Principal GNC Engineer

Location: Onsite near Denver, Colorado or Long Beach, California

Salary: $180,000–$305,000 annual base salary in Colorado, plus equity and benefits

Company

hirify.global develops autonomous spacecraft, advanced payloads, mission software, and space-based interceptors for space superiority and defense.

What you will do

• Own end-to-end development of spacecraft Guidance, Navigation, and Control systems, from architecture and algorithm design through implementation, integration, verification, and flight operations.
• Design, test, and validate GNC flight software for spacecraft operating in LEO, GEO, and cislunar environments.
• Develop attitude and orbit determination algorithms, sensor fusion, state estimation, covariance analysis, Kalman filtering, and robust control laws.
• Build high-fidelity 6-DOF simulations, sensor and actuator models, disturbance environments, Monte Carlo pipelines, and SIL/HIL integrations.
• Lead GNC trade studies, subsystem requirements, interfaces, verification plans, design reviews, commissioning, calibration, maneuver planning, and anomaly resolution.
• Coordinate with avionics, software, propulsion, mechanisms, mission operations, and systems engineering teams while mentoring junior engineers and leading technical reviews.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering, mechanical engineering, physics, or a related discipline; an advanced degree is preferred.
• 15+ years of hands-on experience developing and fielding spacecraft GNC systems.
• Strong proficiency in C++ and Python, numerical methods, algorithm implementation, spacecraft dynamics, orbital mechanics, sensor and actuator physics, and environmental perturbations.
• Experience with estimation and filtering, control-law design, stability and robustness analysis, high-fidelity simulations, Monte Carlo frameworks, flight hardware integration, and formal design reviews.
• Ability to lead cross-disciplinary technical efforts, work with minimal direction, communicate clearly, and mentor less experienced engineers.
• Must be a U.S. citizen and eligible for DoD Secret or TS/SCI clearance. ITAR compliance requires U.S. citizenship, lawful permanent residence, protected-individual status, or eligibility to obtain the required authorizations.

Nice to have

• Experience with proximity operations, formation flying, optical navigation, autonomous maneuvering, or precision pointing missions.
• Expertise in GNC-related FDIR, autonomous guidance, onboard trajectory optimization, safety-critical or fault-tolerant flight software, real-time operating systems, embedded software, or hardware-in-the-loop testbeds.
• Technical leadership experience, major subsystem ownership, or full GNC solution architecture.

Culture & Benefits

• Equity package and health, dental, and vision coverage.
• HRA/HSA options, paid time off, and paid holidays.
• 401(k) and parental leave.
• Onsite work environment with physical demands that may include sitting, bending, lifting, and driving.