Staff Mission Design Engineer

Who We Are

Inversion is an aerospace and defense company pioneering advanced reentry technology to enable next-generation capabilities from space. By combining high-performance materials, precision aerodynamics, and mission-driven autonomy, Inversion is transforming reentry into an operational capability for an entirely new class of missions.

The company’s highly maneuverable reentry spacecraft, Arc, is designed for rapid global cargo delivery, hypersonic testing, and other national security missions that require precise, controlled flight through the atmosphere. Arc creates an entirely new transportation domain, unlocking unprecedented speed and global reach.

Headquartered in Los Angeles, Inversion designs, manufactures, and integrates its spacecraft under one roof, enabling the company to move rapidly from concept to flight. The company is backed by leading investors including Y Combinator, Spark Capital, and Lockheed Martin Ventures, with customers across the U.S. government and commercial space industry.

Position Overview

Inversion's reentry vehicles must perform across an enormous trade space - orbital insertion through hypersonic flight to precision landing. As the Staff Mission Design Engineer, you will own the mission-level view of that trade space for our next-generation vehicles. You will develop the design reference missions and flight envelopes that anchor vehicle design, and run the performance sensitivity studies that guide our most consequential design choices.

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop design reference missions and flight envelopes for new vehicles.
• Lead performance sensitivity and trade studies that inform vehicle-level design decisions.
• Support 3-DOF and 6-DOF Monte Carlo simulation campaigns for new vehicles, from dispersion definition through results synthesis.
• Work directly with customers to support constellation design and mission architecture efforts.
• Translate customer mission needs into vehicle and trajectory requirements.
• Mentor engineers across the mission design and simulation teams.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, a related field, or equivalent experience.
• Typically, 9+ years of experience in mission design, trajectory analysis, or flight performance for launch, reentry, hypersonic, or missile systems.
• Experience with trajectory optimization using an industry-standard tool (POST, OTIS, TAOS, Copernicus, or similar).
• Experience developing and exercising 3-DOF and 6-DOF flight simulations.
• Strong fundamentals in flight mechanics, orbital mechanics, and atmospheric entry dynamics.
• Strong fundamentals in statistical and probabilistic analysis, including Monte Carlo and dispersion analysis.
• Proficiency in programming languages such as Python, MATLAB, or C++ for simulation and analysis.
• Demonstrated excellent verbal and written communication skills, including customer-facing work.
• Proven ability to work effectively in a fast-paced environment.
• Must have the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government Secret/Top Secret security clearance.

Desired Qualifications

• Experience with constellation design, coverage analysis, or orbit propagation tools (e.g., STK, GMAT).
• Experience reverse engineering performance of existing vehicles.
• Experience with range safety and footprint analysis (e.g., expected casualty, circular error probable) for reentry or launch systems.
• Experience reconciling simulation predictions against flight test data.
• Familiarity with vehicle GNC algorithms and their interaction with mission design.
• Prior experience working in startups and/or small independent teams.

Our office headquarters is located in Playa Vista, CA. This position requires in office presence.

The California annual base salary for this role is currently $161,000-$221,000. Pay Grades are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data. Individual pay will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: interviews and an assessment of several factors that are unique to each candidate, job-related skills, relevant education and experience, certifications, abilities of the candidate and internal equity.

ITAR Compliance

To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here .

Equal Employment Opportunity

Inversion provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, veteran status, or disability.

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