Principal/Sr. Principal Systems Engineer - GNC (20154)

Northrop Grumman•Huntsville, AL

1d•$108,800 - $203,600•Onsite

About The Position

Northrop Grumman Defense Systems is seeking a Principal or Sr. Principal Guidance Navigation & Control Systems Engineer to join their team in Huntsville, AL. This position supports the Strategic Deterrent Systems (SDS) Division and may be filled at a higher level based on qualifications. The role involves architecting, designing, and verifying GNC solutions and flight dynamics models for cruise missiles and flight vehicles, developing autopilot and guidance algorithms, defining GNC requirements and interfaces, integrating GNC algorithms into embedded flight software, conducting analyses, supporting flight test programs, collaborating with other engineering disciplines, implementing GNC software using modern practices, and developing technical documentation and presentations.

Requirements

Requires a Bachelors degree in a Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) discipline from an accredited university with 5 years of relevant experience; or a Masters degree with 3 years (Sr Principal level requires a Bachelors with 8 years; a Masters with 6 years; or a PhD with 4 years).
Must be a US Citizen with an active US Government Secret Security Clearance, at time of application, current and within scope, with an investigation date within the last 6 years.
Must have the ability to obtain and maintain Top Secret Clearance and Special Access Program (SAP) approval within a reasonable period of time, as determined by the company to meet its business needs.
Requires 3 years of experience in guidance, navigation, and control (GNC) for cruise missiles, or other complex flight systems, including development of 6 DOF vehicle models and autopilot/guidance algorithms.
Requires experience in C/C++ for embedded code (preferably MISRA C compliant), MATLAB/Simulink for modeling, simulation, and code generation, and Python for data analysis and rapid prototyping, with experience using Git and CI/CD pipelines.

Nice To Haves

Active DoD Top Secret Clearance.
Experience supporting technical GNC teams or workstreams in support of technology maturation and risk reduction or similar early lifecycle acquisition phases.
Experience deploying GNC algorithms to real time embedded systems, including familiarity with real time operating systems and support.
Experience with cruise missile flight dynamics, navigation and sensor fusion (e.g., INS/GPS/star tracker/lidar).
Proven track record of troubleshooting complex real time GNC systems and effectively communicating technical concepts and risks to non specialists and external customers.
Demonstrated experience integrating Simulink algorithms onto hardware using the Simulink Real-Time and Speedgoat Hardware-in-the-Loop (HIL) testing platform.
Independent contributor with strong leadership skills, demonstrated problem-solving skills, excellent communication skills, as well as interpersonal and organizational skills and a proactive, detail-oriented approach.

Responsibilities

Architect, design, and verify guidance, navigation, and control (GNC) solutions and 6 DOF flight dynamics models for cruise missiles and flight vehicles supporting the Technology Maturation and Risk Reduction (TMRR) phase of the SLCM N program.
Develop autopilot, targeting, and guidance algorithms for assess stability, performance, and robustness using advanced control theory and high fidelity simulations.
Define GNC requirements and interfaces to control effectors, navigation sensors, and propulsion systems, and evaluate the impact of latency, bandwidth, and sensor characteristics on system performance.
Integrate GNC algorithms into real time embedded flight software, including support to requirements decomposition, interface control documents, and verification.
Conduct Monte Carlo, robustness, and performance analyses in MATLAB/Simulink and Python to identify technical risks, quantify margins, and support risk reduction trade studies.
Support flight test programs, including contribution to test planning, instrumentation and telemetry definition, and post flight reconstruction and diagnostics of GNC performance.
Work closely with aerodynamics, structures, thermal, software, and systems engineering to ensure GNC designs are integrated, feasible, and aligned with overall vehicle and mission requirements.
Implement GNC software using modern software practices such as Git, CI/CD pipelines, and adherence to real time operating system constraints.
Develop clear technical documentation and presentations that communicate GNC concepts, assumptions, analysis results, and recommendations to internal and external stakeholders.