Manager – Avionics Test Engineering @ VAST

At Vast, our mission is to contribute to a future where billions of people are living and thriving in space. We are building artificial gravity space stations, allowing long-term stays in space without the adverse effects of zero-gravity. Our initial crewed space habitat will be Haven-1, scheduled to be the world’s first commercial space station when it launches into low earth orbit in August 2025. Our team is all-in, committed to executing our mission safely and on time. If you want to work with the most talented people on Earth furthering space exploration for humanity, come join us.

Vast is looking for a Manager, Avionics Test Engineering, reporting to the SVP of Engineering, to support the development of hardware systems that will be required for the design and build of artificial-gravity human-rated space stations.

This will be a full-time, exempt position located in our Long Beach location.

Responsibilities:

Recruit, retain and empower a diverse team of engineers to design, develop, and maintain custom test solutions for flight hardware consisting of in-house developed electronics, optics, RF antennas and modulators, and electro-mechanical hardware
Set and lead the avionics test strategy and drive overall results against business objectives
Select commercial-off-the-shelf hardware and/or design custom PCBAs to measure signals, apply flight-like loads, and power units under test
Work with other software teams to make use of existing infrastructure as well as write automation software in Python to interact with units under test, test equipment, instrumentation, and production documentation systems
Work closely with and consistently provide feedback to responsible design engineers, manufacturing engineers, and test lab teams to drive innovation in design and infrastructure to increase product reliability and yield
Manage the evaluation and selection of technologies, tools, and third-party partners
Root-cause test anomalies and failures during various states of testing and development to ensure they are understood and implement mitigations

Minimum Qualifications:

Bachelor of Science degree in electrical engineering, computer engineering, or related engineering discipline
5+ years of experience with design, development, test, and verification
3+ years of experience in a management position with engineering direct reports

Preferred Skills & Experience:

Master of Science degree in electrical engineering, or related engineering discipline
Experience analyzing circuits and developing functional test plans
Experience developing object-oriented software
Experience designing and troubleshooting PCBAs
Experience with test equipment such as oscilloscopes, DMMs, DAQs and measurement techniques to verify and validate product electronic requirements
Experience with RF test equipment including spectrum analyzers, vector network analyzers, and signal generators
Understanding of electrical schematics and electronics manufacturing to analyze and improve test coverage
Create and use tools such as Fault Tree Analysis (FTA), Failure Modes Effects and Criticality Analysis (FMEA/FMECA), and Fault Containment Regions (FCRs) to identify critical test criteria
Understanding of metrology, sources of measurement error, and uncertainty analysis
Understanding and experience in environmental testing such as HALT, HASS, vibration, shock, thermal, TVAC, and EMI/EMC

Salary Range: California

$160,000—$200,000 USD

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

Base salary will vary depending on job-related knowledge, education, skills, experience, business needs, and market demand. Salary is just one component of our comprehensive compensation package. Full-time employees also receive company equity, as well as access to a full suite of compelling benefits and perks, including: 100% medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and dependents, flexible paid time off for exempt staff and up to 15 days of vacation for non-exempt staff, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, free catered meals and snacks and beverages, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, One Medical membership, ClassPass credits, personalized mental healthcare through Spring Health, and other discounts and perks.

U.S. EXPORT CONTROL COMPLIANCE STATUS

The person hired will have access to information and items subject to U.S. export controls, and therefore, must either be a “U.S. person” as defined by 22 C.F.R. § 120.62 or otherwise eligible for deemed export licensing. This status includes U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, lawful permanent residents (green card holders), and asylees and refugees with such status granted, not pending.

EQUAL OPPORTUNITY

Vast is an Equal Opportunity Employer; employment with Vast is governed on the basis of merit, competence and qualifications and will not be influenced in any manner by race, color, religion, gender, national origin/ethnicity, veteran status, disability status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, mental or physical disability or any other legally protected status.

Compensation Overview

6 month growth

1 year growth

2 year growth