Principal Platform Software Engineer

At RTX, the world's largest aerospace and defense company, 185,000 great minds are united by purpose and inspired to make a difference solving the world’s most complex problems. With our three market leading businesses, world-class operations and investments in research and development, we offer capabilities and opportunity no one else can. Together, we push the boundaries of known science and find new ways to connect and protect our world. Raytheon brings the strength of more than 100 years of experience and renowned engineering expertise to meet the needs of today’s mission and stay ahead of tomorrow’s threat. We deliver solutions that help our nation and allies defend freedoms and deter aggression, creating a safer, more secure world. Join us and help shape the future of aerospace and defense.

We are seeking a Principal Platform Engineer to join the Missile Defense Sensors (MDS) Software Department. The MDS Software mission is to provide world-class radar and Command and Control (C2) Software for our customers’ wide array of surveillance and warning systems. Platform Engineers are responsible for designing, optimizing, and maintaining the critical software infrastructure that underpins these systems. The ideal candidate will bring experience in platform design, system integration, automation, and performance optimization, as well as the ability to collaborate across teams to deliver high-quality solutions. This will be an onsite role in either Woburn, MA or Tewksbury, MA depending on the program assigned.

What You Will Do

• Own the design, development, and maintenance of the platform architecture and modernization strategies that support mission‑critical radar and Command and/or Control systems.
• Architect and spearhead the development and management of advanced tools and frameworks to ensure secure, automated build, test and release processes at scale using CI/CD pipelines and DevSecOps workflows.
• Collaborate with cross‑functional teams, including software developers, system engineers, and test teams, to ensure seamless integration of application software into system platforms.
• Drive the optimization of platform performance, reliability, and scalability to meet the specific needs of defense programs.
• Architect and maintain secure computing environments, adhering to cybersecurity best practices and compliance standards.
• Lead and execute advanced system‑level integration, troubleshooting, and debugging of platform‑related issues during development, testing, and operational phases.
• Champion efforts to improve platform automation and monitoring, leveraging tools such as Ansible, Terraform, and Kubernetes.
• Provide leadership in an Agile Scrum/Kanban environment, supporting planning, estimation and technical execution.
• Represent the platform engineering discipline in major design reviews, customer meetings and technical boards.
• Establish platform engineering standards and best practices driving initiatives that raise DevSecOps maturity, expand Infrastructure‑as‑Code adoption, and increase automation coverage.
• Provide mentorship to junior and senior engineers and contribute to knowledge‑sharing within the team.

Qualifications – You Must Have

• Typically requires a Bachelor’s in Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) and a minimum of 8 years of prior relevant experience unless prohibited by local laws/regulations.
• Expertise in Linux platform engineering and administration.
• Experience architecting or leading mission‑critical platform and DevSecOps environments for real‑time systems.
• Experience with Docker, Kubernetes, Terraform, Ansible and virtualization tools such as VMware/KVM.
• Experience with scripting and automation tools such as Python, Bash and/or PowerShell.
• Experience with CI/CD systems and secure build/deployment architectures.
• The ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government‑issued security clearance is required prior to start date.
• U.S. citizenship is required, as only U.S. citizens are eligible for a security clearance.

Qualifications – We Prefer

• Experience with network configuration, protocols, and troubleshooting tools.
• Experience with large‑scale, real‑time systems, including radar or Command and Control systems or similar.
• Experience with DevSecOps practices and tools.
• Experience with graphing software such as Grafana.
• Experience with Agile management tools such as JIRA and Confluence.
• Experience with advanced performance tuning, monitoring, and troubleshooting of system platforms.
• Experience in high‑availability systems, distributed architectures, or high‑performance computing environments.
• Strong analytical and problem‑solving skills.
• Proven ability to work in a fast‑paced, dynamic environment with time‑critical requirements.
• Experience leading teams or mentoring junior engineers to develop technical skills and foster collaboration.
• A passion for continuous learning and cross‑team collaboration.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, vision, life insurance.
• Short‑term disability, long‑term disability, 401(k) match.
• Flexible spending accounts, flexible work schedules, employee assistance program.
• Employee Scholar Program, parental leave, paid time off, holidays.
• Hired applicants may be eligible for annual short‑term and/or long‑term incentive compensation programs depending on the level of the position and whether or not it is covered by a collective‑bargaining agreement.

Salary

The salary range for this role is 107,500 USD – 204,500 USD. The salary range provided is a good faith estimate representative of all experience levels. RTX considers several factors when extending an offer, including but not limited to, the role, function and associated responsibilities, a candidate’s work experience, location, education/training, and key skills.

Additional Information

This role is a U.S.-based role. If the successful candidate resides in a U.S. territory, the appropriate pay structure and benefits will apply.

Equality & Diversity

RTX is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability or veteran status, or any other applicable state or federal protected class. RTX provides affirmative action in employment for qualified Individuals with a Disability and Protected Veterans in compliance with Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act and the Vietnam Era Veterans’ Readjustment Assistance Act.

About RTX

RTX is an aerospace and defense company that provides advanced systems and services for commercial, military and government customers worldwide. It comprises three industry‑leading businesses – Collins Aerospace, Pratt & Whitney, and Raytheon. Its 195,000 employees enable the company to operate at the edge of known science as they imagine and deliver solutions that push the boundaries in quantum physics, electric propulsion, directed energy, hypersonics, avionics and cybersecurity. The company, formed in 2020 through the combination of Raytheon Company and the United Technologies Corporation aerospace businesses, is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia.