Principal Engineer - Aero Gas Turbine

Job Description Summary

The Principal Engineer - Aero Gas Turbine provides technical leadership for aeroderivative gas turbine overhaul, repair, product support, and project execution activities. This role is responsible for driving high-quality technical outcomes across the engine lifecycle, including scope definition, pre-induction planning, teardown and inspection support, hardware disposition, re-assembly support, test troubleshooting, product configuration, and final technical documentation.
This position may be based in Houston, Texas, supporting the Houston JPort Level 4 Service Shop, or in Cincinnati, Ohio, supporting global engineering projects such as test support, scope of work definition, and product configuration. In both cases, the Lead Engineer acts as a key technical focal point across cross-functional teams and helps ensure safe, compliant, efficient, and customer-focused execution.
This is a high-impact role for an experienced engineer who combines strong aero gas turbine knowledge with practical problem-solving ability, sound technical judgment, and the leadership skills needed to operate effectively in complex service and overhaul environments.

Job Description

Key Responsibilities

• Provide technical leadership for assigned aeroderivative gas turbine engines, modules, and components across overhaul, repair, and engineering project activities.
• Lead technical scope definition for shop visits, repairs, and project execution based on engine history, inspection findings, operational events, and customer requirements.
• Support pre-induction planning by reviewing technical records, identifying risks, and ensuring readiness of routers, instructions, tooling, fixtures, and inspection requirements.
• Provide hands-on engineering support during teardown and incoming inspection, helping evaluate hardware condition and resolve technical questions from operations and inspection teams.
• Disposition hardware for reuse, repair, replacement, or scrap in accordance with serviceability limits, drawings, specifications, and approved technical requirements.
• Defining technically required extra work resulting from teardown findings, damage assessment, and configuration needs.
• Support re-assembly activities by resolving technical issues related to fit-up, clearances, stack-ups, alignment, torque requirements, and configuration control.
• Provide technical support for engine and module testing, including review of acceptance data and troubleshooting of performance, vibration, temperature, pressure, or controls-related anomalies.
• Support product configuration management by ensuring approved changes, repairs, service bulletins, and building standards are properly incorporated and documented.
• Prepare and review technical reports, visual inspection summaries, final engine documentation, and other controlled engineering outputs.
• Partner with quality, sourcing, repair vendors, product engineering, test teams, and customer-facing teams to resolve issues and drive execution excellence.
• Lead or support root cause investigations and corrective actions for recurring defects, technical escapes, shop issues, or test anomalies.
• Contribute to continuous improvement through procedure updates, standard work enhancement, repair capability development, and process improvement initiatives.
• The role is primarily focused on supporting global engineering projects, with emphasis on.
• test support
• scope of work definition
• product configuration
• cross-site technical coordination
• broader project and product engineering support

• Bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Materials Engineering, Manufacturing Engineering, or a related technical discipline.
• Minimum 10 years of engineering experience in gas turbines, aero engines, aeroderivative engines, rotating equipment, MRO, overhaul, repair, or product support engineering.

• Experience with LM2500, LM6000, LM9000, or related aeroderivative gas turbine products.
• Familiarity with related aero engine platforms such as CF6 and GE90.
• Knowledge of materials and repair engineering, including high-temperature alloys, coatings, weld repair, brazing, heat treatment basics, and NDT/NDE methods.
• Strong understanding of configuration control, traceability, and technical documentation discipline.
• Experience working with repair vendors, customers, and global cross-functional teams.
• Ability to read and interpret engineering drawings, repair specifications, manuals, service bulletins, and technical instructions.
• Demonstrated problem-solving skills, including root cause analysis and structured technical issue resolution.
• Strong interpersonal, communication, and leadership skills.
• Strong ownership mindset and ability to lead through influence across functions.
• Ability to balance technical rigor, quality, and turnaround commitments.
• Passion for developing sustainable processes as they relate to shop floor ops.