Ground Station Systems Engineer

About us

At Viasat, the work you do helps people stay connected in ways that matter, from everyday moments to critical missions across air, land, sea, and space.

We’re a place for people who are curious, bold, and motivated by meaningful work. Here, you'll have the opportunity to make an impact, explore new possibilities, and grow your career in ways that align with your interests and goals. When you're ready to take on something new, you'll find leaders who support your development and help you turn your ambition into action.

What you'll do

Come join us as we build complete antenna systems "from RF to bits."

In this role you will work on:

• Radio frequency transmit/receive electronics, high-speed modems, and software systems that deliver a stream of bits to the end customer
• Mechanical structures that form the antenna
• Motors and controllers that position the reflectors

At our Atlanta, GA (Duluth) office we have outdoor test facilities including a multi-system, multi-pad boresite range, two planar nearfield ranges, and nearby a 1500-foot elevated pattern range with associated control room. With proven capability in Satellite communications, and antennas, Viasat is able to provide groundbreaking communications systems for both commercial and government customers. You can use your project engineering expertise to technically lead the building of the next generation of sophisticated antenna products and satellite communications terminals!

The day-to-day

As an authority in your field, you will coordinate and lead all technical aspects of an antenna systems program! Beginning with requirements and concept discussions, analysis with potential customers, the generation of a formal proposal, resulting in a contract award. You would own the detailed system design, and lead all aspects of the implementation, test, system verification, delivery, and sell off of the completed system to the customer. You will be a key member of the division involved with the various aspects of ground terminals, including business development, proposal generation, systems engineering, and project engineering

What you'll need

• 5+ years experience working on complex systems
• Bachelor of Science degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or closely related field
• Direct experience with satellite communication antennas and ground/earth stations with multiple fielded projects
• Direct experience conducting analysis for ground stations - namely G/T and EIRP 
• Direct experience defining, decomposing, allocating, and managing system‑level requirements and traceability
• Direct experience leading complex projects with multi-disciplinary team of engineers
• Direct experience leading design reviews, readiness reviews, bids/ proposals and external customer and internal presentations
• Proven capabilities to conceptualize, design, implement, and test field satellite ground terminals, antenna telemetry systems, or similarly complex systems 
• Capable of developing test plans and procedures for requirements verification of sophisticated systems
• Willing to come into the Duluth, GA office during the work week
• US Citizenship
• Travel up to 10%

What will help you on the job

• Experience in calculating end-to-end space-to-ground link availability, rain fade margins, cascade analysis
• Experience with tracking antenna pedestals, servo-control loops, program/track/autotrack systems
• Experience working with digital modems, software-defined radios
• Experience in high frequency (Q/V/E-bands) antenna systems
• Experience in MATLAB
• Experience in DOORS, Jama or requirements management tools
• Experience is Models Based System Engineering (MBSE) tools such as Cameo
• Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or closely related field
• Strong verbal and writing skills
• Ability to obtain and maintain a US Government Security clearance

Salary range

$120,500.00 - $190,000.00 / annually. For specific work locations within San Jose, the San Francisco Bay area and New York City metropolitan area, the base pay range for this role is $149,500.00- $224,500.00/ annually



At Viasat, we consider many factors when it comes to compensation, including the scope of the position as well as your background and experience. Base pay may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience. Additional cash or stock incentives may be provided as part of the compensation package, in addition to a range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits, dependent on the position offered. Learn more about Viasat’s comprehensive benefit offerings that are focused on your holistic health and wellness at https://careers.viasat.com/benefits.
EEO Statement

Viasat is proud to be an equal opportunity employer, seeking to create a welcoming and diverse environment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, marital status, genetics, age, or veteran status or any other applicable legally protected status or characteristic. If you would like to request an accommodation on the basis of disability for completing this on-line application, please click here.