Senior Space Systems Engineer, Flight Safety Verified today
About Varda
Varda is building commercial space infrastructure for in-orbit pharmaceutical processing and reliable reentry capsules. The company designs, builds, and operates W-Series vehicles in-house, including pharmaceutical payloads, capsules, C-PICA heat shields, and satellite buses.
The Role
You will serve as the primary architect for mission safety and reentry compliance, joining the Mission Assurance team. You will lead development of the Flight Safety Analysis and regulatory strategy required for FAA Part 450 and Range Safety licensing. This role bridges complex engineering trades with regulatory approval, from defining safety-critical verification artifacts during design to supporting live on-console operations.
Responsibilities
- Own the technical regulatory strategy, Means of Compliance, and safety cases for FAA launch and reentry authorizations
- Own vehicle-level functional hazard analyses (FHA) and failure mode and effect analyses (FMEA)
- Maintain Expected Casualty and debris risk models to ensure all mission phases meet regulatory safety thresholds
- Establish technical safety limits and mission rules for real-time on-console operations
- Deliver vehicle-level regulatory documentation to support mission reentry licenses and authorizations
- Act as the Flight Safety responsible engineer during mission rehearsals and live recovery operations
Basic Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in aerospace, mechanical, electrical, manufacturing, systems engineering or related field
- Minimum 5 years of relevant aerospace engineering experience, with a previous role involving mission assurance, flight safety, or a senior systems engineering role
- Demonstrated experience with FAA Part 450, expected casualty modeling, trajectory dispersion, and/or debris analysis
- Excellent communication skills, with the ability to influence cross-functional teams and present to executives, customers, and regulators
- Strong experience with risk management methodologies and tools (FMEA, FHA, Fault Tree Analysis)
- Experience with integration of interdisciplinary systems in the aerospace industry
Preferred Skills and Experience
- Demonstrated safety critical mission operations in aviation or space applications
- Proven experience navigating the FCC Part 25 (Commercial) or Part 5 (Experimental) licensing process for satellite and reentry communications
- Lean approach to quality without compromising safety or reliability
Compensation and Location
Salary range: $140,333 to $179,314 per year. This role is on-site in El Segundo, California. Leveling and base salary determined by job-related skills, education, experience, and performance. You will be eligible for stock options and/or long-term cash awards.
Benefits
Regular full-time position benefits include:
- Flexible PTO policy plus 12 paid holidays
- 100% company-paid Medical, Dental, and Vision insurance for employees and dependents, with FSA and employer-matched HSA
- Voluntary accident, hospital, critical illness, and pet insurance
- $120 per month wellness reimbursement
- 12 weeks parental leave
- Family building, pregnancy, parenting, and menopause benefits via Maven Clinic
- Sponsored One Medical memberships
- Substantial equity in a fully funded space company
- 401(k) retirement plan with 6% employer match (immediately vested)
- $20 per pay period cell phone reimbursement
- Relocation support for new hires
- Fully stocked kitchen with daily lunch and twice-weekly dinner
- Company and team-bonding events
- Complimentary EV charging
ITAR and Work Authorization
Varda requires employees to be lawfully authorized to work in the U.S. and must hire only U.S. persons as defined by export control regulations. U.S. person means: U.S. citizen, U.S. lawful permanent resident, or protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3) (refugee or asylee status). Varda participates in E-Verify.