Northrop Grumman Aeronautics Systems is looking to add a Principal/Senior Principal Engineer - Survivability to join our Aeronautics team! The selected candidate will act as a Field Service Engineer with travel up to 50% of the time to domestic and/or international locations. This position can be located in Palmdale, San Diego, El Segundo California or Melbourne Florida.
Potential responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
- Coordinate with designers and supportability / maintainability engineers to ensure component and system compliance with Survivability requirements
- Develop and integrate advanced technology to reduce system detectability
- Design, plan, and execute RCS/RF tests (Tier 0 – 3), to include determining test requirements, selecting testing methods and measurements, operating and maintaining equipment, executing setup and test events, and delivering pre/post test reports
- Analyze component and system test results and deliver recommendations on materials, capabilities, and other aspects of Survivability performance
- Coordinate with suppliers / vendors on material, technology, and equipment design, delivery, implementation and test, to include developing requirements, writing SOWs, providing engineering oversight, and tracking / reporting performance
Basic Qualifications:
- Education Experience Requirement:
- Principal Engineer (LV3): Bachelor’s Degree in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics) discipline and 5 years of related engineering experience; OR a Master’s degree in a STEM discipline and 3 years of related engineering experience; OR a PhD in a STEM discipline and 1 years of related engineering experience.
- Senior Principal Engineer (LV4): Bachelor’s Degree in a STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics) discipline and 8 years of related engineering experience; OR a Master’s degree in a STEM discipline and 6 years of related engineering experience; OR a PhD in a STEM discipline and 4 years of related engineering experience.
- Fundamental understanding of one or more scientific principles related to Survivability (electromagnetic transmission through space and within materials, IR reflectance / emissivity and contrast, light or sound propagation, etc.)
- Experience in one or more of the Survivability sub-disciplines, across one or more of the spectrums (RF, IR, Vis, Acoustic), including design and analysis, measurement, integration and test, mission system integration, and liaison engineering
- Current active U.S. Government in-scope Top Secret Security Clearance (including a background investigation within the past 5 years or enrolled into Continuous Evaluation), with the ability to obtain and maintain Special Access Program (SAP) clearance(s)
Preferred Qualifications:
- M.S. degree in Electrical Engineering, Materials Science, or other applicable STEM degree
- Demonstrated understanding of one or more of the Survivability sub-disciplines, including hands-on experience developing Survivable designs, performing analysis, planning and executing tests (e.g. RF tests at an indoor or outdoor test facility) and conducting post-test data analysis, collaborating with other engineering disciplines on integration efforts, and providing dispositions on / guiding repairs of build defects
- Experience with one or more Survivability-related tools (e.g. 2D or 3D Method of Moments or Physical Optics codes such as SENTRi or Xpatch, RCS data processing tools such as Knowbell or Saber, etc.)
- Experience working with other engineering disciplines to establish requirements and develop a Survivable system design that meets the customer’s mission objectives
- Experience in one or more CAD tools (CATIA, NX, etc.)
- Programming / scripting experience in Python, C/C++, Matlab, or other language
Skills Required
- Principal (LV3) education/experience: Bachelor's in STEM +5 years OR Master's +3 years OR PhD +1 year
- Senior Principal (LV4) education/experience: Bachelor's in STEM +8 years OR Master's +6 years OR PhD +4 years
- Fundamental understanding of survivability scientific principles (electromagnetic transmission, IR reflectance/emissivity, light/sound propagation)
- Experience in survivability sub-disciplines across spectrums (RF, IR, Vis, Acoustic) including design, analysis, measurement, integration, and test
- Current active U.S. Government Top Secret security clearance (background within past 5 years or enrolled in Continuous Evaluation) and ability to obtain/maintain SAP clearance(s)
- Willingness and ability to travel up to 50% as a Field Service Engineer
- M.S. degree in Electrical Engineering, Materials Science, or other applicable STEM degree
- Hands-on experience developing survivable designs, performing RF tests, and conducting post-test data analysis
- Experience with survivability-related tools (e.g., SENTRi, Xpatch, Knowbell, Saber)
- Experience with CAD tools (CATIA, NX)
- Programming/scripting experience (Python, C/C++, Matlab)
- Experience coordinating with suppliers/vendors, writing SOWs, and providing engineering oversight
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.









