Senior Spacecraft Operations Lead (Secret Clearance)

Rocket Lab; Long Beach (CA); On-site; USD 173,000 - 260,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Equity grant

Employee Stock Purchase Program

Medical, dental, vision plans

Paid time off

401(k) with company match

Job summary

Rocket Lab in Long Beach, CA seeks a Principal Spacecraft Operations Engineer II with Secret clearance to guide mission operations, automate workflows, and validate system-level requirements across spacecraft missions. The role interfaces with design, AIT, flight software, propulsion, GNC, and ground software teams to ensure reliable, scalable operations for a growing fleet.

You will drive automation, develop flight and ground software, and oversee validation against simulators and testbeds,

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in engineering (software, computer, electrical, aerospace, mechanical, or other technical engineering discipline).
• 12+ years of direct experience in space mission design, satellite subsystems, ground systems, spacecraft command/control, or spacecraft operations.
• 5+ years of experience leading teams of engineers through spacecraft missions or related aerospace projects.
• Experience in roles such as Mission Lead, Mission Director, Flight Director, or Senior Spacecraft Operations Engineer.
• Experience supporting mission operations activities in an on-console or operator-in-the-loop capacity.
• Strong understanding of spacecraft subsystems (ADCS, EPS, space-to-ground comms, C&DH, TCS, propulsion, FDIR).
• 5+ years of direct software development experience (Python/Ruby/C/C++/other high-level languages).
• US citizenship required due to program requirements.
• Active U.S. Government Secret Security Clearance (or ability to obtain)

Responsibilities

• Serve as the program's mission operations technical lead: set the technical direction and strategy for operations, plan and prioritize the work of the mission operations staff, and act as the primary operations point of contact for program-level design decisions and trades.
• Advocate for operability across the program: influence spacecraft and ground architecture upstream so vehicles are designed to be operated safely, efficiently, and autonomously.
• Own mission operations requirements and lead requirements validation and verification for spacecraft missions and system-level capability and function.
• Define the automation strategy and lead the development of robust, software-driven methods for mission operations, testing, and data analysis.
• Design, develop, and test flight software sequences and FDIR/telemetry configurations for spacecraft health and fault management.
• Architect, develop, and test ground software for long-duration operations and automation frameworks.
• Establish and maintain mission operations tooling and codebases, including CI, version control, and release discipline; manage on-call/shift schedules.
• Author interface specs, CONOPS, contingency procedures, and other operational design documents.
• Lead validation of flight products against simulation tools ( flatsat, HITL, SIL, digital twins).
• Coordinate with AIT teams across spacecraft tests and provide program support to leads/managers.
• Interface between NZ and USA engineering teams during missions.
• Represent mission operations in program milestones and readiness gates; drive continuous improvement from lessons learned.

Skills

Mission operations leadership

Cross-team collaboration

Operational excellence

On-console operations experience

Software development (Python/C/C++)

Education

Bachelor’s degree in engineering

Tools

Python

C/C++

Git

CI/CD

Jira

Job description

Rocket Lab in Long Beach, CA seeks a Principal Spacecraft Operations Engineer II with Secret clearance to guide mission operations, automate workflows, and validate system-level requirements across spacecraft missions. The role interfaces with design, AIT, flight software, propulsion, GNC, and ground software teams to ensure reliable, scalable operations for a growing fleet.

You will drive automation, develop flight and ground software, and oversee validation against simulators and testbeds,