RF Antenna Systems Engineer (35385)

Location

McLean, Virginia (on‑site, 5 days a week, no exceptions)

Employment Type

Full‑time, Direct Hire

Compensation

Annual salary $180,000 – $220,000 plus up to an 11.55% bonus

Eligibility

Only W‑2 candidates who do not require sponsorship and who can obtain future security clearance.

Required Education & Experience

• Bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Telecommunications Engineering, Physics, or a related technical discipline.
• Minimum of five (5) years of experience in antenna systems, RF engineering, satellite communications, wireless communications, or related technologies.
• Experience designing, integrating, testing, or evaluating antenna systems and RF hardware.
• Proven expertise in simulation, design, and testing of electronically steerable antennas for satellite communication, land mobile, aeronautical, maritime, and fixed applications.
• Strong knowledge of user‑terminal (UT) antenna architectures, including modem integration and flat‑panel antenna approaches.
• Familiarity with standardized antenna control protocols, modem interoperability, and communication standards (e.g., open AMIP, open BMIP).
• Strong understanding of satellite modems, hub systems, and RF equipment.
• Experience working with suppliers, vendors, and technology partners.
• Ability to develop technical requirements, test requirements, and compliance matrices for LEO UT antenna technologies and UT approvals.
• Evaluate vendor terminal designs for performance, reliability, manufacturability, and integration strategy.
• Experience defining and executing validation tests, including prototype evaluation.

Preferred Qualifications

• Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering or a related field.
• Ph.D. specializing in phased‑array antennas, electromagnetics, RF systems, beamforming, or wireless communications.
• Experience developing electronically steerable antennas (ESAs) or advanced phased‑array antenna systems for commercial, aerospace, or defense applications.
• 10+ years of experience in satellite antenna, user terminal (UT), and/or satellite system design.

Main Responsibilities

• Antenna System Architecture & Development: Develop, maintain, and manage technical requirements for advanced user‑terminal antenna systems; define, allocate, and verify performance requirements for fixed, mobile, and transportable terminals; support certification, qualification, regulatory compliance, and product approval processes; perform system‑level modeling, analysis, and simulation to optimize performance, coverage, and efficiency; evaluate new antenna technologies and recommend design improvements for performance, reliability, manufacturability, and cost.
• Technical Leadership & Supplier Management: Serve as primary technical interface with antenna manufacturers, technology partners, and engineering suppliers; evaluate vendor solutions on performance, reliability, production readiness, manufacturing capability, schedule, cost, and regulatory compliance; lead supplier design reviews, technical assessments, technology evaluations, and product development activities; provide technical leadership and mentorship across multidisciplinary engineering teams throughout the product development lifecycle.
• Product Validation & Performance Testing: Develop and execute antenna characterization, validation, and verification test plans for prototype and production hardware; analyze antenna performance using laboratory and field measurements to validate design objectives; support product qualification, environmental testing, production readiness, and ongoing performance optimization; collaborate with systems, RF, hardware, software, and manufacturing teams to ensure successful product integration.
• Technology Strategy & Innovation: Monitor emerging developments in phased‑array antennas, electronically steerable antennas (ESAs), beamforming technologies, RF systems, satellite communications, and next‑generation wireless technologies; contribute to technology roadmaps and long‑term product strategies; support customer engagements, technical presentations, proposal development, and business development initiatives as a subject‑matter expert.

Technical Skills & Qualifications

• Design, modeling, simulation, integration, and testing of electronically steerable and phased‑array antenna systems.
• Beamforming architectures, antenna control systems, calibration techniques, and adaptive RF technologies.
• Flat‑panel antennas, tracking reflector antennas, hybrid antenna architectures, and Ku, Ka, X, or other microwave frequency bands.
• RF subsystems including Power Amplifiers (PA), Low Noise Amplifiers (LNA), frequency conversion systems, RF front‑end architectures, and beamforming ICs/RF integrated circuits.
• Communication system analysis: link budgets, G/TEIRP, modulation and coding, interference analysis.
• Electromagnetic theory, antenna propagation, and RF system optimization.
• Design‑for‑Manufacturing (DFM), production engineering, cost optimization, and product lifecycle support.
• Integration of antenna systems with modems, networking equipment, embedded controllers, and communication platforms.
• Global regulatory requirements applicable to RF and wireless communication products.

Professional Skills

• Strong analytical and problem‑solving capabilities.
• Excellent technical writing,