Propulsion Flight Operations Engineer, Project Kuiper

Job description

Description
Project Kuiper is Amazon’s low Earth orbit satellite broadband network.

Its mission is to deliver fast, reliable internet to customers and communities around the world, and we’ve designed the system with the capacity, flexibility, and performance to serve a wide range of customers, from individual households to schools, hospitals, businesses, government agencies, and other organizations operating in locations without reliable connectivity.

Export Control Requirement: Due to applicable export control laws and regulations, candidates must be a U.S. citizen or national, U.S. permanent resident (i.e., current Green Card holder), or lawfully admitted into the U.S. as a refugee or granted asylum.

Project Kuiper's Propulsion Team seeks a Flight Operations Engineer to support the execution of the full mission lifecycle for Kuiper's satellite constellation.

This critical support spans: propulsion pre-launch and go/no-go decisions; early mission propulsion checkouts and commissioning; ascending each vehicle to the altitude and station necessary to provide customer service; formation keeping for the service life of each satellite; as well as the the descent and decommissioning of each satellite.

This role will work with Kuiper's Mission Operations team, and other Guidance, Navigation, and Control operators to ensure the safe and effective execution of each satellite's mission.

The Propulsion Operations Engineer serves as a critical liaison between Kuiper Mission Operations and the Propulsion Design Engineering team, executing approved operational responses while supporting the development of improved operational automation.

This role combines hands-on operational support with the continuous improvement of processes and automated operational capabilities for the Kuiper Propulsion System.

A significant portion of the position focuses on developing and improving automated operational responses, including telemetry monitoring and flight data analysis.

The engineer will be responsible for creating and reviewing new scripted operations procedures, enhancing existing automated sequences, and formulating responses to novel scenarios that arise.

This work requires close collaboration with GNC and Propulsion design engineers (both hardware and software) to ensure all solutions align with established safety and operational parameters.

The role involves active participation in troubleshooting and investigating in-flight anomalies, working alongside propulsion subject matter experts and systems engineers.

The engineer will contribute to maintaining propulsion system operational health by identifying and assessing potential risks, while also evaluating system health and maneuverability across the constellation, applying criteria approved by the Propulsion Design Engineering team.

Professional growth opportunities include potential cross-training in other GNC disciplines, such as attitude determination and control, and supporting the GNC's Flight Dynamics Operations team.

This expansion of responsibilities helps ensure comprehensive understanding and support of constellation operations.

Given that automated constellation operations run continuously throughout the year, this position requires flexibility in work scheduling.

Initially, the role may involve standard working hours with rotating 24/7 on-call responsibilities.

As the team expands, the schedule will evolve to cover morning, night, and day shifts across all days of the week, distributed among a team of operators.

This scheduling structure ensures continuous coverage and support for the constellation's operational needs.

Key job responsibilities
Operations Engineering
- Serve as primary operational liaison between Propulsion Design Engineering and Kuiper flight operations stakeholders
- Execute defined propulsion operational responses
- Monitor and assess propulsion system health across the constellation
- Support investigation and troubleshooting of in-flight anomalies
- Escalate to responsible engineers for scenarios where existing automation or runbooks do not apply
- Document operational instructions and procedures for the benefit of other Propulsion operators

Automation & Software Development
- Develop and enhance operational procedures, both manual and automated
- Create and review scripted operations procedures (i.e. software development)
- Improve telemetry monitoring and flight data analysis capabilities
- Support continuous automation improvements for operational sequences
- Formulate responses to new operational scenarios for review and approval from the Propulsion Design Engineering team

Risk Management & System Health
- Identify and assess operational risks
- Collaborate in the definition of risk mitigations, owning the their implementation and in-space execution
- Apply and scale mechanisms to asses propulsion system health & maneuverability during all mission phases
- Contribute to improvements propulsion system concepts of operations (CONOPs)

Schedule Availability Requirements
- Staff rotating shifts including early morning, late night, and weekends - on a rotating basis constrained by 40h shift assignments
- Respond to needs for 24/7 on-call support on a rotating basis

About the team
Kuiper's Propulsion Design Engineering team is part of the broader Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GNC) organization.

The Propulsion Design team includes subject matter experts in propulsion technologies, systems engineers, test engineers, mechanical design engineers, and technical program managers.

Flight operations is currently supported by this engineering team, and this role is part of an effort to hire and develop dedicated support for Flight Operations to support full scale constellation operations.
Basic Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree in Engineering, Computer Science, or a related technical field
- Knowledge of programming languages such as C/C++, Python, Java or Perl
- Work a flexible schedule/shift/work area, including weekends, nights, and/or holidays
- 3+ years of professional work (non-internship) experience
- Experience working with version control systems
- Ability to work at computer workstations for extended periods
- Ability to respond to urgent on-call situations
- Experience with real-time system monitoring and anomaly response
- Demonstrated ability to execute technical procedures and follow operational protocols
- Experience with data analysis tools and software
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience in satellite operations
- Experience in ground systems development of satellite operations systems
- Experience in any of the operations roles in satellite navigation, conjunction risk assessment, and maneuver planning.
- Experience in cloud-based software systems development

Amazon is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of protected veteran status, disability, or other legally protected status.

Our inclusive culture empowers Amazonians to deliver the best results for our customers.

If you have a disability and need a workplace accommodation or adjustment during the application and hiring process, including support for the interview or onboarding process, please visit https://amazon.jobs/content/en/how-we-hire/accommodations for more information.

If the country/region you’re applying in isn’t listed, please contact your Recruiting Partner.

Our compensation reflects the cost of labor across several US geographic markets.

The base pay for this position ranges from $116,300/year in our lowest geographic market up to $201,200/year in our highest geographic market.

Pay is based on a number of factors including market location and may vary depending on job-related knowledge, skills, and experience.

Amazon is a total compensation company.

Dependent on the position offered, equity, sign-on payments, and other forms of compensation may be provided as part of a total compensation package, in addition to a full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits.

For more information, please visit https://www.aboutamazon.com/workplace/employee-benefits .

This position will remain posted until filled.

Applicants should apply via our internal or external career site.

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