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Sr. Aviation Development Engineer, Networking (Starlink)

SpaceX· Starlink - Global Operations
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Woodinville, WA$135k - $220kFull-timePosted 1mo ago

About the role

Senior aviation-focused engineer for Starlink connectivity in airline passenger cabins, owning cabin connectivity architecture, HITL lab environments, and end-to-end lab-to-fleet implementation. Drives requirements, program governance, and regulatory compliance to enable multi-gigabit Starlink service in aircraft.

Responsibilities

  • Own cabin connectivity architecture for assigned airline programs: access-point placement and count, band/channel plan, frequency reuse, client density, QoS, and backhaul to the Starlink terminal
  • Specify and drive next-generation passenger-cabin Wi-Fi requirements (Wi-Fi 6/6E vs Wi-Fi 7, multi-AP coordination, MLO, 6 GHz use in the cabin, coexistence with IFE/crew/ops SSIDs and other RF occupants)
  • Design, stand up, and operate HITL (hardware-in-the-loop) lab environments that represent airline cabins: routers/APs, client devices, authentication backends, traffic generators, and RF/isolation fixtures; prove architecture before fleet rollout
  • Configure and validate cabin routers and access points (SSID/VLAN/DHCP/NAT or routed designs, ACLs, QoS, captive portal vs 802.1X/Passpoint, RADIUS/AAA, certificates, roaming)
  • Define and verify passenger authentication and hotspot security: WPA2/WPA3-Enterprise, Passpoint (Hotspot 2.0 / IEEE 802.11u), ANQP, EAP methods (TTLS, TLS, AKA/AKA'), OpenRoaming where relevant, and crew/ops network isolation
  • Work IP networking and protocol design end to end (IPv4/IPv6, routing, DHCP, DNS, NAT, TCP/UDP/QUIC, multicast, DHCP option sets, MTU/MSS, CGNAT implications on satellite backhaul)
  • Turn coverage, throughput, and authentication measurements (lab and aircraft) into requirements, test plans, and design changes for product and airline partners
  • Responsible for the technical engagement and successful Starlink service launch of Starlink with airline partners
  • Establish and maintain comprehensive program governance, delivering accurate, timely reporting to both customer-facing teams and SpaceX leadership
  • Lead strategic program reviews, coordination meetings, and workshops with internal stakeholders, customers, airframe manufacturers, and industry partners
  • Engage with customers during pre-sales to deeply understand requirements and translate them into actionable technical and operational plans
  • Coordinate across company departments, vendors, airframe manufacturers, and partners to prepare technical, compliance, and commercial artifacts for licenses, type approvals, and regulatory audits
  • Navigate complex schedules and project dependencies ensuring a maximally efficient use of SpaceX resources and customer success
  • Work closely with the FAA and other aerospace regulatory bodies to ensure full compliance throughout the customer engagement
  • Manage multiple concurrent projects and provide regular updates on schedule and deliverables to senior management
  • Act as the subject matter expert on the SpaceX Aviation Integration process and create alignment across all partners
  • Work across all stakeholders to ensure feedback is incorporated into project schedules and statement of work

Qualifications

  • Bachelor’s degree in a STEM discipline
  • 5+ years of experience in an engineering function (software, network, mechanical, electrical) OR a technical program/product management role focused on bringing programs/products/services to market

Skills

Required:Wi-Fi systems designHitL lab design and operationNetwork security and authentication

Benefits

  • Long-term incentives (stock or long-term cash awards)
  • Discretionary bonuses
  • Employee Stock Purchase Plan
  • Medical, vision, and dental coverage
  • 401(k) retirement plan
  • short and long-term disability insurance
  • life insurance
  • paid parental leave
  • 3 weeks of paid vacation and 10+ paid holidays per year
  • paid sick leave as per policy
Last updated Sep 2, 2026. Interested? Apply on the company site.

About SpaceX

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