Senior Embedded Linux Engineer – Space Systems

Macdonald, Dettwiler And Associates Corporation; Farnborough; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 120,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Private healthcare

Disability income protection

Life insurance

Pension plan

Employee assistance program

Job summary

MDA Space in the UK is seeking an experienced embedded Linux specialist to build and maintain Linux distributions, kernels, and boot components for complex satellite and space-ground platforms.

You will implement cross-compilation pipelines, container runtimes, and platform services, while contributing to CI/CD pipelines and hardware interface integration. The role offers challenging projects in a leading space tech environment.

Qualifications

• 7+ years embedded Linux platform development
• Experience with Yocto or Buildroot
• Experience with ARM-based embedded platforms
• Familiarity with boot process (U-boot, device tree, kernel configuration)
• Experience with containers (Docker or Podman)
• Experience deploying or integrating services such as Redis
• Cross-compilation and build automation for embedded systems
• Git workflows and CI systems such as Jenkins
• Python or shell scripting for automation
• Familiarity with AI-assisted development tools (Cursor, Claude Code, Codex)

Responsibilities

• Build and maintain custom Linux distributions using Yocto or Buildroot
• Maintain Linux platform configuration, including kernel configuration, device tree, and boot components (U-boot)
• Develop and maintain system platform services and infrastructure components
• Integrate platform services such as container runtimes (Docker / Podman) and distributed services (Redis)
• Implement cross-compilation environments and image build pipelines
• Maintain Linux packaging, configuration management, and release processes
• Support integration of hardware interfaces (SPI, I2C, PCIe, Ethernet) at the platform level
• Develop automation tools for system deployment, configuration, and diagnostics
• Maintain CI/CD pipelines and platform build infrastructure (Jenkins)

Skills

Embedded Linux

Linux platform development

Cross-platform build

Tools

Yocto

Buildroot

U-boot

Docker

Podman

Redis

Git

Jenkins CI/CD

Python

Shell

Cursor

Claude Code

Codex

Job description

MDA Space in the UK is seeking an experienced embedded Linux specialist to build and maintain Linux distributions, kernels, and boot components for complex satellite and space-ground platforms.

You will implement cross-compilation pipelines, container runtimes, and platform services, while contributing to CI/CD pipelines and hardware interface integration. The role offers challenging projects in a leading space tech environment.