Flight Controls Systems Engineer Intern (Summer 2026) (Onsite)

Date Posted:

2026-02-19

Country:

United States of America

Location:

US-IA-CEDAR RAPIDS-193 ~ 1120 Collins Rd NE ~ BLDG193

Position Role Type:

Onsite

U.S. Citizen, U.S. Person, or Immigration Status Requirements:

This job requires a U.S. Person. A U.S. Person is a lawful permanent resident as defined in 8 U.S.C. 1101(a)(20) or who is a protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3). U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, U.S. permanent residents, or individuals granted refugee or asylee status in the U.S. are considered U.S. persons. For a complete definition of “U.S. Person” go here: https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-22/chapter-I/subchapter-M/part-120/subpart-C/section-120.62

Security Clearance Type:

None/Not Required

Security Clearance Status:

Not Required

Collins Aerospace’s AFCS products have been flying and landing airplanes for over 30 years. Our customer base is a who's who of aircraft manufacturers and they demand systems which satisfy the highest levels of criticality at the lowest cost possible. This dichotomy provides a continuous challenge to our engineering team to employ new technology and methodologies in the development of our complex systems.   

We are looking for a Systems Engineering Intern to join our team in Cedar Rapids, IA and contribute to the development of flight control products for the next generation of business, regional, military, and air-transport fixed and rotary wing platforms. Typical FCS functions include, but aren’t limited to flight guidance, autothrottle, autopilot, maintenance, and autoland systems. This position represents a great opportunity to apply your systems engineering skills to real-time embedded systems with critical safety requirements. 

What You Will Do:

• Define and review system requirements for flight control systems including functional requirements and interface requirements 

• Develop control algorithms and signal processing for flight control systems. This includes flight guidance, autothrottle, and attitude control systems 

• Develop models and simulation tools for various types of closed loop systems to assess performance 

• Conduct system verification and validation of the control algorithms, flight control system functional requirements and interface requirements. 

• Support product certification at all levels by performing ARP4754A/B compliant system development and DO-178B/C compliant software development. 

• Provide analysis support to the FCS flight test team and learn about the flight test process 

• Mentor with experienced systems and/or flight test engineers and learn about career opportunities in flight controls 

What you will Learn:

• Gain practical skills in areas like data analysis, system integration, test development, and verification processes

• Hands-on-Experience with a variety of system engineering artifacts

• Collaborate with a dynamic group of engineers from a variety of disciplines

• Real world engineering experience will complement your education

Qualifications You Must Have: 

• Requires a High School Diploma or equivalent and student must be pursuing a Bachelor’s or advanced degree in an applicable discipline

• U.S. Person (U.S. citizen, permanent resident, or granted refugee or asylee status) as defined here:  https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-22/chapter-I/subchapter-M/part-120/subpart-C/section-120.62 ​

Qualifications We Prefer:

• Previous experience with Matlab/Simulink 

• Knowledge of control systems theory  

• General knowledge of aviation and/or flight control systems. 

Learn More and Apply Now!

Collins Aerospace, a RTX company, is a leader in technologically advanced and intelligent solutions for the global aerospace and defense industry. Collins Aerospace has the capabilities, comprehensive portfolio and expertise to solve customers’ toughest challenges and to meet the demands of a rapidly evolving global market.

Our Avionics team advances flight deck solutions, airborne communications, vision systems, sensors and fire protection for commercial and military customers around the world. That means we’re helping people