Flight Simulator SW Engineer II

Virgin Galactic•Truth or Consequences, NM

5d•$88,477 - $134,981•Onsite

About The Position

Join Virgin Galactic’s Flight Simulation & Mission Control team and help build the simulation systems used to prepare our pilots, engineers, and Mission Control teams for human spaceflight. Guided by our values, “Safety Above All”, we proactively manage the risks inherent in human spaceflight through our daily actions. Support the company strategy by holding ourselves and one another accountable for getting the work done. We are seeking an experienced Software Engineer to develop, integrate, and maintain the high-fidelity simulation environments supporting Virgin Galactic’s next generation of spaceships. This is not a traditional software development position. You will work directly with pilots, flight-test personnel, Mission Control operators, aerospace engineers, flight hardware, and real-time simulation systems. Your software will directly support engineering development, vehicle testing, pilot and Mission Control training, flight-test preparation, and ultimately commercial spaceflight operations. The position is based in southern New Mexico, supporting operations at Spaceport America, with Las Cruces providing the primary residential community for many employees. If you enjoy solving complex real-time software problems and want to see your work used in an actual human-spaceflight operation, this is a unique opportunity to become part of Virgin Galactic’s mission.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related technical field, or equivalent relevant professional experience.
Approximately 5+ years of professional software development experience.
Strong proficiency in C and/or C++.
Experience developing, integrating, or troubleshooting real-time, embedded, simulation, robotics, autonomous, aerospace, automotive, defense, or hardware-in-the-loop systems.
Strong software debugging and problem-solving skills.
Experience working with complex software/hardware interfaces.
Working knowledge of networked systems and communication protocols such as TCP/IP and UDP.
Experience with source-control systems such as Git.
Ability to work effectively in a multidisciplinary environment with software engineers, hardware engineers, pilots, operators, and other technical teams.
Strong interest in aviation, aerospace, simulation, or human spaceflight.
Strong safety forward thinking, practice good housekeeping, tool control, recognizing the importance of properly handling hazardous materials and chemicals
Familiar with the use of personal protective equipment (PPE)

Nice To Haves

Flight simulation or aerospace simulation systems
MATLAB/Simulink
Simulink S-Functions
Flight dynamics or aerodynamic models
Hardware-in-the-loop or software-in-the-loop simulation
Distributed real-time simulation
Shared-memory architectures
Avionics interfaces
Cockpit hardware and control interfaces
Real-time data acquisition and visualization
Network troubleshooting tools such as Wireshark
Python, C#, Bash, or similar scripting/programming languages
Jenkins, Docker, or other CI/CD technologies
Linux development environments
Multithreaded software development
UI development for engineering or simulator applications
Flight-test environments
Pilot training systems
FAA or aerospace operational environments
Pilot experience, whether private, commercial, military, experimental, or recreational, is a plus but is not required.

Responsibilities

Design, develop, integrate, test, and maintain software for high-fidelity and desktop flight simulation systems.
Develop and maintain real-time C/C++ simulation applications.
Integrate aerodynamic and flight-dynamics models, avionics systems, vehicle systems, and real or virtual cockpit hardware into simulation environments.
Develop and maintain interfaces between simulation software, cockpit hardware, avionics, Mission Control systems, and external engineering systems.
Support real-time data acquisition, processing, visualization, recording, and network communication.
Develop synchronization and data-sharing solutions for distributed simulation systems.
Troubleshoot complex software, network, hardware, and simulator integration problems.
Work directly with pilots and engineering teams to translate flight-test and training requirements into simulator capabilities.
Support simulator configuration, verification, validation, and readiness for pilot training and integrated Mission Control simulations.
Support development of failure scenarios and abnormal system behavior for training and flight-test preparation.
Improve simulator reliability, maintainability, performance, and usability.
Contribute to software architecture decisions and development of modular and scalable simulation systems.
Participate in code reviews, configuration management, automated testing, and CI/CD activities.
Support simulator operations and troubleshooting during critical training and flight-test activities.
Work collaboratively across Flight Operations, Mission Control, Engineering, Avionics, Flight Sciences, and Flight Test.
Continuously practice safety behavior and Foreign Object Debris (FOD) awareness/prevention; adhere to regulatory protocols and rules