Chief Space Vehicle Systems Engineer

Job ID: 2619097
Location: El Segundo, CA, US
Date Posted: 2026-11-13
Category: Engineering and Sciences
Subcategory: Systems Engineer
Schedule: Full-Time
Shift: Day Job
Travel: Yes - 10% of the time
Minimum Clearance Required: TS.SCI
Clearance Level Must Be Able to Obtain: TS/SCI with Poly
Potential for Remote Work: ORA_ON_SITE
Description
SAIC is seeking a highly experienced Chief Space Vehicle Systems Engineer to support a USSF Space Systems Command (SSC) SV program. You will work in customer facilities in El Segundo, CA, directly sitting with our Customer to provide our support. This role requires extensive expertise in space systems engineering and space vehicle development,
You will serve as a critical embedded member of the Government applying advanced space systems engineering principles to shape and deliver the next generation capability. The role emphasizes leveraging streamlined acquisition frameworks while ensuring delivering of space systems. Your expertise will be instrumental in driving program planning, risk mitigation, technical oversight, and technical review to provide subject matter expertise (SME) recommendations to the Government program for successful management and execution of space vehicle programs.
Fun stuff you will do on the job

• Support the Government program manager (GPM) and chief engineer (CE) as a key technical representative for a major space system acquisition
• Engage with Space Vehicle (SV) Contractors to evaluate hardware and software designs against Government generated requirements
• Lead technical requirements analysis and development, systems engineering, and oversee development Contractors to develop, design, produce, integrate and test space systems
• Oversee integration and test of payloads
• Perform system requirements and interface definition development
• Provide analysis and recommendations to SV design to ensure technical and performance requirements are being met by the Contractor
• Work with Government Customer to manage and negotiate interface control documents with external stakeholders and ensure internal and external interfaces are being met
• Provide inputs to System of Systems integration of SV design to overall space systems architecture, ground segment, operations and on-orbit test
• Provide assessment and recommendations to execution schedules and life cycle costs
• Partner with Government CE to provide oversight and review of requirements verification and validation
• Provide inputs and assessment of Contractor risk management and provides actionable recommendations to the chief engineer and program manager
  Independently collaborates with Government program office representatives, FFRDC, SETA, and contractor personnel

Qualifications
This is you:

• Bachelor of Science and eighteen (18) years or more experience or Master's and sixteen (16) years or more experience
• Experience with SV / Space Payload development, integration, and/or operations of DoW or other Agency (NRO, NSA, NASA, etc.)
• Experience leading SV teams focused on integration of complex space and/ or ground systems
• Experience applying Systems Engineering principles to the execution of SV and / or payload development, build and I&T
• Experience with SV subsystem development and requirements (e.g. power, guidance, command & control, structures, etc...)
• Experience in overall SV development, integration, test and delivery
• Understanding of Risk Management process
• Good communication skills to peers and customer leadership
• Must have an in-scope security background investigation (T5 or SSBI), adjudicated for SCI eligibility and enrolled in the Continuous Evaluation program (if applicable)
• Must be willing to be nominated for access to Sensitive Compartment Information and Special Access Programs and willing to consent to a Polygraph examination

Great additional background and skills:

• 20 years or more of experience with SV development and delivery
• Experience with integration & test of payloads onto spacecraft
• Familiarity with DoW acquisition processes
• Experience as a project/program manager on SV or Spacecraft Bus program/project
• Familiarity with ground systems and SV operations
• Experience with Launch Systems Integration
• Are a SME in one or more key Space Vehicle subsystems
• Have experience with development and execution of Risk & Opportunities Registers
• Experience with Integrated Master Schedules (IMS) for program execution and management

Target salary range: $200,001 - $240,000. The estimate displayed represents the typical salary range for this position based on experience and other factors.
SAIC is a premier technology integrator providing full life cycle services and solutions in the technical, engineering, intelligence, and enterprise information technology markets. SAIC is Redefining Ingenuity through its deep customer and domain knowledge to enable the delivery of systems engineering and integration offerings for large, complex projects. SAIC's approximately 15,000 employees are driven by integrity and mission focus to serve customers in the U.S. federal government. Headquartered in Reston, Virginia, SAIC has annual revenues of approximately $4.5 billion. For more information, visit saic.com. For information on the benefits SAIC offers, see .