Flight Safety Systems Engineer (Embedded)

Rocket Lab Corporation; Auckland; On-site; NZD 120,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Rocket Lab in Auckland, NZ is seeking a Software Engineer to join the Neutron Flight Safety Systems team on the Flight Termination System. You will develop safety-critical software and verification tooling for flight safety and mission assurance.

This mid-level role offers hands-on experience in regulated environments, embedded C++ and Python for testing, and collaboration with senior engineers to meet certification standards and safety goals.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's or Master's in software engineering or equivalent.
• 3+ years of software development experience.
• Proficiency in embedded C++ for safety-critical systems.
• Proficiency in Python for test and simulation.
• Experience with safety-critical software in regulated environments.
• Deployment and CI tooling experience.
• Proficiency in Git and issue trackers (e.g., Jira).
• Attention to detail and engineering rigour.
• Excellent communication skills to explain decisions clearly.

Responsibilities

• Develop flight code for Neutron's Flight Termination System per plans and standards.
• Write unit tests and build support code for tests, simulation and operations.
• Contribute to software requirements, architecture and design; document dependencies.
• Maintain traceability between requirements, design, implementation and verification.
• Document interfaces between software and hardware.
• Participate in reviews and prepare technical reports for stakeholders.
• Support testing, analysis and reporting, including risk mitigation.
• Assist test automation and integration into test, launch and operations.
• Read and apply relevant regulatory standards with safety and licensing teams.

Skills

Embedded C++

Python

Git & CI tooling

Communication

Problem solving under pressure

Issue tracking (Jira)

Education

Bachelor's or Master's in Software Engineering/CS

Tools

Git

Jira

CMake

Bazel

Job description

Rocket Lab in Auckland, NZ is seeking a Software Engineer to join the Neutron Flight Safety Systems team on the Flight Termination System. You will develop safety-critical software and verification tooling for flight safety and mission assurance.

This mid-level role offers hands-on experience in regulated environments, embedded C++ and Python for testing, and collaboration with senior engineers to meet certification standards and safety goals.