Senior Software Engineer - FlightAware Backend (Onsite)

About the role

FlightAware’s Backend crew builds state‑of‑the‑art systems that power the FlightAware website and mobile apps used by millions of people. The team maintains a single source of truth for each flight, handling data feeds, live updates, and SaaS integration for subscription management, billing, and accounting services. Engineers collaborate across the organization to deliver cloud‑native microservices, ensuring secure, reliable access for large airline and airport customers.

Responsibilities

• Contribute to building new features from scratch and take them through production.
• Build and scale FlightAware’s backend infrastructure, including streaming data feeds, databases, queueing systems, compute infrastructure, and analysis engines.
• Ensure seamless self‑service account management, integrating subscription, billing, and accounting systems.
• Provision customer access securely according to purchased products.
• Collaborate with cross‑functional teams to deliver cloud‑native microservices for web, mobile, data reporting, and more.
• Write high‑quality, well‑tested code for some of the world’s largest airlines and airports.

Learning Opportunities

• Work with cutting‑edge technologies such as Go, Rust, Python, Kubernetes, AWS, and more.
• Apply cloud‑native approaches to software development and delivery.
• Mentor junior engineers and become a go‑to expert in an area of the stack.
• Practice best‑practice engineering, providing feedback to improve teammates’ work.
• Gain exposure to a diverse set of projects and new technologies.
• Develop skills for navigating change, overcoming challenges, and continuously improving processes.

Required Qualifications

• Degree in Science, Technology, Engineering, or Mathematics (STEM) with at least 5 years of relevant experience, or an advanced degree with at least 3 years of experience.
• Authorization to work in the U.S. without sponsorship now or in the future (U.S. Person status).
• Professional experience as a Software Engineer using languages/technologies such as Go, Rust, C++, PostgreSQL, MySQL, or similar.
• Understanding of the importance of clear API contracts in software engineering.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in collaborative environments with pair programming, Agile stand‑ups, retrospectives, and peer code reviews.
• Familiarity with cloud platforms and technologies, especially Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Kubernetes.
• Experience with microservice architectures, including service meshes, API contracts, message/event queues, asynchronous workflows, and GraphQL interfaces.
• Experience with large‑scale SaaS systems and data storage/caching technologies such as PostgreSQL (or other SQL), PostGIS, TimescaleDB, Redis, Dragonfly, etc.
• Integration experience with advertising networks, billing, or accounting systems.
• Knowledge of cloud‑native tools like Flux, OpenTelemetry, Prometheus, Grafana, Terraform, or similar.
• Understanding of cybersecurity best practices and secure software design.
• Demonstrated ability to acquire new skills, solve problems proactively, and apply emerging technologies.
• Passion for aviation—e.g., private pilot, pursuing a private pilot license, or strong interest in flight.

Benefits

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance
• Three weeks of vacation for newly hired employees
• Generous 401(k) plan with employer matching and Lifetime Income Strategy option
• Tuition reimbursement program
• Student loan repayment program
• Life insurance and disability coverage, with optional additional coverages (pet, home, auto, critical illness, legal, ID theft protection)
• Birth, adoption, and parental leave benefits
• Ovia Health, fertility, and family planning resources
• Adoption assistance and autism benefit
• Employee Assistance Plan (up to 10 free counseling sessions)
• Healthy You incentives and wellness rewards program
• Doctor on Demand virtual visits
• Bright Horizons child and elder care services
• Teladoc Medical Experts second‑opinion program
• Additional optional coverages and programs

Pay

Salary range: $86,800 – $165,200 USD (estimate based on experience level and other factors).

Schedule

Onsite role – employees work primarily at the Houston office (Greenway Plaza, Ste 2900).