Lead Engineer – Southwest Airlines

Salary: $20-30 per hour. Location: Raleigh, USA (Hybrid: required onsite presence at Dallas, TX campus 3 days per week).

U.S. citizenship or current authorization to work in the U.S. required. No visa sponsorship.

Responsibilities

• Lead repair, modification, and troubleshooting of specialty aircraft, engines, and components of Southwest's all‐Boeing fleet.
• Collaborate with internal Technical Operations groups and outside vendors, manufacturers, and partners to control damage tolerance requirements, satisfy regulatory requirements, and maintain safety as the top priority.
• Develop and support in‐service maintenance and change implementation in Southwest's maintenance software.
• Investigate and resolve escalated reliability issues through studies, root‐cause analysis, and corrective action plans.
• Act as subject‐matter expert for assigned regions of responsibility and provide information and guidance to team members.
• Mentor and lead the team, including training new employees.
• Manage complex, diverse projects to ensure delivery and timeline compliance (e.g., scheduling, technical risk oversight, deliverable monitoring).
• Oversee risk checks and lead the improvement and implementation of hazard mitigation applications.
• Facilitate decision making and provide procedural and technical guidance to others.
• Perform additional duties as assigned by leadership.
• Evaluate and approve engineering items such as orders, drawings, reports, and part changes.

Qualifications

• Substantial knowledge of part25 requirements and part121 operations.
• Professional experience in applying engineering technology principles to the design and manufacture of airline support services.
• Knowledge of design techniques and principles used in producing precision technical plans, drawings, and models.
• Strong analytical skills to identify strengths, weaknesses, and evaluate solutions.
• Ability to synthesize data, convert raw data into insights, and visualize results using data‐analysis packages.
• Leadership skills and ability to manage and deliver high‐quality results within deadlines.
• Excellent written and verbal communication in English.
• Ability to work well in a team, under pressure, and within scheduled timelines.
• Preferred: knowledge of Maintenix/Mxi or similar maintenance systems.
• High school diploma or GED required; professional degree is an advantage.

Benefits

• Duty‐free eligible flight open seat coverage for employees and eligible dependents.
• 9.3% 401(k) employer match.
• Profit‐sharing contribution option.
• Additional benefits offered at Southwest Airlines.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Southwest Airlines is an equal‐opportunity employer. We look for diversity and welcome candidates with varied experiences and backgrounds.