Sr. Application Software Engineer – Chassis Tester Software

About the role

This role supports the development and operations of New Glenn, a single-configuration, heavy-lift orbital launch vehicle capable of routinely carrying people and payloads to low-Earth orbit, geostationary transfer orbit, cislunar, and beyond. Its first stage is fully reusable, and the vehicle was designed from the beginning to be human-capable.

Responsibilities

• Design and implement production-quality Linux software drivers for test instruments — power supplies, DMMs, oscilloscopes, signal generators, DAQ systems — communicating over SCPI, VISA, serial, USB, and Ethernet
• Own the full driver lifecycle: characterization, implementation, integration testing, and documentation
• Work directly with avionics hardware engineers to understand instrument behavior, define operating envelopes, and validate driver correctness against hardware specs
• Architect and extend automated test execution frameworks and Themis, the team's result-checking framework
• Implement check logic, pass/fail criteria, limit management, and structured report generation for acceptance and qualification test campaigns
• Own and evolve the Platform Integration Layer common framework and its platform integrations
• Design networking architecture for multi-instrument, multi-UUT test configurations
• Build and maintain deployment automation (Ansible-based role architecture) for test system configuration management
• Prioritize usability, reliability, and clear feedback for non-software users operating in a fast-paced test environment
• Design and implement operator-facing applications — GUI tools and/or CLI interfaces — that allow test engineers and technicians to configure, execute, monitor, and review avionics test campaigns

Requirements

• B.S. in Computer Science, Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related field
• 8+ years of professional software engineering experience
• Expert-level Python — you write clean, testable, maintainable Python and hold others to the same standard
• Proven experience developing software on Linux — process management, filesystem, systemd, shell scripting
• Experience with the networking stack — socket programming, UDP/TCP telemetry and command transport, packet capture and parsing, network reliability handling and configuration
• Hands-on experience writing hardware interface software — instrument drivers, SCPI/VISA communication, or equivalent embedded/hardware-adjacent development
• Experience with automated test frameworks (pytest or equivalent) including fixture design, parametrization, and structured reporting
• Strong Git workflow discipline — branching strategy, code review, CI integration
• Demonstrated ability to debug across the hardware-software boundary — you are comfortable with a scope or DMM when the driver isn't behaving
• Demonstrated track record of owning a software system end-to-end — from architecture through deployment and long-term maintenance. Established coding standards, review practices, and architectural patterns for the team
• Experience making and defending architectural decisions with cross-functional impact
• Proven ability to lead technical work across a team — setting direction, unblocking others, and driving delivery without being a manager

Qualifications

• Experience with Ansible or similar infrastructure-as-code / configuration management tools
• Experience building GUI applications in Python (PyQt5/6, PySide, wxPython) or web-based operator interfaces (FastAPI, React, or similar)
• Experience with C++ in an embedded or hardware-interface context
• Familiarity with avionics test environments — EMI, TVAC, pyrotechnic systems, harness verification, automated test equipment checkout
• Experience designing networked test architectures — Ethernet instrument switching, NPC configuration, multi-node test topologies
• Knowledge of acceptance and qualification test processes in an aerospace hardware development lifecycle
• Familiarity with DOORS, Jama, or equivalent aerospace data and requirements management systems

Skills

• Linux software drivers
• SCPI/VISA communication
• Hardware interface software
• Automated test frameworks
• Networked test architectures
• GUI and CLI applications

Benefits

• Medical, dental, vision, basic and supplemental life insurance
• Paid parental leave
• Short and long-term disability
• 401(k) with a company match of up to 5%
• Education Support Program
• Stock Options
• Paid Time Off

Pay

Base Pay Range For WA applicants is $197,529.00 - $276,539.55

Schedule

Not specified