You could be designing the aeronautical systems for an unmanned reconnaissance aircraft, testing submarine sonar, developing next-generation solar power batteries or working on anti-gravity suits for jet pilots.

Defence engineering spans a multitude of specialisms, from aeronautical and mechanical through to electrical and systems engineering. In a field that covers military as well as civil technology, graduates often work at the cutting edge.

The field is expanding despite the current gloom in the jobs market. QinetiQ, a defence technology and security group with subsidiaries in America and Australia, plans to take on 170 graduates next year. Frazer Nash Consultancy, a systems and engineering technology business that is part of the Babcock Group, is taking on 40 to 50 graduates — a significant intake in relation to its 400-strong workforce.

The Ministry of Defence’s civilian Defence Engineering and Science Group, is taking on 200 graduates, many sponsored through university under the Defence Technical Undergraduate Scheme. DESG graduate trainees will be designing, procuring and testing aircraft, warships and equipment for the armed forces.

Engineering graduates can either specialise in their area of technical expertise or they can move into management. Chris Edwards, defence director at Frazer Nash, says: “Many of our engineers develop careers as project managers delivering defence or civil projects for the MoD or Airbus. Others manage teams of researchers. We are a very projectfocused organisation and we have hundreds of projects on the go at any one time.”

Frazer Nash has research facilities in Dorking, Glasgow, Bristol, Burton upon Trent, Darlington and Plymouth. The locations are often linked to important contracts — Burton upon Trent has links with Rolls-Royce in Derby, Bristol with Airbus and Plymouth with the Royal Navy.

Edwards says: “We have just completed a project looking at passive CO2 screening in submarines — making the air breathable in the event of an air filtration systems failure.”

At QinetiQ, in Farnborough, Justin Harwood, 27, an aeronautical engineer, is working with a team developing the new Zephyr unmanned reconnaissance aircraft.

Zephyr has an 18m wingspan, is built of carbon fibre and is solar powered so that it can stay airborne for weeks at a time. “I’m helping to develop new nano-insulation that is designed to be lighter and more effective than conventional materials,” Harwood says.

Continuous professional development is vital to prepare young engineers for management. QinetiQ, for example, is involved in a joint venture with Bath University School of Management to run a management training programme.

Nowadays defence contractors have diversified into civilian applications for technology. QinetiQ divides its business roughly into three parts — defence, energy and environment, and security. Flagship projects include a scanning device with an advanced imaging system that can fast-track passengers through airport security. The group is also investigating the possibility of harnessing Zephyr’s solar power cells for civilian renewable energy applications.

Alice Porter, 29, a biomedical science graduate from the University of the West of England, works at QinetiQ in Farnborough and is testing a new G-suit for Eurofighter pilots. She tested the padded suit, which enables the cardiovascular system to continue pumping blood around the body, in a centrifuge machine similar to one used for the astronaut training featured in the James Bond film Moonraker.

“The centrifuge replicates a jet fighter in a tight turn. I was pulling more G (gravitational force) than an astronaut,” she says.

Porter has her sights set on a senior management role and is studying for an MBA at Henley Management College.

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