Avionics Engineer

Outpost; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 130,000 - 150,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity

Performance bonuses

Healthcare coverage

401(k) retirement plan

Lunch stipend

Pet-friendly office

Job summary

Outpost seeks a hands-on Avionics Engineer to design, build, and test avionics systems for its return vehicles. You will own hardware from flight computers to power distribution and sensor integration, collaborating across software, structures, and test teams through the full lifecycle.

You will work in Playa Vista in-person, five days per week, reporting to engineering leadership. The role emphasizes architecture decisions that balance reliability, mass, and cost while enabling flight readiness

Qualifications

• Bachelors degree in Electrical or Aerospace Engineering or related field.
• 3+ years designing and testing avionics hardware for aerospace or complex systems.
• Experience with flight computers, power distribution units, sensor integration, or communications systems.
• Proficiency with schematic capture and circuit analysis tools.
• Experience with embedded systems debugging, oscilloscopes, and lab test equipment.
• Strong understanding of avionics architecture for launch, orbital, or reentry environments.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, and test avionics hardware for the return vehicle, from flight computers to power systems and sensor suites.
• Support component- and system-level qualification testing, including vibration, thermal, and EMI/EMC.
• Support avionics integration with the vehicle harness, structures, and software teams.
• Troubleshoot hardware issues during integration, test, and flight operations.
• Develop test procedures and support flight readiness reviews.
• Contribute to avionics architecture decisions balancing reliability, mass, and cost.
• Support vehicle assembly, integration, and test.

Skills

Avionics design experience

Electronics debugging

Cross-functional collaboration

Education

Bachelor's degree in Electrical/Aerospace Engineering

Tools

Schematic capture tools

Circuit analysis tools

Oscilloscopes

Lab test equipment

Job description

Location: Playa Vista, California (in-person, five days per week)

Outpost is pioneering Earth return logistics for space. We're building vehicles that can return payloads from orbit safely and precisely enabling faster space‑based manufacturing, global delivery, and entirely new capabilities in the space economy. Our spacecraft is already backed by the U.S. government with multiple missions ahead. We're a mission‑focused team, building with urgency, grit, and care for the work we do and the people we do it with.

The Team

We're looking for a hands‑on Avionics Engineer to design, build, and test the avionics systems that power Outpost's return vehicles. This role owns hardware from flight computers and power distribution to sensor integration and communications, working across the full lifecycle from architecture through flight. You'll work closely with structures, software, and integration and test teams to deliver avionics that survive launch, orbital, and reentry environments. You'll report to engineering leadership and have direct ownership over the systems you build.

Responsibilities

• Design, build, and test avionics hardware for the return vehicle, from flight computers to power systems and sensor suites
• Support component‑ and system‑level qualification testing, including vibration, thermal, and EMI/EMC
• Support avionics integration with the vehicle harness, structures, and software teams
• Troubleshoot hardware issues during integration, test, and flight operations
• Develop test procedures and support flight readiness reviews
• Contribute to avionics architecture decisions balancing reliability, mass, and cost
• Support vehicle assembly, integration, and test

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related field, or equivalent experience
• 3+ years designing and testing avionics hardware for aerospace or similarly complex systems
• Experience with flight computers, power distribution units, sensor integration, or communication systems
• Proficiency with schematic capture and circuit analysis tools
• Experience with embedded systems debugging, oscilloscopes, and lab test equipment
• Strong understanding of avionics architecture for launch, orbital, or reentry environments
• Ability to work cross‑functionally with software, structures, and test teams

Preferred Experience

• Experience with radiation‑tolerant or flight‑heritage avionics components
• Familiarity with reentry or hypersonic vehicle environments
• Experience with FPGA or embedded firmware development
• Background at a launch vehicle, satellite, or spacecraft company

Compensation & Benefits

• Competitive compensation: $130,000 - $150,000 (commensurate with experience)
• Annual performance‑based bonuses that reward your impact
• Meaningful equity in Outpost
• Comprehensive healthcare: Medical, dental, and vision coverage; we cover the base tier of medical insurance and all premiums of vision and dental
• Short‑ and long‑term disability coverage and life insurance
• Paid time off: PTO, plus 9 days of paid holidays
• 401(k) with company match
• Daily DoorDash lunch stipend, unlimited snacks, coffee, and tea
• Work with leaders from aerospace, new space, and deep‑tech industries
• Pet‑friendly office
• Monthly company happy hours and events

Citizenship & Security Clearance

You must be a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 22 C.F.R. § 120.15, or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.