Principal Aerospace Systems Architect/Engineer (Directed Energy)

Boeing•Albuquerque, NM

2d•$164,900 - $223,100

About The Position

The Boeing Company is seeking a Principal Aerospace Systems Architect/Engineer with deep expertise in directed energy weapon systems to provide technical leadership and strategic direction across multi-year programs in Albuquerque, New Mexico. The role owns system architecture and engineering execution from concept maturation through fielding, drives technical decisions across programs, and mentors engineering teams to deliver safe, effective, and affordable directed energy capabilities. The position provides technical direction for directed energy architectures and technology roadmaps, translates operational needs into capability requirements, and leads concept-of-operations development, mission-use-case analysis, and architecture trade studies. It oversees requirements derivation, subsystem design, modeling and simulation, verification and validation, risk management, safety and regulatory considerations, and technical reviews. The role also supports cost-, schedule-, and resource-informed decisions, deployment and sustainment planning, and engagement with customers, partners, and industry forums. Candidates must have a related bachelor’s degree and at least 10 years of systems engineering experience. An active U.S. Top Secret security clearance is required, and the role requires U.S. citizenship. Relocation assistance is available based on eligibility. The position is not contingent upon program award and is not safety sensitive. The listed summary pay range is $164,900–$223,100.

Requirements

Bachelor of Science degree in Engineering, Engineering Technology (including Manufacturing Technology), Computer Science, Data Science, Mathematics, Physics, Chemistry, or a directly related non-U.S. equivalent qualification.
At least 10 years of experience in systems engineering.
Active U.S. Top Secret security clearance; a clearance active within the past 24 months is considered active.
U.S. citizenship is required for the security clearance; the role also requires a U.S. Person under export control regulations.
Employer will not sponsor applicants for employment visa status.

Nice To Haves

Experience leading large, multidisciplinary engineering efforts, influencing program strategy, and interacting effectively with senior government stakeholders and prime contractor leadership.
Experience overseeing and validating electronic/electrical system requirements and subsystem designs, including PWB layouts, power distribution architectures, thermal management, EMI/EMC mitigation, and grounding in high-power directed energy environments.
Experience integrating cybersecurity and product security at the architecture level, assessing vulnerabilities, defining protections, and coordinating with security and product assurance teams.
Experience directing system- and subsystem-level assembly, integration, and test planning and execution, with defensible test evidence for program milestones and contractual reviews.

Responsibilities

Provide technical leadership and vision for directed energy system architectures and technology roadmaps.
Serve as the primary technical interface with senior customer stakeholders, program leadership, and external partners; translate operational needs and doctrine into capability-level requirements and measurable success criteria.
Lead concepts of operation, mission use cases, and architecture trade studies balancing lethality, throughput, range, power and energy budgets, survivability, and cost.
Drive functional decomposition and derivation of traceable, verifiable requirements for directed energy systems and subsystems.
Champion model-based systems engineering adoption and governance, including modeling standards, configuration, workflows, and engineering toolchain integration.
Lead cross-functional technical teams in physical decomposition and detailed design; resolve hardware/software partitioning, define interfaces, and allocate performance requirements.
Own verification and validation strategy, including verification logic, acceptance criteria, test architectures, and demonstrations for optical performance, energy on target, tracking and pointing accuracy, reliability, and safety.
Lead and prioritize modeling, simulation, and algorithm development to inform design trades and operational employment decisions.
Incorporate safety, product assurance, regulatory, and certification considerations into architecture and program plans, including laser safety, range operations, and environmental and EMC requirements.
Direct risk management, technical maturation plans, and mitigation strategies for key directed energy uncertainties.
Prepare technical content for SRR, SDR, PDR, CDR, and other milestones; respond to review findings, drive corrective actions, and maintain configuration and documentation.
Drive engineering decisions informed by cost, schedule, and resources; contribute technical input to cost estimates, trade studies, and roadmap prioritization.
Mentor and develop engineering leads and cross-disciplinary teams; set technical standards, review critical designs, and promote rigorous analysis and engineering best practices.
Represent the program and company at technical forums, customer briefings, industry consortia, and advanced technology strategy discussions.
Support deployment and sustainment strategies, host-platform integration, logistics planning, and field validation under operationally relevant conditions.