Spacecraft Mission Operations Engineer III, Elytra

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Firefly Aerospace is a space and defense technology company that enables our world to launch, land, and operate in space – anywhere, anytime. As the partner of choice for critical space missions, Firefly is the only commercial company to launch a satellite to orbit with 24-hour notice and the only company to achieve a successful Moon landing. Our launch vehicles, lunar landers, and orbital vehicles provide government and commercial customers with full mission services from low Earth orbit to the Moon and beyond.

Headquartered in north Austin, Texas, Firefly is looking for passionate, hardworking innovators to join our team and help fuel our successful trajectory into space.

SUMMARY

Firefly Aerospace is seeking a Mission Operations Engineer
III to support the Elytra orbital vehicle program
. Elytra is a long-duration, multi-role spacecraft designed for extended on-orbit operations, hosted payload support, maneuver-intensive missions, and evolving mission objectives over months to years.

This role is fundamentally about owning spacecraft operations as a system
. You will help architect and operate the ground system, develop flight operations products, and lead mission execution for a vehicle that does not have a single “event-driven” endpoint, but instead requires disciplined, sustainable, and evolvable operations. You will work closely with spacecraft subsystem teams, payload customers, and mission management to translate vehicle design into safe, repeatable, and scalable on-orbit operations.

If you are motivated by building operations frameworks that must endure, adapt, and scale across long mission lifetimes, this role is for you.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Architect the operational Con Ops for Elytra missions, owning the operational interpretation of spacecraft design.
• Own and approve Interface Control Documents (ICDs) and ground system architectures supporting long-duration and multi-role missions.
• Lead system-level validation and verification campaigns from early integration through sustained operations readiness.

Flight Operations Products

• Define the operational standards for Elytra missions, including procedure structure, automation philosophy, and command authority models.
• Chair cross-functional Working Groups, resolving complex technical tradeoffs between spacecraft design and operational risk.
• Build and maintain the long-term roadmap for operations product development as the mission evolves.
• Set the strategy for internal operations software and tooling, ensuring scalability and reliability across years of operations.

Simulations and Training

• Architect the DITL and mission rehearsal campaign, defining training objectives appropriate for long-duration, anomaly-driven operations.
• Define requirements for simulator fidelity, integration, and validation; approve test plans and readiness criteria.
• Lead team training and certification, assessing readiness and maintaining high operational standards across mission phases.

Mission Execution & Long-Duration Operations

• Serve in senior console or leadership roles during critical operations, anomalies, and maneuver campaigns.
• Provide authoritative direction to the operations team and mission leadership during high-impact events.

QUALIFICATIONS

Required

• Experience: 5 to 12+ years of professional aerospace experience with a focus on spacecraft operations and mission lifecycle ownership.
• Mission Record: Proven leadership of major mission phases or long-duration spacecraft operations campaigns.
• Technical Leadership: Experience architecting ground systems, simulation campaigns, and operational frameworks from requirements to execution. Experience operating in CUI environments and designing workflows intended to scale into classified mission operations
  .
• Software: Strong proficiency in automation and mission-data processing tools.
• Soft Skills: Clear, decisive communicator who bridges engineering teams and leadership; capable of running large technical campaigns, mentoring engineers, and maintaining operational rigor across a multi-mission fleet.
• Experience as a Flight Director, Lead Mission Controller, or equivalent role.
• Expertise in Ground Readiness Testing, DITL simulations, and sustained on-orbit operations governance.
• Active or previously held U.S. Government security clearance (Secret, TS, or TS/SCI).
• Experience supporting classified or secure flight operations (DoD, NRO, or other national security missions).
• Familiarity with cross-domain solutions (CDS) and managing operational workflows across classified and unclassified systems.

Firefly offers outstanding benefits for our employees, including generous health, dental and vision plans with low plan…