Leads engineers designing, integrating, deploying, and maintaining spacecraft ironbirds, flatsats, and HITL testbeds. Owns electrical and hardware architecture, avionics interfaces, instrumentation, schedules, resource plans, fabrication, commissioning, and troubleshooting. Collaborates with software, GNC, and avionics teams to support vehicle development and mission validation while standardizing reusable test hardware, documentation, and processes.
As the Spacecraft Testbed Engineering Manager at Impulse, you'll lead a team responsible for designing, developing, and delivering spacecraft testbeds, including ironbirds, flatsats, and hardware-in-the-loop (HITL) test systems. You'll work closely with Software, GNC, and Avionics teams to translate testing requirements into reliable hardware solutions, ensuring testbeds are delivered on schedule and ready to support vehicle development and mission validation.
Responsibilities
- Lead, mentor, and develop a team of engineers responsible for spacecraft testbed hardware design, integration, and deployment
- Collaborate with Flight Software, Embedded Software, GNC, and Avionics teams to define testbed requirements and translate simulation and validation needs into hardware designs
- Own the electrical and hardware architecture of spacecraft ironbirds, flatsats, and HITL testbeds, including avionics interfaces, simulation hardware, and supporting equipment
- Establish technical priorities, project schedules, resource plans, and delivery milestones to support vehicle development and test campaigns
- Oversee the design and development of custom electrical interfaces, load boards, harnesses, and supporting test hardware
- Coordinate engineering and technician resources to ensure timely fabrication, assembly, integration, commissioning, and checkout of spacecraft testbeds
- Align testbed hardware architecture with Avionics Test and Electrical Ground Support Equipment (EGSE) platforms, leveraging common designs, components, and tooling
- Ensure testbed reliability, maintainability, and scalability through standardized designs, processes, and documentation
- Provide technical leadership in troubleshooting complex electrical and hardware-software integration issues
Minimum Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Computer Science, or a related field
- 7+ years of experience developing electrical test systems, including hardware-in-the-loop (HITL), avionics integration, embedded hardware testing, or related fields
- 2+ years of experience leading engineering teams, projects, or technical programs
- Strong understanding of electrical test system design, avionics interfaces, instrumentation, and hands-on electrical troubleshooting
- Experience designing and deploying complex electrical test systems involving instrumentation, signal conditioning, and hardware interfaces
- Experience managing engineering schedules, resources, and deliverables across multiple concurrent projects
- Strong communication, organizational, and technical problem-solving skills
Preferred Skills and Experience
- Experience managing, mentoring, and developing multidisciplinary engineering teams
- Experience developing ironbirds, flatsats, or HITL testbeds for spacecraft, launch vehicles, or other complex embedded systems
- Familiarity with HITL software architectures, real-time simulation, and their implications for hardware selection and system design
- Experience with avionics test equipment, EGSE, and reusable test hardware platforms
- Strong electrical troubleshooting skills across analog and digital systems
- Familiarity with Linux-based systems, Python, C++, and hardware-software integration
- Experience with networking (TCP/IP, serial protocols) and remote hardware control
- Experience establishing standardized hardware architectures and coordinating fabrication, assembly, and deployment across multiple programs
Additional Information:
Compensation bands are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data. Individual level and base pay is determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on job-related skills, education, experience, technical capabilities and internal equity. In addition to base salary, for full-time hires, you may also be eligible for long-term incentives, in the form of stock options, and access to medical, vision & dental coverage as well as access to a 401(k) retirement plan.
Impulse Space’s spacecraft manufacturing business is subject to U.S. export regulations including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and Export Administration Regulations (EAR). This position requires applicants to be either U.S. Persons (i.e., U.S. citizen, U.S. national, lawful permanent U.S. resident (green card holder), an individual granted asylum in the U.S., or an individual admitted in U.S. refugee status) or persons eligible to obtain an export license from the U.S. Departments of State, Commerce, or other applicable U.S. government agencies. Learn more about the ITAR here.
Impulse Space is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Impulse Space is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.
About
Impulse Space, the in-space transportation company founded by Tom Mueller, is opening access beyond Low Earth Orbit (LEO) with its fleet of in-space transportation vehicles. The high-energy Helios vehicle unlocks orbits beyond LEO with its powerful Deneb engine, dropping off payloads in MEO, GEO, heliocentric, lunar, and other planetary orbits. The flight-proven Mira vehicle uses a nontoxic, high-impulse chemical propulsion system to offer orbital transport, constellation deployment, and precision reentry services to customers throughout LEO. Led by a team that delivered the most reliable rockets in history, Impulse provides economical and efficient in-space transportation by reliably and rapidly getting customers where they want to go.
Impulse Space El Segundo, California, USA Office
El Segundo, CA, United States, 90245
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