Senior Forward Deployed Engineer

Icarus•El Segundo, CA

1d•$120,000 - $220,000•Onsite

About The Position

Icarus is seeking a Senior Forward Deployed Engineer to join their mission of reclaiming the Stratosphere with solar-powered aircraft. This role involves deploying and supporting aircraft and ground systems in various environments, troubleshooting issues, owning flight test campaigns, and acting as a liaison between field operations and engineering. The position requires a hands-on approach to hardware and field operations, with a focus on execution, rapid iteration, and extreme ownership.

Requirements

2+ years supporting, deploying, or operating real hardware systems in the field (aerospace, defense, robotics, autonomy, or hardware startups).
Strong hands-on troubleshooting across hardware, software, and networking.
Comfortable with tools, cables, configs, and the command line.
Practical technical range over deep specialization: comfortable with networking fundamentals and software/hardware setup and configuration.
A track record of operating independently in ambiguous, high-pressure environments, and of bringing structure where there was none.
Strong communication skills. Ability to work with engineers, operators, and customers, and translate between them.
Willingness to travel frequently and operate out of test ranges, airfields, and remote locations for extended periods.
Must thrive under pressure, learn fast, troubleshoot in the field, and push systems to their limits.

Nice To Haves

Military operations experience is a plus, especially in aviation or aviation-adjacent communities with "air sense" (JTAC, JFO, CCT, ATC, aviation operations).

Responsibilities

Deploy forward with aircraft and ground systems to test ranges, airfields, and customer environments, and own getting them set up and operational.
Provide end-to-end field support: system setup, software and hardware configuration, integration with site infrastructure, and pre-deployment checkout.
Troubleshoot hardware, software, and networking issues in real time, in unstructured environments, and drive them to resolution.
Own flight test campaigns, demonstrations, and exercises in the field, with high autonomy and minimal support.
Train and guide operators and customers on how to run systems and get the most out of them.
Act as the link between the field and engineering: capture flight data, ground truth, and operator feedback, run incident reviews, and feed clear, specific recommendations back into the product.
Build and grow the forward-deployed function: the people, procedures, runbooks, and standards that keep aircraft flying for weeks at a time in support of customers.
Work closely with mechanical, GNC, RF, and software teams.