Director of Quality

Astra’s mission is to improve life on Earth from space by creating a healthier and more connected planet. Today, Astra offers one of the lowest cost-per-launch dedicated orbital launch services, and one of the industry’s leading flight‑proven electric propulsion systems for satellites, the Astra Spacecraft Engine.

As the Founding Director of Quality and Mission Assurance, you will be the ultimate owner of reliability and risk management for all our space hardware programs. You will build and scale the company's entire quality organization, instilling a culture of mission success throughout the product lifecycle, from design and manufacturing to integration and delivery. This role requires a hands‑on, strategic leader with deep expertise in aerospace quality standards and the proven ability to proactively manage complex risks in a fast‑paced, high‑stakes startup environment.

• Mission
  
  Risk Management:
  
  Establish and own the company's Mission Assurance strategy, working with program management and engineering to perform risk assessments and identify, mitigate, and track all mission‑critical risks.
• Design and Build Assurance: Implement a Design Assurance program to ensure quality, reliability, and safety are integrated into product design from the earliest stages, in accordance with applicable standards (e.g., NASA, DOD) and contractual requirements.
• Reliability and System Safety: Develop and oversee reliability engineering activities, including risk and failure analysis, and lead the System Safety program to identify and mitigate hazards associated with the hardware.
• Failure Review Board: Lead the Failure Review Board (FRB) for all significant program anomalies and failures, ensuring robust root cause analysis and effective implementation of corrective actions.
• Independent Review: Act as the independent reviewer for program execution, participating in design reviews, test readiness reviews, and program audits to provide critical analysis and ensure a path to mission success.

• QMS Implementation: Develop, deploy, and maintain a comprehensive QMS in preparation for AS9100 certification and other relevant space‑specific quality standards.
• Supplier Quality: Lead the supplier quality management program, ensuring suppliers of critical parts and processes meet stringent space‑grade quality standards. Engage in supplier technical reviews and audits.
• Process and Production Quality: Implement process controls and oversee all aspects of hardware quality during manufacturing, assembly, and test, including non‑conformance management and material review boards (MRB).
• Continuous Improvement: Champion a continuous improvement culture, utilizing methodologies such as Lean Six Sigma, to enhance processes and overall product quality and reliability.

• Organizational Growth: Build, lead, mentor, and grow the quality and mission assurance team, scaling the organization to support the company's growth trajectory.
• Training and Development: Develop and implement mission assurance and quality training programs for engineers, technicians, and managers across the company.
• Customer Engagement: Serve as the primary point of contact for customer quality and mission assurance representatives, building trusted relationships and ensuring clear communication.

• Bachelor's degree in engineering, physical sciences, or a related technical field.
• 10+ years of experience in quality and mission assurance within the aerospace, defense, or space industry.
• Proven experience leading the implementation of a QMS, preferably in a manufacturing startup.
• Extensive experience with Mission Assurance concepts, including risk management, reliability engineering, and system safety.
• Strong knowledge of industry standards such as AS9100 and familiarity with government standards and guidelines (e.g., NASA, DOD).
• Demonstrate ability to perform robust root cause analysis and lead effective corrective action efforts.

• Master's degree in an engineering or technical discipline.
• Experience…