Propulsion Staff Engineer – Thruster Systems

Location: Houston, United States; proof of U.S. citizenship or U.S. permanent residency and completion of a U.S. government background investigation are required. Office-based work may include inside or outside activities depending on the task.

Company

hirify.global develops commercial human spaceflight services, advanced spacesuits, and Axiom Station, a commercial space station designed to support sustained human presence in space.

What you will do

• Own the technical execution of bipropellant thruster assemblies from requirements through design, build, integration, testing, and flight readiness.
• Provide technical authority for thruster architecture, sizing, fluid, thermal, and structural analyses, materials, manufacturability, and performance optimization.
• Model and simulate thruster assemblies using tools including ANSYS, Fluent, TDK, and CEA.
• Plan and execute development, qualification, and acceptance test campaigns, including instrumentation and analytical data correlation.
• Lead design reviews, trade studies, component selection, subassembly integration, and design verification activities with internal teams and external suppliers.
• Mentor less experienced engineers and deliver against performance, safety, cost, and schedule targets.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in aerospace, mechanical, or a related engineering discipline; an advanced degree is preferred.
• 10+ years of relevant spacecraft or launch vehicle propulsion experience, including thruster or liquid rocket engine design and development.
• Hands-on experience with injectors, combustion chambers, nozzles, igniters, thermal management interfaces, valves, filters, regulators, manifolds, and instrumentation.
• Expertise in combustion, thermodynamics, heat transfer, fluid dynamics, thruster performance, and thermal analysis.
• Experience planning and executing test campaigns, selecting instrumentation, and correlating test data.
• Must be able to complete a U.S. government background investigation and provide proof of U.S. citizenship or U.S. permanent residency.

Nice to have

• Advanced engineering degree.
• Experience with SolidWorks.

Culture & Benefits

• Mission-driven work focused on commercial space infrastructure and sustained human presence in space.
• Values centered on leadership, innovation, teamwork, accountability, and extreme ownership.
• Entrepreneurial, growth-oriented, resourceful, and adaptable working environment.
• Evening and weekend work may be required to meet critical project milestones.
• Work may involve extended periods of sitting or standing and occasional lifting of up to 25 lbs.