Spaceplane Certification Engineer — Risk & Safety Lead

Dawn Aerospace; Christchurch; On-site; NZD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

Dawn Aerospace is seeking an experienced Certification Engineer to own and drive safety case activities for our remotely piloted spaceplane projects. You will work closely with Flight Operations, Systems Engineering, and external authorities to demonstrate acceptable risk mitigations and secure certification for unmanned rocket-powered flights.

You’ll develop operational risk assessments, lead safety cases, and ensure clear documentation of objectives, mitigations, and compliance across the

Qualifications

• Experience in certification projects for safety-critical applications.
• UAS operations safety case development in Medium or High-risk categories.
• Knowledge of civil aviation rules and launch licensing.
• Quality or safety management systems.

Responsibilities

• Engage directly with civil aviation authorities and external stakeholders to agree on acceptable risk mitigations.
• Develop and maintain operational risk assessments and safety cases for unmanned operations.
• Lead the derivation of mitigations in the operations domain and ensure readiness of safety documentation.
• Provide independent monitoring of flight operations and ensure compliance with procedures.

Skills

Certification project management

UAS operations safety

Rocket launch operations

Job description

Dawn Aerospace is seeking an experienced Certification Engineer to own and drive safety case activities for our remotely piloted spaceplane projects. You will work closely with Flight Operations, Systems Engineering, and external authorities to demonstrate acceptable risk mitigations and secure certification for unmanned rocket-powered flights.

You’ll develop operational risk assessments, lead safety cases, and ensure clear documentation of objectives, mitigations, and compliance across the