Principal Test Engineer

Job Description:

Your impact 

Are you ready to shape the future of test automation and assurance on the UK’s most critical systems? At Leonardo, our Principal Test Engineers are recognised as subject matter experts, designing frameworks, integrating automated testing into CI/CD pipelines, and ensuring solutions are validated to the highest standards. 

 
Your work at Leonardo UK will see you take the lead in solving customer problems in an agile, innovative and team-centric manner. The role may involve a blended hybrid working model, with a mixture of working from home and working on site at one of our Leonardo offices to ensure close collaboration with the wider team and with our customers. 

What you will do as a Principal Test Engineer 

• Act as the technical authority for test automation, frameworks, and tooling. 

• Design and implement automated test solutions across unit, integration, system, and acceptance levels. 

• Integrate automated tests into CI/CD pipelines and DevSecOps environments. 

• Develop and maintain test strategies, automation scripts, and supporting documentation. 

• Mentor and coach engineers in automation practices, raising capability across the community. 

• Lead technical reviews of test approaches, ensuring secure-by-design and compliance principles are embedded. 

• Conduct feasibility studies and tool evaluations to guide test technology choices. 

• Collaborate with stakeholders to ensure test strategies meet both functional and non-functional requirements. 

What you’ll bring 

• Deep technical expertise in test automation and frameworks. 

• Ability to act as technical authority while remaining hands-on. 

• Strong problem-solving and innovation skills. 

Core areas (must have): 

• Experience designing and maintaining automated test frameworks (e.g. Selenium, JUnit, PyTest, Robot Framework) 

• Proficiency with scripting/programming languages for test automation (Python, Bash, PowerShell, Java) 

• Experience integrating automated tests with CI/CD pipelines (GitLab CI, Jenkins, Azure DevOps) 

• Knowledge of performance, load, or security testing tools (e.g. JMeter, LoadRunner, OWASP ZAP) 

• Familiarity with secure working practices and assurance standards 

Desirable: 

• Industry certifications in testing (ISTQB Advanced, Certified Test Automation Engineer) 

• Exposure to containerised and cloud-based testing environments (Docker, Kubernetes, AWS, Azure) 

• Experience with service virtualisation and test data management tools 

• Contributions to test strategy, standards, or professional communities 

• Familiarity with model-based testing or AI/ML approaches to test generation 

Security Clearance 

This role is subject to pre-employment screening in line with the UK Government’s Baseline Personnel Security Standard (BPSS). An additional range of Personnel Security Controls referred to as National Security Vetting (NSV) may apply, this could include meeting the eligibility requirements for The Security Check (SC) or Developed Vetting (DV). For more information and guidance please visit: https://careers.uk.leonardo.com/gb/en/security-and-vetting 

Location 

This role can be based at one of our UK sites, Bristol, with hybrid/custom working options where appropriate. 

Why join us 

At Leonardo, our people are at the heart of everything we do. We offer a comprehensive, company-funded benefits package that supports your wellbeing, career development, and work–life balance. Whether you're looking to grow professionally, care for your health, or plan for the future, we’re here to help you thrive. 

• Time to Recharge: Enjoy generous leave with the opportunity to accrue up to 12 additional flexi-days each year. 

• Secure your Future: Benefit from our award-winning pension scheme with up to 15% employer contribution. 

• Your Wellbeing Matters: Free access to mental health support, financial advice, and employee-led networks championing inclusion and diversity (Enable, Pride, Equalise, Armed Forces, Carers, Wellbeing and Ethnicity).  

• Rewarding Performance: All employees at management level and below are eligible for our bonus scheme. 

• Never Stop Learning: Free access to 4,000+ online courses via Coursera and LinkedIn Learning. 

• Refer a friend: Receive a financial reward through our referral programme. 

• Tailored Perks: Spend up to £500 annually on flexible benefits including private healthcare, dental, family cover, tech & lifestyle discounts, gym memberships and more. 

• Flexible working: Flexible hours with hybrid working options. For part time opportunities, please talk to us about what might be possible for this role. 

For a full list of our company benefits please visit our website. 

Leonardo UK operates a grade-based salary framework with broad bands. The salary range shown reflects the approved grade band for this role, or a narrower hiring range published within that band, and is benchmarked against the external market. Exceptions above the standard range are managed through governance controls to protect internal equity.
 
Leonardo is a global leader in Aerospace, Defence, and Security. Headquartered in Italy, we employ over 53,000 people worldwide including 8,500 across 9 sites in the UK. Our employees are not just part of a team—they are key contributors to shaping innovation, advancing technology, and enhancing global safety. 

At Leonardo we are committed to building an inclusive, accessible, and welcoming workplace. We believe that a diverse workforce sparks creativity, drives innovation, and leads to better outcomes for our people and our customers. If you have any accessibility requirements to support you during the recruitment process, just let us know. 

Be part of something bigger - apply now!

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Primary Location:

GB - Bristol - Coldharbour Lane

Contract Type:

Permanent

Hybrid Working:

Hybrid