Lead Flight Dynamics Engineer

About Stratoware

Stratoware Private Limited is a Mumbai-based simulation software startup. We've generated $120k+ in revenue building flight simulation products in partnership with Microsoft, and we're now scaling on two fronts. The first is a growing portfolio of Microsoft Flight Simulator (MSFS) consumer aircraft addons. The second, under an LOI with an Indian defense hardware partner, is a next-generation XR flight simulator for the Indian defense and commercial aviation sectors.

We're a small team that ships real products and pays attention to craft. If you care about how an aircraft actually behaves in the air, and you want to be the person who decides that, keep reading.

The Role: Lead Flight Dynamics Engineer

This is a rare role and we know it. We're looking for someone who sits at the intersection of aerospace engineering and software, the kind of person who can derive a stability derivative on a whiteboard in the morning and ship a WASM gauge in the afternoon. If you're a flight sim modder with an aerospace degree, or an aerospace engineer who's been quietly building things in C++ on the weekends, this role is built for you.

You'll own the physics and systems simulation across our products. For the first two years, that means leading flight model and cockpit systems development for our MSFS aircraft addons, where every customer is a discerning home pilot who will notice if the stall behavior is wrong. In parallel, you'll architect the simulation backbone of our XR defense simulator. The MSFS work is your proving ground. The defense product is what you'll build a team around.

We know this skill set is uncommon in India. Onboarding will be slow and forgiving. We'd rather invest six months in the right engineer than rush the wrong one.

What you'll do

• Own the flight model end to end, including 6DOF equations of motion, aerodynamic coefficients, control surface modeling, propulsion, and ground handling. For MSFS this means deep work with the SDK, custom flight model overrides, and external physics where needed. For UE5 it means architecting the simulation engine with our software team.
• Build cockpit systems simulation, including electrical, hydraulic, fuel, autopilot logic, FMS behavior, and failure modeling. This is software work as much as it is engineering work.
• Write production C++ and WASM for MSFS, and C++ and Blueprints for UE5. You'll also touch JS, XML, HTML, and CSS for cockpit display logic and gauges.
• Collaborate with our 3D artist, software engineers, and defense hardware partner so the physics matches the cockpit and the cockpit matches the airframe.
• Set the technical bar for everything that flies in our products. As we scale revenue and convert the defense LOI, you'll build and lead the simulation team underneath you.

What we're looking for

• A degree in aerospace, aeronautical, or mechanical engineering. Aerodynamics is a hard requirement, not something we can teach on the job.
• 2-5 years of relevant experience. This can be professional, or a serious side practice in flight simulation, or a mix. We will look at what you've actually built more than where you've worked.
• Strong C++. Working knowledge of WASM, JS, XML, HTML, CSS, and Blueprints, or the clear ability to pick them up quickly.
• A genuine interest in aircraft systems and how they fail. If you can explain why an autopilot kicks off in turbulence or how a hydraulic failure cascades through control surfaces, you're our person.
• Demonstrated leadership instincts: mentoring juniors, owning end-to-end deliverables, or running a workstream inside a larger team. Formal "lead" titles are not required.
• Based in Mumbai or willing to relocate. The role is hybrid with regular on-site presence required.

Pilot experience is not required. Many of the best flight model engineers have never flown a real aircraft, and many great pilots have no idea how a simulator is built. We care that you can model an airplane accurately, not that you can fly one.

Compensation

• ₹12 LPA fixed.
• The honest tradeoff: cash is mid-market for the role, and equity is where the upside is. If you're optimizing purely for cash, this isn't the right role. If you want ownership in something you helped build, it might be.

Why Stratoware

• Real revenue, real product. We're not pre-revenue and we're not VC-burning. The MSFS line ships and sells.
• Genuine ownership. You're a foundational hire at a small company. The way every aircraft we build flies is your call.
• A serious B2B trajectory. The defense LOI is real. So is the iDEX pathway. If we convert, you're the engineering lead on a national-security product.
• Atmanirbhar Bharat. Indigenous Indian flight simulation, built in India.

To apply, send a CV, a link to anything you've built (mods, projects, papers, code), and a short note on a flight model or system you've always wanted to simulate properly and why.

Pay: Up to ₹1,500,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Fle