Flight Dynamics Engineer II - Trajectory & Software Tools

Firefly Aerospace; Cedar Park (TX); On-site; USD 120,000 - 170,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health, dental and vision plans

Educational reimbursement

Short term disability

Flexible PTO

Job summary

Firefly Aerospace is seeking a Flight Dynamics Engineer II to apply orbital mechanics expertise to plan trajectories, develop flight dynamics software tools, and support real-time spacecraft operations across LEO, cislunar space, and lunar missions.

You will execute trajectory designs, state estimation, and maneuver planning while collaborating with cross‑functional teams to validate models and deliver robust mission analyses.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering, physics, mathematics, or a related field.
• 2-5 years of experience in spacecraft flight dynamics.
• Strong understanding of orbital mechanics theory and applications.
• Understanding of spacecraft attitude dynamics and control.
• Knowledge of targeting and optimization methods, estimation theory, and uncertainty modeling techniques.
• Experience in software development and modeling/simulation for spaceflight applications.
• Working knowledge of Python and Linux.
• Understanding of software development best practices including version control (Git), code documentation, and testing.
• Experience with STK, GMAT, FreeFlyer, ODTK, or similar.
• Strong communication and presentation skills.

Responsibilities

• Perform trajectory planning, state vector estimation, and maneuver design for operational spacecraft.
• Develop custom software tools and libraries to automate mission design and preparation workflows.
• Model high‑fidelity spacecraft dynamics that include gravitational perturbations, atmospheric drag, solar radiation pressure, and other celestial bodies.
• Perform Monte Carlo simulations and error budgeting to assess mission robustness to dispersions in initial conditions, system performance, and environmental uncertainties.
• Interface with cross‑discipline teams to provide accurate ephemerides, navigation solutions, and maneuver plans for mission planning and operations.
• Serve as a flight dynamics operator for spacecraft missions and perform maneuver reconstruction to improve spacecraft models.
• Build automated data processing pipelines and visualization tools to support real‑time mission operations and post‑flight analysis.
• Perform verification and validation of flight dynamics models and software against analytical solutions, benchmarks, flight data, and unit tests.
• Author technical documentation and analysis reports that communicate flight dynamics concepts and results to diverse audiences.

Education

Bachelor's degree in aerospace engineering, physics, mathematics, or related field

Master's degree in aerospace engineering, physics, mathematics, or related field

2-5 years of experience in spacecraft flight dynamics

Strong understanding of orbital mechanics theory and applications

Understanding of spacecraft attitude dynamics and control

Knowledge of targeting and optimization methods, estimation theory, and uncertainty modeling techniques

Experience in software development and modeling/simulation for spaceflight applications

Working knowledge of Python and Linux

Understanding of software development best practices including version control (Git), code documentation, and testing

Experience with one or more commercial flight dynamics software tools (STK, GMAT, FreeFlyer, ODTK, or similar)

Strong communication and presentation skills

Tools

STK

GMAT

FreeFlyer

ODTK

Job description

Firefly Aerospace is seeking a Flight Dynamics Engineer II to apply orbital mechanics expertise to plan trajectories, develop flight dynamics software tools, and support real-time spacecraft operations across LEO, cislunar space, and lunar missions.

You will execute trajectory designs, state estimation, and maneuver planning while collaborating with cross‑functional teams to validate models and deliver robust mission analyses.