Principal Systems Engineer

Principal Systems Engineer

We have an exciting opportunity for a Principal Systems Engineer, supporting one of our premier programs within the Mission Engineering and Platform & Security Integration (PSI) Agile Release Train (ART). In this role, you will help design and deliver common application capabilities supporting a next-generation satellite Command and Control (C2) system. As part of the Application Services team, you will partner with software engineers, architects, and product leadership to develop reusable capabilities that improve consistency, reliability, observability, and developer productivity across the program. This position is contingent upon contract award. The work is on-site in Aurora, CO.

What You Will Do

• Lead systems engineering activities for reusable Application Services capabilities from concept through verification.
• Define functional behavior, interfaces, operational scenarios, acceptance criteria, and verification strategies for common application capabilities.
• Design observability solutions supporting application instrumentation, metrics, logging, tracing, health monitoring, alerting, and mission awareness across mission-critical services.
• Develop verification strategies supporting automated unit, feature, integration, and end-to-end testing.
• Collaborate with software engineers to design and support automated test scenarios using Playwright or similar UI/API automation frameworks.
• Develop reusable engineering artifacts, design patterns, and shared services that improve consistency and reduce duplication across Agile product teams.
• Partner with Platform Engineering, Site Reliability Engineering (SRE), Cyber Engineering, and application development teams to integrate common capabilities within CI/CD and DevSecOps workflows.
• Participate in technical reviews, Program Increment (PI) Planning, demonstrations, customer technical exchanges, and integration events while maintaining a systems-level perspective.

Qualifications You Must Have

• Typically requires a Bachelor's Degree in Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) and a minimum of 8 years of prior relevant experience.
• Experience performing Systems Engineering on software-intensive systems, including requirements definition, interface development, and verification planning.
• Experience collaborating with software development teams in Agile environments and supporting software testing throughout the systems engineering lifecycle.
• Experience translating mission needs into technical solutions with strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Active and transferable U.S. government-issued TS/SCI 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 developing automated test scenarios using Playwright or similar UI/API automation frameworks.
• Experience designing observability solutions utilizing technologies such as OpenTelemetry, Prometheus, Grafana, or similar platforms.
• Experience with distributed systems, microservices, Kubernetes, containerized applications, and cloud-native architectures.
• Experience with CI/CD pipelines, DevSecOps practices, Infrastructure as Code (IaC), and automation scripting.
• Experience with Model-Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) methodologies and digital engineering practices.
• Experience incorporating AI capabilities for anomaly detection, predictive analytics, intelligent alerting, root cause analysis, or log intelligence.
• Experience developing reusable software frameworks, shared services, or common engineering capabilities supporting multiple Agile product teams.
• Experience working with customers, operators, and external stakeholders to translate operational needs into engineering solutions.
• Experience supporting satellite Command and Control (C2), mission management, or other software-intensive defense systems.

What We Offer

• Our values drive our actions, behaviors, and performance with a vision for a safer, more connected world. At RTX we value: Safety, Trust, Respect, Accountability, Collaboration, and Innovation.
• Relocation eligible.

Learn More & Apply Now!

Please consider the following role type definition as you apply for this role:

• Onsite: Employees who are working in onsite roles will work primarily onsite. This includes all production and maintenance employees, as they are essential to the development of our products.
• This position requires a security clearance. DCSA Consolidated Adjudication Services (DCSA CAS), an agency of the Department of Defense, handles and adjudicates the security clearance process. More information about Security Clearances can be found on the U.S. Department of State website.
• Location: Aurora, CO.

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. Hired applicants may be eligible for benefits, including but not limited to, 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, and holidays. Specific benefits are dependent upon the specific business unit as well as whether or not the position is covered by a collective-bargaining agreement. 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. Payments under these annual programs are not guaranteed and are dependent upon a variety of factors including, but not limited to, individual performance, business unit performance, and/or the company's performance. 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. RTX anticipates the application window closing approximately 40 days from the date the notice was posted. However, factors such as candidate flow and business necessity may require RTX to shorten or extend the application window.

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.

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