Principal Vehicle & Mission Operations Engineer (Spacecraft)

Location: Los Angeles, California, United States. The role involves operating spacecraft at factories, test facilities, launch sites, and during pre-launch and on-orbit operations. The hired candidate must be a U.S. person under ITAR or otherwise eligible for a federally issued export control license.

Salary: $180,000–$210,000 annually, plus equity.

Company

hirify.global develops high-power satellite platforms for commercial and U.S. government missions from low Earth orbit to deep space.

What you will do

• Define and operationalize the mission operations concept for the first satellite mission, including procedures, tools, and real-time support systems.
• Develop telemetry monitoring strategies, command plans, fault response frameworks, and anomaly-resolution processes for pre-launch, LEOP, and nominal operations.
• Operate spacecraft during factory, facility, launch-site, pre-launch, and on-orbit activities, interpreting telemetry and sending commands.
• Collaborate with systems, software, and hardware teams to establish operational readiness across spacecraft subsystems.
• Drive the roadmap for mission operations tooling, ground-segment workflows, and long-term constellation management.
• Assess integration and test risks, justify test reductions, and optimize vehicle build and test flows for at-rate production.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in electrical, aerospace, mechanical, computer, or another relevant engineering discipline.
• 10+ years of experience in operations, integration, or automation engineering, including 4 years of direct on-orbit satellite operations.
• Experience testing and troubleshooting spacecraft and related components, including subsystem checkouts and system acceptance testing.
• Knowledge of mission operations concepts such as LEOP, telemetry, commanding, fault protection, and anomaly resolution.
• Experience building or contributing to telemetry, analysis, data-pipeline, or operational-dashboard tooling, plus scripting or automation with Python or Rust.
• Must be a U.S. person under ITAR or otherwise eligible for a federally issued export control license.

Nice to have

• Hands-on experience with HITL or Flatsat software verification testbeds.
• Experience with GAaaS providers, Linux systems, or contractual interfaces involving customers or launch vehicles.

Culture & Benefits

• Work on high-power satellite platforms and missions spanning LEO to deep space.
• Paid time off, medical, dental, and vision coverage.
• Life insurance and paid parental leave.
• Equity in the company and additional employee perks.