Sr. Principal SATCOM Field Engineer – (Space/Satellite) Top Secret

At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history.

Northrop Grumman Tactical Space Systems Division is seeking a well-qualified SATCOM Field Engineer to join its dynamic team of technical professionals in Dulles, VA.

Roles and responsibilities will include but may not be limited to:

• Deploy, test, maintain, and troubleshoot satellite ground stations. This will include local and remote-site field work.

• Travel is required to domestic and international sites.

• Provide 24x7 on call Engineering support to operations and Level 1 technicians for failure investigation and resolution.

• Interface with engineering development team to perform independent regression testing and formal validation of new system configurations and capabilities.

• Develop and maintain a communications system test-bed and lab environment.

• Identify shortcomings and potential enhancements and propose practical solutions that improve the lab's functionality and utility to the development team.

• Provide hands-on, practical training of satellite ground station equipment to users.

• Write test procedures, conduct Integration and Test events for new users, review test results and write test reports to include lessons learned during the test events.

• Well-organized, dependable, and comfortable working in a fast-paced, team.

• Environment focused on satisfying the customer's mission.

• Should be a self-starter with the ability to learn quickly, prioritize tasking, and work with minimal supervision.

• Ability to work alone or in a small team in the field. 

• Must be able to work at different elevations and lift a minimum of 40lbs

• Available for occasional periods of extended travel (typically 1-2 weeks but may be as long as 4-6 weeks on some trips).

• Occasional periods of shift work (evening or night) will be required. 

#NOVASPACE

Basic Qualifications:

• 9 Years with bachelor's in science; 7 Years with Masters. (In lieu of a degree, 5 years of military experience will be considered).

• At least 2 years’ experience in the deployment, assembly, operation, maintenance, test, and troubleshooting of ground stations for satellite communications systems at the system level, subsystem level, and component level, including indoor and outdoor equipment.

• Experience in executing test and certification procedures. 

• Experience with identifying and evaluating candidate vendors for commercial off-the-shelf (COTS) satellite ground station components. 

• Familiarity with RF and communications test equipment for performance measurement and troubleshooting (eg. spectrum analyzer, multimeter, power meter, oscilloscope, etc.).

• Working knowledge of computer networks, especially Internet Protocol-based systems, and the network appliances that comprise them (eg, routers, switches, etc.). 

• Working knowledge of computer operating systems, particularly Windows and Linux, and their applications. 

• Experience with the installation of rack-mounted hardware and cable routing, satellite reflector antennas and associated hardware, and the tools required for installing and maintaining this equipment. 

• Ability to read & interpret all types of schematics and wiring diagrams.

• Must be a US citizen with an active TS/SCI clearance.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Military Satellite Communications and RF experience.

• Maintenance and Operations experience a plus

• Computer or network industry certifications a plus.

• CCNA or Security + or Network + certification is a plus

• I&T Engineering experience is a plus

• Familiarization with hand tools (eg. crescent wrench, socket set, torque wrenches, etc.)

Salary Range: $114,300 USD - $171,500 USD

Employees may be eligible for a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.

The health and safety of our employees and their families is a top priority. The company encourages employees to remain up-to-date on their COVID-19 vaccinations. U.S. Northrop Grumman employees may be required, in the future, to be vaccinated or have an approved disability/medical or religious accommodation, pursuant to future court decisions and/or government action on the currently stayed federal contractor vaccine mandate under Executive Order 14042 https://www.saferfederalworkforce.gov/contractors/.

Northrop Grumman is committed to hiring and retaining a diverse workforce. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action 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. For our complete EEO/AA and Pay Transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for most positions.