INTERNSHIP - Software Development Engineer - M/F

Build a future of trust together

Thales is a global high-tech leader specializing in three sectors: Defense & Security, Aeronautics & Space, and Cyber & Digital. It develops products and solutions that contribute to a safer, more environmentally friendly, and more inclusive world. The Group invests nearly 4 billion euros per year in Research & Development, particularly in key innovation areas such as AI, cybersecurity, quantum, cloud technologies, and 6G. Thales has nearly 81,000 employees in 68 countries.

Our commitments, your benefits

• Our technological expertise
• Our attention to employee work-life balance
• An inclusive and benevolent environment
• Recognized societal and environmental commitment (Thales Solidarity, CAC 40 ESG index…)

Your daily life

At the heart of Saint Quentin en Yvelines, the Elancourt site is one of Thales' most important technological centers of excellence. The diversity and technicality of the systems and equipment mobilize expertise in more than 80 professions in defense, high-tech security, and digital services solutions.

Within the Air Optronics Sector's engineering department, you will contribute to the development of evolutions of a flight test preparation tool for the needs of developing air/air and air/ground capabilities of a major equipment embedded on Rafale.

The preparation of flight test plans includes tedious calculations to specify the relative position of the two aircraft throughout each phase of the flight. The objective of the internship is to develop the following tool evolutions:

• Integration of specific trajectories between a carrier and a target
• Integration of optronic sensor masks under the aircraft
• Integration of a sensor visualization tool based on fields of view and creation of a servo-control model based on aircraft trajectory
• Interfacing with Image Inn, an optronic sensor concept simulator

By joining us, you will be entrusted with the following missions:

• Analyze the specifications drafted by the Flight Test team to fully understand the need
• Create mock-ups for HMI elements and have them validated
• Define software increments and carry out software development
• Test and validate the different increments
• Write a user manual

Demos will have to be regularly made (e.g., every 3 weeks) to verify that the software meets the expectations of the Flight Test department.

Previous work will be made available.

Technical support for calculation, simulation, and 2D/3D representation aspects will be provided by specialists from a department of the Elancourt Technical Competence Center.

Your profile

Are you a final year engineering student specializing in computer science / embedded systems, looking for your end-of-studies internship in software development starting in January 2026?

Do you easily master Python and C++?

Ideally, do you have notions of flight mechanics?

Are you curious, autonomous, and analytical?

Then this internship is for you!

A word from the team

Thanks to your work, you will be able to contribute to improving the flight test mission preparation tool, which is intended to take on a broader dimension within optronic projects.

All our internships are conventioned and subject to gratification, the amount of which is determined according to your level of study.

Thales, a Handi-Engaged company, recognizes all talents. Diversity is our best asset. Apply and join us!