Principal Systems Engineer

Prattwhitney; Middletown (RI); On-site; USD 108,000 - 205,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Parental leave

Flexible work schedules

Educational assistance

401(k) match

Job summary

RTX BBN Technologies in Middletown, RI seeks a Principal Systems Engineer to lead multi-discipline system design and verification efforts onsite with occasional travel. You will manage requirements, support validation plans, and interface with customers and scientists to ensure program success.

The role requires a STEM degree, 8+ years of experience, and the ability to obtain a secret DoD clearance. Strong leadership and communication are essential for cross-team collaboration.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in STEM with 8+ years relevant experience or advanced degree with 5+ years.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a secret DoD clearance.
• Experience leading multidiscipline system design and testing.

Responsibilities

• Be the program lead for managing system requirements.
• Capture and maintain requirements baseline in a database.
• Develop and execute verification strategies and plans.
• Coordinate with design/test leads to ensure robust validation.
• Interface with external customer scientists and program management.
• Communicate program status through oral and written reports.

Skills

Systems engineering

Lead engineer

Multidiscipline design

Requirements analysis

Traceability matrices

CCB participation

Communication skills

Team collaboration

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in STEM

Advanced Degree in related field

Tools

DOORS®

Job description

Date Posted: 2026-10-09 Country: United States of America Location: US-RI-MIDDLETOWN-201 ~ 127 John Clarke Rd ~ BBN MIDDLETOWN, Ste 3 Position Role Type: Onsite U.S. Citizen, U.S. Person, or Immigration Status Requirements: The ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government issued security clearance is required. U.S. citizenship is required, as only U.S. citizens are eligible for a security clearance Security Clearance Type: DoD Clearance: Secret Security Clearance Status: Active and existing security clearance required after day 1

At RTX, the world's largest aerospace and defense company, 185,000 great minds are united by purpose and inspired to make a difference solving the world’s most complex problems. With our three market leading businesses, world‑class operations and investments in research and development, we offer capabilities and opportunity no one else can. Together, we push the boundaries of known science and find new ways to connect and protect our world. Join us and help shape the future of aerospace and defense. RTX BBN Technologies, a noted high-tech research & development company, seeks a creative, organized, and people‑centered candidate to fill the role of Principal Systems Engineer in our Physical Sciences & Systems business unit.

Role Overview

This position is for an experienced professional in systems engineering who is able to navigate technical challenges, facilitate team action plans, provide inputs to integrated master schedules, champion process improvements, and interface with customers. The ideal candidate will possess strong organizational skills offering the aptitude to manage and track multiple parallel technical activities. This is an on-site position but offers the ability to work one day of the week remotely.

What You Will Do

• Be the program lead for managing system requirements.
• Capture program requirements baseline in a requirements database.
• Maintain, through configuration management processes, the requirements database.
• Analyze, develop and decompose Level 1 requirements to Levels 2 through 4, through collaborating with leads across engineering disciplines.
• Develop and execute the requirements verification strategy.
• Coordinate with the Design and Test leads to ensure validation/verification plans and procedures are robust and satisfy system sell‑off requirements.
• Ensure the system meets performance and non-performance requirements.
• Champion process improvement initiatives.
• Lead various system development and troubleshooting tasks.
• Interface and collaborate with external customer scientists, engineers and program management.
• Work within program leadership team to ensure program success.
• Communicate through oral presentations and written reports on program status, issues and success.

This position may require some domestic travel (less than 10%).

Qualifications You Must Have

Qualifications You Must Have Typically requires a Bachelor’s Degree in Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) and 8 years of prior relevant experience, or an Advanced Degree in a related field and 5 years of prior relevant experience. The ability to obtain and maintain a secret U.S. government issued security clearance is required.

Qualifications We Prefer

• Experience in a technical leadership role, e.g. Lead Engineer, Senior Systems Engineer, etc.
• Experience in multidiscipline system design and testing.
• Experience in requirements analysis, development, decomposition and maintenance.
• Experience developing and maintaining requirements traceability matrices.
• Experience participating in configuration control boards (CCBs).
• Expertise with a requirements database tool, such as DOORS®.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills.
• Ability to work in a collaborative team environment.

What We Offer

Whether you’re just starting out on your career journey or are an experienced professional, we offer a robust total rewards package with compensation; healthcare, wellness, retirement, and work/life benefits; career development and recognition programs. Some of the benefits we offer include parental (including paternal) leave, flexible work schedules, achievement awards, educational assistance and child/adult backup care.

Hired applicants may be eligible for benefits, including but not limited to, medical, dental, vision, life insurance, short-term disability, long-term disability, 401(k) match, flexible spending accounts, flexible work schedules, employee assistance program, Employee Scholar Program, parental leave, paid time off, and holidays.

Specific benefits are dependent upon the specific business unit as well as whether or not the position is covered by a collective‑bargaining agreement.

Hired applicants may be eligible for annual short‑term and/or long‑term incentive compensation programs depending on the level of the position and whether or not it is covered by a collective‑bargaining agreement. Payments under these annual programs are not guaranteed and are dependent upon a variety of factors including, but not limited to, individual performance, business unit performance, and/or the company’s performance.

Work Location

Work Location: Onsite - Middletown, RI

Salary Range

The salary range for this role is 107,500 USD - 204,500 USD. The salary range provided is a good faith estimate representative of all experience levels.

Application Window

RTX anticipates the application window closing approximately 40 days from the date the notice was posted.

Equal Opportunity Employer

RTX is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability or veteran status, or any other applicable state or federal protected class.

RTX provides affirmative action in employment for qualified Individuals with a Disability and Protected Veterans in compliance with Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act.

RTX is an aerospace and defense company that provides advanced systems and services for commercial, military and government customers worldwide. It comprises three industry‑leading businesses – Collins Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney, and Raytheon. Its 195,000 employees enable the company to operate at the edge of known science as they imagine and deliver solutions that push the boundaries in quantum physics, electric propulsion, directed energy, hypersonics, avionics and cybersecurity. The company, formed in 2020 through the combination of Raytheon Company and the United Technologies Corporation aerospace businesses, is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia.