help monitor environments, observe borders, track natural disasters and connect unconnected communities. Join us as we create a new domain of aerospace: Stratospace. You’ll be part of a highly-skilled, innovative and passionate group of people – Team AALTO. Together, we can Unlock Stratospace.

Job Purpose

We are seeking an experienced Chief Engineer to lead our engineering operations, drive technical strategy, and ensure safe, reliable, and efficient performance across our assets. The successful candidate will manage multidisciplinary engineering teams, oversee maintenance and project delivery, and partner with senior leadership to align engineering initiatives with business objectives.

Primary responsibilities

• Provide strategic direction and technical leadership for all engineering functions, including mechanical, electrical, instrumentation, and automation.
• Develop and implement engineering policies, standards and best practices to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements and industry standards.
• Lead, mentor and manage a team of engineers and technicians; foster a culture of safety, continuous improvement and professional development.
• Oversee asset integrity, reliability-centred maintenance programmes and condition monitoring to maximise uptime and lifespan of equipment.
• Plan, manage and deliver capital projects and technical modifications, ensuring projects are completed on time, within budget and to specification.
• Collaborate with operations, safety, procurement and commercial teams to support production targets and cost optimisation.
• Manage technical risk assessments, root cause investigations and implementation of corrective actions following incidents or failures.
• Drive digital transformation initiatives, including deployment of predictive maintenance tools, data analytics and asset management systems.
• Accountable for engineering budgets, resource planning and contractor management.
• Set key performance indicators (KPIs) for asset reliability, maintenance costs and safety, and report performance to executive leadership.
• Develop long-term engineering strategies, lifecycle plans and capital expenditure (CAPEX) proposals.

Skills and qualifications

• Degree in Engineering (mechanical, electrical, or related discipline) or equivalent professional qualification.
• Proven experience in a senior engineering leadership role, ideally as Chief Engineer, Head of Engineering or similar in heavy industry, manufacturing, maritime or utilities.
• Extensive knowledge of maintenance strategies, asset management, reliability engineering and continuous improvement methodologies (e.g. RCM, TPM, Lean, Six Sigma).
• Strong project management skills with experience delivering capital projects and technical upgrades.
• Excellent knowledge of health, safety and environmental regulations and best practice.
• Demonstrable experience with digital tools for asset performance management, CMMS/EAM systems and condition monitoring technologies.
• Proven leadership, people management and communication skills with the ability to influence senior stakeholders.
• Professional registration (Chartered Engineer or equivalent) preferred but not essential.

What we offer

• Competitive salary and performance-related bonus.
• Comprehensive pension scheme and private healthcare.
• Holiday entitlement plus public bank holidays and flexible working options where applicable.
• Professional development, training and support for chartership or industry certifications.
• Opportunity to lead transformative engineering programmes and work with cutting-edge technologies.