Sr. Principal Electronics Communications Engineer

Northrop Grumman; Palmdale (CA); On-site; USD 142,200 - 213,400; Full time

Job summary

Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems in Palmdale, CA is seeking a Sr. Principal Electronics Communications Engineer to join the Avionics Integration Organization, supporting new capabilities within Air Dominance.

Relocation assistance may be available. Top Secret clearance required to start. Travel up to 25%. This position is full‑time, on‑site with no remote or hybrid options.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in a STEM field with 8+ years of related engineering experience.
• Master’s degree in STEM with 6+ years experience.
• PhD in STEM with 4 years experience.

Responsibilities

• Execute the program baseline and manage suppliers to meet requirements.
• Support the program manager to manage technical, cost, and schedule baselines.
• Lead a cross-discipline team to achieve technical objectives for the program.
• Identify risks and address issues with engineering teams and program leadership.
• Oversee laboratories and align capabilities into the system certification plan.
• Address and correct deliverable subsystem performance concerns using program tools.
• Identify opportunities for cost and schedule improvements and implement with engineering teams.
• Provide hands-on support for risk reduction activities in labs and production facilities.

Skills

Communications

Payloads

Network subsystems

Education

Bachelor's degree in STEM

Master's degree in STEM

PhD in STEM

Tools

Network certifications (Network+, Security+, CCNA)

Job description

Overview

Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems is looking to add a Sr. Principal Electronics Communications Engineer to join our team in Palmdale, CA. This position will be in our Avionics Integration Organization and will support the development of new capabilities within the Air Dominance organization.

Relocation assistance may be available. Top Secret clearance required to start. Travel up to 25% of the time. This position is full‑time, on‑site with no remote or hybrid options.

Roles and Responsibilities

• Executing the technical baseline of the program including managing the appropriate suppliers to ensure requirements are met on time
• Supporting the development program manager to manage the technical, cost, and schedule baselines for contractual development activities
• Leading a team of cross‑discipline engineers to accomplish technical objectives for the program
• Working independently to proactively identify and address risks and issues and bringing those items to appropriate engineering teams and program leadership
• Providing oversight of program laboratories and aligning new capabilities into an enterprise system certification plan
• Addressing and correcting deliverable subsystem performance concerns via program‑identified tools/systems on behalf of the program leadership team
• Identifying opportunities for cost and schedule improvement and working with engineering teams to implement in accordance with approved program process
• Providing hands‑on support for risk reduction activities in our laboratory and production facilities

Basic Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree in a STEM discipline and 8 years of related engineering experience; OR a Master’s degree in a STEM discipline and 6 years of related engineering experience; OR a PhD in a STEM discipline and 4 years of related engineering experience
• Experience working with Communications, Payloads, and Network subsystems
• Experience integrating complex subsystems together, leveraging System Engineering best practices
• Experience in working with operations community to gather feedback and requirements to ensure delivered systems are being effectively employed to meet customer needs
• Experience briefing technical material in large group settings including design reviews, program management reviews, and internal executive briefings
• A U.S. Citizen with Active DoD Top Secret/SCI clearance OR active DoD Top Secret clearance with SCI eligibility (with a background investigation within the past 5 years or enrolled into Continuous Evaluation)
• Must have the ability to obtain and maintain Special Access Program (SAP) clearance, within a reasonable amount of time as determined by business needs

Preferred Qualifications

• Current applicable Special Access Program (SAP) clearance
• Network training/certifications (Network+, Security+, CCNA, etc.)
• Experienced with antenna theory, modulation/encoding schemes, satellite communications, and tactical data links
• Familiarity with common industry standards related to communications and network‑based systems, such as MIL-STD-1553, RS-232/422, Ethernet (IPv4/IPv6)

Benefits

Primary Level Salary Range: $142,200.00 - $213,400.00. Employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, discretionary bonuses, long‑term incentives, health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, paid holidays, paid time off for vacation, and other personal business.

Equal Opportunity Employer

Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.