Principal / Sr. Principal Engineer Software - Virtualization

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: Relocation assistance may be available

CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: Yes

CLEARANCE TYPE: Secret

TRAVEL: Yes, 10% of the Time Description

At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work - and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history.

The Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems (NGAS) Global Surveillance division is seeking a Principal Engineer Software - Virtualization ( Level 3) OR Sr. Principal Engineer Software - Virtualization ( Level 4) to join our team of qualified, diverse individuals within our Test & Evaluation organization in Melbourne, FL .

In this role, the engineer will be responsible for the design, development, deployment, and enhancement of advanced software solutions, specifically focused on laboratory test bench virtualization for flight control, communication, and mission system functionalities. The ideal candidate will have a strong technical background, a proactive approach to problem-solving, and a commitment to driving innovative improvements.

As a collaborative team member in our agile development process, the Principal Engineer Software OR Sr. Principal Engineer Software will assist in designing and implementing virtualization builds, releases, deployments, and configurations of the virtual lab environment. The individual will work with internal stakeholders to gather requirements and support the design of effective solutions while participating in development and testing activities. Additional responsibilities include reviews, troubleshooting, and resolving operational issues. This role will ensure that different modules and systems work together seamlessly and meet testing standards.


We offer flexible work arrangements, 9/80 work schedule with every other Friday off, phenomenal learning opportunities, exposure to a wide variety of projects and customers, and a very friendly team environment. We are looking for self-motivated, proactive, and goal-oriented people to help us grow our services and become even better at what we do.

Key Responsibilities may include, but are not limited to:

• Assist in the development of the virtual lab topology (compute, storage, networking) using industry standard hypervisors and container orchestration.
• Develop automation scripts (IaC) for provisioning, configuration, and lifecycle management of lab resources.
• Build or integrate device emulation layers that expose virtual instruments to end users via standard protocols.
• Implement audit logging to meet security and compliance requirements.
• Create CI/CD pipelines for continuous delivery of lab images, updates, and patches.
• Produce comprehensive documentation (design diagrams, SOPs, user guides) and train lab administrators.
• Work closely with domain experts to translate experimental procedures into reproducible virtual workflows.

Basic Qualifications:

This requisition may be filled at a Principal Engineer Software - Virtualization ( Level 3) OR Sr. Principal Engineer Software - Virtualization ( Level 4) level based on the qualifications below.

Principal Engineer Software - Virtualization ( Level 3)

• Must have a Bachelor's Degree in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math) discipline and 5 years of related professional/military experience in a Software environment ; OR a Master's Degree in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math) discipline and 3 years of related professional/military experience in a Software environment; OR a Ph.D. in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math) discipline and 1 year of related professional/military experience in a Software environment.
• Must have an active DoD Secret or higher clearance (with a background investigation completed within the last 6 years or currently enrolled into Continuous Evaluation) and the ability to obtain and maintain Special Access Program (SAP) clearance, within a reasonable amount of time as determined by the company to meet its business needs.
• Willingness and ability to obtain a RedHat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA) certification
• Experience using Git or similar version control systems
• Experience working across Windows and/or Linux environments (e.g., RHEL, Debian, Ubtuntu, or similar distributions)

Sr. Principal Engineer Software - Virtualization ( Level 4)

• Must have a Bachelor's Degree in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math) discipline and 8 years of related professional/military experience in a Software environment ; OR a Master's Degree in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math) discipline and 6 years of related professional/military experience in a Software environment; OR a Ph.D. in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, or Math) discipline and 4 years of related professional/military experience in a Software environment.
• Must have an active DoD Secret or higher clearance (with a background investigation completed within the last 6 years or currently enrolled into Continuous Evaluation) and the ability to obtain and maintain Special Access Program (SAP) clearance, within a reasonable amount of time as determined by the company to meet its business needs.
• Willingness and ability to obtain a RedHat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA) certification
• Experience using Git or similar version control systems
• Experience working across Windows and/or Linux environments (e.g., RHEL, Debian, Ubtuntu, or similar distributions)

Preferred Qualifications:

• Experience with systemd, (e.g., use of systemctl, journalctl)
• Experience with hypervisors (e.g. VMWare ESXi, Xen, kvm, Hyper-V), virtualization, and creating virtual machines
• A RedHat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA) certification
• Experience with hardware-in-the-loop (HIL) and software-in-the-loop (SIL) testing approaches.
• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively in a multi-disciplinary team and to communicate effectively with a range of technical and non-technical stakeholders.
• Experience with setting up and configuring a firewall and reverse proxy software PFSense or OPNSense and HAProxy or nginx
• Experience working with OS automation tools
• Experience with implementing and tailoring the implementation of DOD STIGs
• An active DoD Top Secret level security clearance.

Primary Level Salary Range: $98,400.00 - $147,600.00

Secondary Level Salary Range: $122,800.00 - $184,200.00

The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions.

Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.

The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.

Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.