Senior Avionics Hardware Engineer, Spaceflight Systems

Varda; El Segundo (CA); On-site; USD 200,000 - 260,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical insurance

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Wellness reimbursement

Parental leave

One Medical membership

Equity / stock options

401(k) with company match

Cell phone reimbursement

Relocation assistance

EV charging

Office snacks and lunches

Job summary

Varda in El Segundo, CA, seeks a Principal Avionics Hardware Engineer to architect and design flight-critical electrical hardware for our satellite bus, reentry vehicle, and customer payloads. You will define subsystem requirements, design to them, and ensure hardware meets criteria while supporting mission operations risk assessments.

Join a fast-moving space startup with strong collaboration across software, thermal, GNC, and structures teams, mentoring juniors and advancing a new era of

Qualifications

• 8+ years of direct experience designing electronics hardware across multiple hardware domains.
• Experience contributing to complex electronics systems from design to launch (space or other).
• Knowledge of signal integrity, power and grounding board layout principles.
• Hands-on lab experience with oscilloscopes, function generators, benchtop DMMs and power supplies.
• Experience programming in Python, MATLAB, or another scripting language.
• Experience implementing hardware layers of SPI, RS422, and 1000BASE-T protocols.
• Experience designing analog/digital filtering and mixed-signal circuits.
• Power electronics design including load switches and switch-mode DC-DC converters.

Responsibilities

• PCB-level electronics design across lifecycle stages—from schematic capture to manufacturing test.
• Translate high-level objectives into subsystem requirements and milestones.
• Avionics SME for satellite, reentry vehicle, and payload hardware; support end users.
• Collaborate with flight software, thermal, GNC, and structures teams on cross-vehicle impacts.
• Own product acceptance and qualification testing for space environments with support.
• Define system-level integration test plans and verify hardware performance at vehicle level.
• Perform root cause analysis on test failures and implement mitigations for flight risks.
• Mentor junior engineers on projects and design methodologies.

Skills

Python

MATLAB

Signal integrity

Power electronics

PCB layout

Schematic capture

Board bring-up

SPI/RS422/1000BASE-T

Analog/digital filtering

Education

B.S. in Electrical or Computer Engineering

Tools

Oscilloscopes

Function generators

Benchtop DMMs

Power supplies

Job description

Varda in El Segundo, CA, seeks a Principal Avionics Hardware Engineer to architect and design flight-critical electrical hardware for our satellite bus, reentry vehicle, and customer payloads. You will define subsystem requirements, design to them, and ensure hardware meets criteria while supporting mission operations risk assessments.

Join a fast-moving space startup with strong collaboration across software, thermal, GNC, and structures teams, mentoring juniors and advancing a new era of