Senior Mission Operations Preparation Engineer

About the role

As a Senior Mission Operations Preparation Engineer you will shape technical solutions for upcoming space missions, develop operational concepts and tools, and ready the team for mission execution. You will work closely with design and development engineers across functions and support testing in both assembly, integration, verification (AIV) and operational environments.

Key responsibilities

• Act as Operations Technical Lead for the mission under development.
• Develop Mission Operations concepts for standalone missions or satellite fleets.
• Support the Operations Development Plan from Preliminary Design through end‑of‑mission.
• Define operability requirements and user stories in coordination with Flight Operations.
• Contribute to interface definitions, subsystem reviews and product documentation.
• Own the Operations User Manual/handbook and support procedure development.
• Develop test specifications, plans and procedures for system validation and mission simulation tests.
• Identify and implement tools for mission execution such as databases, dashboards and trending utilities.
• Serve as the interface between system and operations teams during LEOP, commissioning, routine, and disposal phases.
• Participate in 24/7 on‑call anomaly resolution as needed.

Required profile

• Engineering, physics or equivalent degree.
• Several years of satellite industry experience in real‑time operations or spacecraft operations preparation.
• Knowledge of space standards (ECSS, CCSDS, ISO) and mission control systems (e.g., SCOS‑2000).
• Hands‑on experience with system engineering processes, flight‑procedure development, and AIT testing.
• Eligibility for UK Security Clearance to SC level.

Required skills

• Python scripting
• Tcl scripting
• SCOS‑2000 or similar mission control software
• ECSS, CCSDS, ISO standards
• System engineering and configuration management
• Flight‑procedure development and validation
• System testing and AIT processes
• Operations preparation tools (e.g., MOIS)

What we offer

• Competitive base salary
• Opportunity to work with a highly talented, diverse and dynamic team