Application close date:
Applications will be accepted on an ongoing basis until the requisition is closed.
As a Mission Planner on the Service Operations Team, you will be responsible for developing and maintaining integrated mission schedules that enable successful spacecraft planning and operations throughout the Blue Ring lifecycle. You'll coordinate across engineering teams, payload customers, and operations personnel to translate mission objectives into executable plans while optimizing resource utilization. Your expertise in mission analysis, orbital mechanics, and scheduling will be essential in managing complex, multi-manifest spacecraft operations and ensuring customer satisfaction.
Special Mentions: Based at Reston, VA, or Seattle, WA, offices. Relocation provided.
Responsibilities:- Support real-time Blue Ring mission operations execution as an on-console flight crew member; operations primarily occur during business hours, with periods of shift work including nights, weekends, and holidays as required by mission objectives, and on-call availability for operational support.
- Develop and maintain schedules for spacecraft operations, balancing operational priorities, customer activities, engineering tasks, and resource constraints.
- Perform strategic and tactical scheduling of ground network resources and spacecraft activities to maximize mission effectiveness.
- Generate and validate command sequences and mission planning products for routine operations and mission-critical events.
- Coordinate with astrodynamics, flight dynamics, and engineering teams to integrate trajectory and maneuver planning into operational timelines.
- Support customer mission planning activities, translating customer requests into feasible, executable schedules while ensuring alignment with operational constraints.
- Support the development, design, and optimization of mission planning CONOPs and mission planning/flight dynamics software suite.
- Support astrodynamics with mission analysis including contact opportunity analysis and resource optimization studies.
- Perform deconfliction analysis to ensure all scheduled activities comply with spacecraft operational constraints, resource availability, and mission priorities.
- Collaborate with mission planning software developers and operations development teams to ensure operational constraints and requirements are properly captured and integrated into planning tools, supporting continuous alignment between system capabilities and mission execution needs
- Design, develop, and refine mission planning tools and automation capabilities to improve operational efficiency and scalability.
Qualifications: - Minimum of a B.S. degree in engineering or equivalent technical field
- 3+ years of related experience in one or a combination of the following: systems engineering, spaceflight operations, flight dynamics and/or satellite mission planning
- Experience with satellite tasking, ground contact planning, activity planning, flight dynamics, orbital mechanics, and/or orbit analysis
- Experience developing and/or optimizing mission planning processes
- Experience with command and control systems or mission planning software platforms
- Software development experience in Python or equivalent programming language
- Ability to work collaboratively in a fast-paced, dynamic work environment with multiple stakeholders and competing priorities
- Strong communication and coordination skills for interfacing with customers, engineering teams, and operations personnel
- Ability to earn trust, build positive professional relationships, contribute to a culture of inclusion, and collaborate with individuals of varying backgrounds to achieve mission success
Desired: - M.S. in Aerospace Engineering, Systems Engineering, or related field
- Top Secret / Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) Eligible
- Demonstrated proficiency in orbital mechanics principles, satellite dynamics, and control theory, with a strong foundation in academic or professional experience
- Familiarity with, or experience in, Model-Based Systems Engineering, such as System Models and/or System Architecture diagrams
- Experience with hosted or separable payload mission planning and operations
- Knowledge of electric propulsion systems and low-thrust trajectory planning
- Familiarity with ground station networks, RF communications planning, and link budget analysis
- Experience with supporting pre-launch development of mission planning software and CONOPs
- Experience with automating mission planning processes and tools
Base Pay Range for:
WA applicants is $130,706.00 - $182,987.70
Other site ranges may differBenefits- Benefits include: Medical, dental, vision, basic and supplemental life insurance, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability, 401(k) with a company match of up to 5%, and an Education Support Program.
- Stock Options for all regular employees (working at least 20 hours/week)
- Paid Time Off: Up to four (4) weeks per year based on weekly scheduled hours, and up to 14 company-paid holidays.
- Dependent on role type and job level, employees may be eligible for benefits and bonuses based on the company's intent to reward individual contributions and enable them to share in the company's results, or other factors at the company's sole discretion. Bonus amounts and eligibility are not guaranteed and subject to change and cancellation. Please check with your recruiter for more details.
