Chief RF Systems Engineer

SUMMARY:  Be more than just an employee number! Join Terran Orbital, a leader in innovation, manufacturing, and operations in the satellite industry. We are a pioneer in the miniaturization of space technologies and the delivery of responsive space solutions. We are a unique, fast-growing, and trusted team focused on quickly and economically designing, building, launching, and operating state-of-the-art satellites for advanced mission constellations.     Terran Orbital is seeking a motivated and experienced technical leader and space domain expert at one of our U.S. office locations. As a member of our Advanced Systems Team, the Chief RF Systems Engineer will work with Subject Matter Experts (SMEs), business development, growth operations, engineers, and program personnel to formulate, architect, and coordinate the establishment of baseline technical solutions for active and planned pursuits within the space mission pipeline. The individual sought for this position will lead the application of Terran Orbital’s space-based platforms, payloads, ground systems, on-orbit operations capabilities, technical capabilities and internal product growth towards new business opportunities, focusing on RF aspects of communications systems and payloads.This will be fully onsite in our Irvine, CA or Melbourne, FL office.   ESSENTIAL DUTIES/RESPONSIBILITIES:  

• Work within the Advanced Systems Team to support and integrate across the Business Development (BD), Growth Operations, and Engineering Execution Teams to formulate winning technical baseline solutions for Terran Orbital Prime bid opportunities
• Provide support to the Mission Solutions Team to identify, formulate and orchestrate technical baseline comm systems solutions to commercial, international, and US Government (USG) customer sets
• Assist BD in informing and shaping opportunities during customer engagements and leading the technical/mission solutions effort for RF comm systems and payload aspects
• Continually engage with Terran Orbital’s Engineering Management Team (EMT) to ensure mutual understanding of roadmaps, limitations, and goals
• Understand and identify when/where external strategic partnerships are best applied vs. establishing internal capabilities
• Actively engage within the “space community” through presentations, panels, publications, etc., to promote and remain at the leading edge
• Establish, regularly maintain and assess Terran Orbital technology/mission roadmaps for comm systems across the Advanced Systems Team, Growth Operations, BD, EMT, and senior management for awareness and continuity
• Assess end-to-end mission needs/gaps of customers and advance Terran Orbital capabilities to deliver novel solutions and win business
• Engage with potential industry and customer partners to understand their current/future capabilities to enable collaboration in delivering customer comm systems solutions.
• Maintain a comprehensive understanding of the current and future space-related comm systems requirements across all customer bases

QUALIFICATIONS:  

• Hands-on experience with telecom satellite payload hardware
• Ability to be an individual contributor on technical definition, including:
  • Link budgets
  • Definition of modulation and coding solutions
  • Definition of air interface physical and medium access layers
  • Interference analysis
  • System availability and capacity analysis and simulation
  • Payload block diagrams
  • Payload sizing (size, weight, power, thermal)
  • Payload performance budgets (EIRP, G/T, gain/loss, etc.)
  • Antenna performance (reflector, direct radiating array, array fed reflector, etc.)
  • RF hardware specification definition
• Intimate knowledge and connection with key suppliers of RF payload hardware
• Knowledge of legacy customer architectures at deep technical level

  DESIRED SKILLS/EXPERIENCE:  

• Understanding of all business development, capture, proposal, and program management competencies and practices
• Experience with customer relationship management tools
• Understanding of customer solicitation and source selection process
• Demonstrated ability to shape customer selection
• Professional certifications in engineering, related technical disciplines, or management
• Experience building, leading, and maintaining a team of personnel to design and accomplish objectives effectively and efficiently
• Experience leading, coordinating, and contributing technical and cost volumes for large aerospace proposals
• Experience in a fast-paced aerospace environment with quick-turn responses regarding opportunities
• Capable of working autonomously and leading in a team environment

EDUCATION:  

• Bachelor’s degree in Engineering or related field plus additional directly rele