Spacecraft Technical Project Lead

Proteus Space; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 100,000 - 130,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Paid medical healthcare

Flexible vacation policy

401k matching option

Pregnancy leave

Family leave

Holiday pay

Military service leave

Dental care

Vision care

Job summary

Proteus Space in Los Angeles seeks a highly skilled Spacecraft Technical Project Lead to oversee spacecraft development, from design to launch. You will collaborate with multidisciplinary teams, ensuring all technical objectives are met while driving innovation.

In this full-time role, you will be pivotal in integrating cutting-edge technologies and providing mentorship to engineering teams. Proteus Space offers a competitive benefits package including healthcare, flexible vacation, and 401k matching.

Qualifications

• Extensive experience in spacecraft design.
• Proven track record in spacecraft assembly and integration.
• Understanding of EMC/EMI design considerations for spacecraft.

Responsibilities

• Lead spacecraft development from design to launch.
• Collaborate with engineering teams to optimize designs.
• Support launch integration and ensure mission readiness.

Skills

Spacecraft design

Assembly, integration, and testing (AI&T)

Problem-solving

Leadership

Communication

Education

B.S. degree in Aerospace Engineering or related field

Tools

Computational design software

Job description

We are seeking a highly skilled and motivated Spacecraft Technical Project Lead to join our team. In this critical role, you will lead the technical aspects of spacecraft development projects, ensuring successful design, integration, testing, and launch. This is an opportunity to work on cutting‑edge space missions, driving innovation and excellence at every stage.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the overall development of spacecraft from design through final assembly, testing, launch, and operations.
• Lead spacecraft assembly, integration, and testing (AI&T) to ensure compliance with mission requirements and timelines.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary engineering teams to resolve technical challenges and optimize design solutions.
• Support launch integration activities, including interfacing with launch providers and ensuring all spacecraft systems are launch‑ready.
• Work closely with the research & development team to integrate, validate cutting technological advancements into spacecraft design and development.
• Provide technical leadership and mentorship to engineering teams, fostering a culture of innovation and continuous improvement.
• Work closely with project management and stakeholders to ensure that all technical objectives are met on time and within budget.
• Communicate and coordinate with suppliers to ensure deliverables are consistent with technical, budgetary, and schedule objectives.

Minimum Qualifications

• Extensive experience in spacecraft design, with a deep understanding of spacecraft systems and subsystems.
• Proven track record in spacecraft assembly, integration, and testing (AI&T).
• Understanding of space mission ground segments, including command and control systems.
• Experience with launch integration, including coordination with launch service providers.
• Understanding of EMC/EMI testing and design considerations for spacecraft.
• Familiarity with orbital mechanics, spacecraft communications systems, and ground segments.
• Excellent problem‑solving skills and the ability to lead multidisciplinary teams.
• Strong communication and leadership abilities, with a focus on collaboration and team development.
• B.S. degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related field is required; advanced degree is preferred but not required.
• Defense and Space Manufacturing

Employment Type: Full‑time

Company Description

Founded in 2021, Proteus Space is a Los Angeles-based satellite technology start‑up established to capitalize on a rapidly evolving space landscape—driven by declining launch costs, a burgeoning space economy, and the urgent need to deliver resilient orbital capabilities to defend our national interests. We combine serious space flight experience with an open‑minded, first‑principles approach, leveraging advanced computational design and Industry 4.0 practices to deliver custom satellite bus solutions with industry‑leading speed, precision, and reliability. We seek to enable every payload and mission with a fully custom, purpose‑built satellite bus, designed and delivered using Proteus™, our patent‑pending, automated computational design platform, with industry‑leading reliability.

Benefits

Proteus Space offers comprehensive benefits including paid medical healthcare for employees, flexible vacation policy, sick days, 401k matching option, pregnancy leave, family leave, holiday pay, military service leave, dental care, vision care and other benefits.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Proteus is committed to providing equal employment opportunity regardless of an applicant’s age, disability, sex, race, religion, gender, national origin, veteran status or any other legally protected characteristic. The Company will provide reasonable accommodations to an applicant with a disability or religious belief in or to enable the applicant to apply for the position.