Senior Systems Engineer

cexec; Washington (District of Columbia); On-site; USD 151,000 - 165,000; Full time

Job summary

cexec, Inc. seeks a Senior Systems Engineer to own FAA ATC Voice Communications specifications and IRDs. You will bridge user needs with vendor capabilities, ensuring documentation reflects operational requirements, interoperability, and compliance with ED-137 standards.

You will lead the technical governance across ED-137, participate in EUROCAE activities, and coordinate with test teams and vendors to secure consensus and executable requirements for both legacy and next‑gen voice systems.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in a relevant field with 10+ years of ATC voice experience.
• Experience leading the design, development, and engineering documentation of critical aviation or mission-critical communication infrastructure.
• Proven track record as primary document owner for government or civil aviation authorities.

Responsibilities

• Own FAA Technical Specifications and IRDs for ATC Voice Communications.
• Ensure alignment between Specs and IRDs across multiple FAA programs.
• Perform market research and develop CONOPS to drive requirements for new FAA functionalities.
• Collaborate with FAA users and commercial vendors to obtain formal concurrence on system requirements.
• Review vendor ICDs to ensure designs match FAA requirements.
• Support vendor design reviews and provide evaluations during source selection processes.
• Engage with test teams to ensure requirements are testable.

Skills

ATC voice domain

Interface and systems

Performance parameters

SIP & RFCs

Regulatory standards

Education

Bachelors in engineering/CS

Job description

Senior Systems Engineer – ATC Voice Communications (Specs & IRDs)

CEXEC, Inc. is seeking a highly motivated, energetic, and results-oriented Senior Systems Engineer to support the FAA in modernizing air traffic control voice communications. We are seeking a high-level technical leader and domain expert to serve as the "Book Boss" (Document Owner and Lead Engineer) for the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) Technical Specifications and Interface Requirements Documents (IRDs). In this role, you will own the development, delivery, and lifecycle management of the critical engineering documents that define Air Traffic Control (ATC) Voice Communication systems.

You will bridge the gap between operational needs and technical execution-working directly with users, test teams, and vendors to ensure next-generation and legacy voice systems are highly reliable, interoperable, and compliant with both domestic and international standards.

Key Responsibilities

Requirements Development & Document Ownership ("Book Boss")

• Own the Documentation: Lead the end-to-end development, update, and delivery of FAA Technical Specifications and IRDs for ATC Voice Communications.
• Ensure System Consistency: Continuously review and maintain tight alignment and consistency between Specs and IRDs across multiple distinct FAA programs.
• Operational & Market Analysis: Perform market research on vendor capabilities and generate Concepts of Operations (CONOPS) to drive requirements for new FAA functionalities.
• Stakeholder Consensus: Work directly with FAA operational users and commercial vendors to collaborate on, refine, and obtain formal concurrence on system requirements.

Vendor Governance & Design Review

• Design Compliance: Review vendor-provided Interface Control Documents (ICDs) to ensure their system designs perfectly match FAA IRD requirements.
• Lifecycle Support: Support vendor system design reviews and provide expert engineering evaluations of vendor systems during source selection processes.
• Test Team Collaboration: Maintain an active dialogue with test and validation teams to ensure requirements are testable and accurately understood.

International Standards & Interoperability Advocacy

• ED-137 Governance: Serve as the technical anchor for the international ED-137 standard for ATC VoIP communications, ensuring FAA functional requirements are fully protected and embedded within the standard.
• Global Working Groups: Actively support and represent interests at EUROCAE VOTE and WG-67 meetings. Submit formal updates to the ED-137 standard to support present and future FAA operational needs.
• Interoperability Assurance: Analyze vendor implementations of ED-137 to guarantee cross-vendor compatibility and seamless integration across the FAA infrastructure.

Technical Expertise

Core Technical Competencies

• ATC Voice Domain Expertise: Deep knowledge of Air Traffic Control voice communications architecture, including legacy Voice Communication Systems (VCS) and modern Voice over IP (VoIP) VCS platforms.
• Interface & Systems Knowledge: Technical mastery of hardware, software, and analog/digital/VoIP interfaces specific to FAA voice paths.
• Performance Parameter Mastery: Thorough understanding of system performance parameters required in FAA voice specifications for every component along the end-to-end ATC voice path.
• Protocol & Standards Expertise: Advanced working knowledge of the ED-137 standard, including deep expertise in its specific utilization of Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) and associated RFCs.
• Regulatory Familiarity: Comprehensive understanding of the government and non-government engineering standards that must be referenced within FAA specifications.

Qualifications

Citizenship

• U.S. citizen or permanent resident.

Clearance

• Must be able to obtain a U.S. Government Public Trust clearance.

Education & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in systems engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Science/Engineering, or a related field, with 10+ years of relevant experience including ATC voice communications systems.
• Demonstrated experience leading the design, development, and engineering documentation of critical aviation or mission-critical communication infrastructure.
• Proven track record of managing complex technical requirements or acting as a primary document owner ("Book Boss") for government or civil aviation authorities.

Travel

• 10 to 30%

Salary

Salary at CEXEC is determined by various factors, including but not limited to location, the individual's particular combination of education, knowledge, skills, competencies, and experience, as well as contract-specific affordability and organizational requirements. The salary range for this position is $151,000 to $165,000 (annualized USD).

Benefits

CEXEC offers a full benefit package that includes medical, dental, and vision health benefits. In addition, life, short term, and long disability insurance is offered at no cost to the employee. CEXEC offers an annual leave policy as well as 401K retirement plan with a generous company match. CEXEC offers education assistance via an Educational Assistance Program. CEXEC offers a unique team environment where employees and management truly respect and value each other.

EEO Statement

All qualified applicants will be selected based on their ability to successfully perform the functions of the position in question. Screening for all applicants in consideration for employment will be done without regard to age, disability, status as a protected veteran or any other status protected by applicable federal, state, local, or international law.