Propulsion Test Engineer

Vast • Long Beach, CA

1d • Onsite

About The Position

At Vast, our mission is to contribute to a future where billions of people are living and thriving in space. Vast is developing next-generation space stations to ensure a continuous human presence in space for America and its allies, enabling advanced microgravity research and manufacturing, and unlocking a new space economy for government, corporate, and private customers. Using an incremental, hardware-rich and low-cost approach, Vast is rapidly developing its multi-module Haven Station. Haven Demo’s 2025 success made Vast the only operational commercial space station company to fly and operate its own spacecraft. Next, Haven-1 is expected to become the world’s first commercial space station when it launches, followed by additional Haven modules to enable permanent human presence by 2030. Our team is all-in, committed to executing our mission safely and on time. If you want to work with the most talented people on Earth furthering space exploration for humanity, come join us.
Vast is looking for a Propulsion Test Engineer, reporting to the Director, Mojave Test Site, to support the development of the propulsion systems that will be required for the design and build of artificial-gravity human-rated space stations.
This will be a full-time, exempt position located in our Mojave location.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree in aerospace or mechanical engineering or related field.
• 2+ years of experience in the operation, design, and development of chemical propulsion and/or fluid systems, or hardware testing.
• Ability to travel up to 50% of the time
• Willingness to work overtime, or weekends to support critical mission milestones
• Ability to lift up to 25lbs unassisted

Nice To Haves

• Experience with chemical propulsion systems, combustion devices, and/or collegiate rocket program
• Experience with NX and Teamcenter
• Experience with JIRA / Confluence
• Experience with controls & data acquisition systems (e.g., Beckhoff/TwinCAT, National Instruments/LabVIEW)
• Experience building and testing high pressure fluid systems
• Tube fitting & bending, familiarity with common industry fittings systems
• Read & interpret Plumbing and Instrumentation Diagrams (P&IDs)
• Excellent scientific, engineering, and interpersonal communication skills, both written and oral, along with effective teamwork abilities
• Ability to work in multi-disciplinary teams
• Ability and willingness to thrive in a fast-paced, rapidly changing work environment
• Specific certifications, as appropriate

Responsibilities

• Execute hot-fire testing for the development and qualification of in-house thrusters and vehicle-level chemical propulsion systems.
• Lead hazardous operations including work with high pressure fluids and combustion device testing.
• Write test procedures for hazardous operations.
• Prepare and lead Test Readiness Reviews (TRRs).
• Work side by side with the test stand technicians during test article install and inspection.
• Maintain and design modifications to test stand fluids and electrical systems to meet current and expanding test requirements.
• Work collaboratively with Long Beach based responsible engineers to meet test requirements, design test stand modifications, and debug test stand problems rapidly.

Benefits

• 100% medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and dependents, generous paid time off; up to 20+ days of vacation for exempt staff and up to 10+ days of vacation for non-exempt staff with the ability to cash-out unused vacation annually, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, ClassPass credits, personalized mental healthcare through Spring Health, and other discounts and perks.
• We also take pride in offering exceptional food perks, with snacks, drip coffee & onsite barista, cold drinks, and dinner meals remaining free of charge, and lunch subsidized as part of Vast’s ongoing commitment to providing high-quality meals for employees.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level