Director, Space Launch Operations — Vandenberg Pad

Firefly Aerospace; California; On-site; USD 195,000 - 240,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental and vision plans

Parental leave

Relocation benefits

Educational reimbursement

Short term disability

Flexible PTO

Job summary

Firefly Aerospace is seeking a dynamic leader to guide the Vandenberg Launch Operations and Facilities team through each launch cycle. You will steer cross-functional groups to resolve technical challenges while presenting to customers and stakeholders to ensure all external needs are met.

The role emphasizes hands-on leadership of launch campaigns, sequencing, and safety compliance, with a focus on delivering on-time, within-budget missions at a cutting-edge space company.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Project Engineering, or Aircraft Operations.
• Experience leading multi-disciplinary engineering and operations teams.
• 5+ years of aerospace leadership across complex systems.
• Proficiency with MS Excel, MS Project, MS Visio.
• Strong communication skills in technical environments.
• Experience with Atlassian Confluence and Jira.

Responsibilities

• Direct launch campaigns from pre-vehicle arrival pad preparations to on-pad launch operations.
• Lead daily stand-ups for vehicle and pad campaign progress.
• Manage pad maintenance to maximize availability and reduce costs.
• Identify opportunities to shorten launch campaign durations.
• Ensure procedures, documentation, and tools are updated for upgrades.
• Develop weekly rhythms and an Integrated Master Schedule for launches.
• Coordinate with safety teams and base operations for mission readiness.

Skills

Leadership

Cross-functional coordination

Strategic scheduling

Communication

Program management

Education

Bachelor’s degree in Engineering, Project Engineering or Aircraft Operations

Tools

MS Excel

MS Project

MS Visio

Confluence

Jira

Python basics

LabVIEW

MATLAB

Job description

Firefly Aerospace is seeking a dynamic leader to guide the Vandenberg Launch Operations and Facilities team through each launch cycle. You will steer cross-functional groups to resolve technical challenges while presenting to customers and stakeholders to ensure all external needs are met.

The role emphasizes hands-on leadership of launch campaigns, sequencing, and safety compliance, with a focus on delivering on-time, within-budget missions at a cutting-edge space company.