Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems has an opening for a Principal or Sr. Principal Flight Control Actuation System (FCAS) Engineer to join our team in El Segundo, CA.
The selected candidate will support the flight control actuation system (FCAS) design and analysis needs of unclassified and classified programs. The engineer will work independently and collaborate across multiple teams to deliver quality solutions.
The role is dynamic as members of the team handle a broad range of activities across multiple phases of the program to include development, production, and operational support.
Essential Functions:
- Integrate avionics hardware, accounting for hardware capabilities/limitations, defining interfaces, and incorporating required redundancy.
- Support proposal development, technical planning, verification & validation, cost & risk analysis, and trade studies.
- Perform project planning to determine program requirements and develop plans for program execution
- Interface with external FCAS suppliers and manage external FCAS supplier activities
- Develop and present materials for internal and external program related briefings
- Interact with key cross-discipline stakeholders to achieve program objectives in a timely manner
- Perform technical and ICD writing, task planning, and technical peer reviews
- Work on complex technical problems and provide solutions which are highly innovative
- Collaborate and execute on long-range goals and objectives.
- Develop advanced technological ideas and guide development into a final product.
The anticipated travel for this position is approximately 25%.
This position can be filled at either the Principal Flight Control Actuation System (FCAS) Engineer level or the Sr. Principal Flight Control Actuation System (FCAS) Engineer level, depending upon the qualifications below.
Basic Qualifications for Principal Flight Control Actuation System (FCAS) Engineer:
- Bachelors Degree in a related Science, Technology, Engineering or Math (STEM) and 5 years of relevant experience; OR a Master's Degree in a related STEM discipline with 3 years of relevant experience; OR a PhD in a related STEM discipline with 1 year of relevant experience
- Demonstrated experience with avionics development or background in electronics engineering
- Experience with subsystem integration and developing/maintaining Interface Control Documents (ICDs)
- Experience with requirements management and verification practices
- Experience developing, testing, and integrating Flight Control Actuation Systems
- Experience using MATLAB to create, process, analyze, and visually represent data
- Experience with supplier management; technical artifact review and adjudication as part of development activities
- Must have the ability to obtain and maintain a US Government Secret clearance and Special Access Program (SAP).
Basic Qualifications for Senior Principal Flight Control Actuation System (FCAS) Engineer:
- Bachelors Degree in a related Science, Technology, Engineering or Math (STEM) and 8 years of relevant experience; OR a Master's Degree in a related STEM discipline with 6 years of relevant experience; OR a PhD in a related STEM discipline with 4 years of relevant experience
- Demonstrated experience with avionics development or background in electronics engineering
- Experience with subsystem integration and developing/maintaining Interface Control Documents (ICDs)
- Experience with requirements management and verification practices
- Experience developing, testing, and integrating Flight Control Actuation Systems
- Experience using MATLAB to create, process, analyze, and visually represent data
- Experience with supplier management; technical artifact review and adjudication as part of development activities
- Must have the ability to obtain and maintain a US Government Secret clearance and Special Access Program (SAP).
Preferred Qualifications for both levels:
- Experience with system checkout and troubleshooting practices
- Active US Government Secret (or equivalent) security clearance or higher
- Comprehensive knowledge of flight control actuation systems
- Experience with system redundancy and associated safety analysis
- Experience performing system-level design/troubleshooting
- Experience with motor controller software in flight critical systems
- Experience with Safety of Flight (SoF) and/or airworthiness certification testing and artifact generation
- Experience with Agile design teams and tools (Atlassian)
- Understanding of Systems Engineering Principles and Model Based Systems Engineering tools (MBSE) with a practical focus for relevant use cases in propulsion integration.
Skills Required
- Bachelors degree in STEM and 5 years relevant experience OR Master's with 3 years OR PhD with 1 year
- Bachelors degree in STEM and 8 years relevant experience OR Master's with 6 years OR PhD with 4 years (Sr. Principal)
- Demonstrated experience with avionics development or electronics engineering
- Experience with subsystem integration and developing/maintaining Interface Control Documents (ICDs)
- Experience with requirements management and verification practices
- Experience developing, testing, and integrating Flight Control Actuation Systems
- Experience using MATLAB to create, process, analyze, and visually represent data
- Experience with supplier management; technical artifact review and adjudication during development
- Ability to obtain and maintain a US Government Secret clearance and Special Access Program (SAP) eligibility
- Experience with system checkout and troubleshooting practices
- Active US Government Secret (or equivalent) security clearance or higher
- Comprehensive knowledge of flight control actuation systems
- Experience with system redundancy and associated safety analysis
- Experience performing system-level design/troubleshooting
- Experience with motor controller software in flight critical systems
- Experience with Safety of Flight (SoF) and/or airworthiness certification testing and artifact generation
- Experience with Agile design teams and tools (Atlassian)
- Understanding of Systems Engineering Principles and Model Based Systems Engineering (MBSE) tools
Northrop Grumman Compensation & Benefits Highlights
The following summarizes recurring compensation and benefits themes identified from responses generated by popular LLMs to common candidate questions about Northrop Grumman and has not been reviewed or approved by Northrop Grumman.
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Retirement Support — 401(k) matching is considered strong, with additional defined-benefit coverage for certain cohorts and options like catch-up contributions. Retirement programs are repeatedly highlighted as a core strength of the total rewards.
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Leave & Time Off Breadth — PTO, company-paid holidays, and compressed work schedules (such as 9/80) provide meaningful time away and flexibility. These scheduling options are cited as a major quality-of-life benefit across many locations.
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Parental & Family Support — Paid parental leave alongside caregiver leave, adoption assistance, and back-up care supports a range of family needs. These programs have been expanded recently, signaling continued investment in family support.
Northrop Grumman Insights
What We Do
We are a close-knit community of big thinkers collaborating to keep the world safe. Our passion, creativity and expertise bring next-level technology solutions to life in autonomous systems, cyber, C4ISR, strike, space, and logistics and modernization for our customers around the globe. On the Northrop Grumman team, you’ll join our pursuit of excellence immersed in a dynamic culture of innovation and respect. Your unique perspective will help achieve our shared vision for the future of global security. Every step of the way, you'll be supported by world-class training, employee resource groups and a comprehensive benefits package that enables greater health and happiness for you and your family. Worldwide and across disciplines, we’re challenging what’s possible for technology to protect people and places from undersea to outer space and into cyberspace. And we see the impact of our performance every day. We are Northrop Grumman, and we work on what matters—now, you too can make a difference. Explore opportunities in engineering, IT, manufacturing, business management, cybersecurity and more with us. Northrop Grumman is committed to hiring and retaining a diverse workforce. We are proud to be an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
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