Parachute Systems – Subject Matter Expert

Primary Responsibilities

• Provide subject matter expertise in parachute systems supporting NASA human spaceflight and aerospace programs.
• Support Mission Assurance and Quality Engineering activities for parachute hardware, including design, manufacturing, assembly, integration, testing, certification, and flight operations.
• Review parachute packing, handling, storage, and shipping processes to verify compliance with approved procedures and standards.
• Participate in Preliminary Design Reviews (PDRs), Critical Design Reviews (CDRs), Flight Readiness Reviews (FRRs), Test Readiness Reviews (TRRs), and other technical milestone reviews.
• Review and assess flight hardware certification packages, End Item Data Packages (EIDPs), manufacturing records, inspection reports, test data, X-ray data, material certifications, and damage assessments.
• Identify, evaluate, and communicate technical, quality, and mission assurance risks affecting flight hardware and mission readiness.
• Support anomaly investigations, failure analyses, and root cause determinations involving parachute system performance and flight hardware discrepancies.
• Review nonconformance reports (NCRs), corrective actions, waivers, deviations, and risk assessments associated with parachute systems.
• Conduct supplier surveillance, manufacturing oversight, audits, and process verification activities to ensure compliance with quality requirements and approved procedures.
• Provide independent technical assessments and recommendations to NASA leadership regarding parachute system readiness, certification status, and risk posture.
• Support configuration management, hardware traceability, and certification tracking efforts for flight-critical parachute components.
• Witness and evaluate critical manufacturing, assembly, inspection, integration, testing, and flight hardware processing activities.
• Collaborate within Integrated Product Teams (IPTs) to resolve technical issues and improve mission assurance processes.
• Prepare technical reports, assessments, findings, and presentations for engineering, safety, and program management stakeholders.

Required Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Systems Engineering, Quality Engineering, or a related technical discipline with 15+ years of relevant experience; OR Master's degree in a related technical discipline with 10+ years of relevant experience.
• Demonstrated experience supporting parachute systems, aerospace recovery systems, flight hardware, or other critical aerospace systems.
• Experience supporting Mission Assurance, Quality Engineering, Safety & Mission Assurance (SMA), or related aerospace quality disciplines.
• Experience supporting design reviews, readiness reviews, certification activities, and anomaly investigations.
• Strong understanding of aerospace quality requirements, risk management, configuration management, and configuration control processes.
• Experience reviewing certification data packages, manufacturing records, inspection reports, test data, and flight hardware verification documentation.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.