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Engineer Principal Spacecraft Mechanical Design

BAE Systems

Boulder, COFull-time$118–201K/yrSeen 1 day agoSeen in employer's feed 1 day ago

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At a glance

Compensation
$118–201K/yr
Location
Boulder, CO
Schedule
Full-time
Work Authorization
Not specified

Olive lists jobs from US employers, including remote roles you can work from the United States.

Requirements

Credentials this posting asks for.

Security clearance

Job overview

The Principal Spacecraft Mechanical Design Engineer leads mechanical design efforts for spacecraft and spacecraft buses from proposal through fabrication, assembly, testing, and verification. The role develops spacecraft configurations, structures, mechanisms, and requirements, and transitions to leading multidisciplinary engineering teams. It also coordinates with spacecraft subsystems and external partners, mentors junior engineers, and contributes to department capabilities and technology roadmaps.

Skills & qualifications

RequiredNice to have

Skills

Spacecraft DesignAerospace Instrument DesignStructural DesignMechanism DesignSensor DesignRotating Machinery DesignCAD SoftwareMechanical Engineering DesignDesign AnalysisTechnical LeadershipProgram AcumenEngineering JudgmentCritical ThinkingRisk-Based Decision-MakingProposal DevelopmentSolidWorks

Qualifications

BS in Engineering or Related Technical Field6+ Years Related ExperienceAccredited Institution DegreeSecurity Clearance Eligibility

Benefits

Medical Insurance
Dental Insurance
Vision Insurance
401(k) Match
Paid Time Off
Parental Leave

Full job description

Job Description

The Engineering, Science and Analysis (ESA) Strategic Capabilities Unit comprises the technical talent and organizational leadership that enables the successful delivery of high-impact discriminating technologies for our customers missions. Our collaborative, cross-functional teams are committed to innovation, integrity, continual learning and strong execution.

What You ll Do:

  • Lead the mechanical effort for new spacecraft and spacecraft bus in the unclassified and classified environment from proposal phase through award, detailed design, fabrication, assembly, test, and requirement verification.

  • Define, maintain, iterate, and verify the mechanical requirements that are needed to meet the system and other subsystem requirements and interfaces.

  • Generate, iterate, maintain, and release the spacecraft configuration, primary/secondary structure design, and mechanism architecture that meet system and subsystem requirements.

  • Working on CAD and doing simple hand structural analysis calculations during proposal and program initial startup.

  • Transition to leading team of 5-10 design and analysis engineers with majority of time spent leading the team and communicating with the internal and external customers.

  • Transition to leading team of 5-40 design, analysis, test, and manufacturing engineering responsible for fabrication, assembly, and test with majority of time spent leading the team with the ability to lead and resolve complex technical issues as they crop up.

  • Coordination required with personnel from all other spacecraft sub-systems including external interfaces such as customers, customer consultants, payload providers and launch vehicle providers.

  • Maintain a regular and predictable work schedule.

  • Establish and maintain effective working relationships within the department, the Strategic Business Units, Strategic Support Units and the Company. Interact appropriately with others in order to maintain a positive and productive work environment.

  • Actively mentor junior engineers.

  • Partners with Leadership to evolve the department, andenhance capabilities/technology roadmaps.

  • Maintain a regular and predictable work schedule.

  • Establish and maintain effective working relationships within the department, the Strategic Business Units, Strategic Capabilities Units and the Company. Interact appropriately with others in order to maintain a positive and productive work environment.

  • Perform other duties as necessary.

On-Site Work Environment: This position requires regular in-person engagement by working on-site five days each normally scheduled week in the primary work location. Travel and local commute between company campuses and other possible non-company locations may be required.

Working Conditions:

  • Work is performed in an office, laboratory, production floor, or cleanroom, outdoors or remote research environment.

  • May occasionally work in production work centers where use of protective equipment and gear is required.

  • May access other facilities in various weather conditions.

Required Education, Experience, & Skills

  • BS degree or higher in Engineering or a related technical field is required plus 6 or more years related experience.

  • Each higher-level degree, i.e., Master s Degree or Ph.D., may substitute for two years of experience. Related technical experience may be considered in lieu of education. Degree must be from a university, college, or school which is accredited by an agency recognized by the US Secretary of Education, US Department of Education.

  • Experience in spacecraft, aerospace instrument, structure, mechanism, sensor, and/or rotating machinery design.

  • Experience using CAD software.

  • Demonstrated creativity in mechanical engineering design.

  • Demonstrated design analysis capability.

  • Demonstrated Technical Leadership and Program Acumen: Leads cross-functional teams through all phases of the program lifecycle, exercising strong engineering judgement and critical thinking to balance technical, schedule, and cost priorities, while providing effective risk-based decisions to drive program success.

  • Prior participation in written and/or oral proposal activities for civil and/or military customers.

#LI-MT1

A security clearance or access with Polygraph is not required to be eligible for this position. However, the applicant must be willing and eligible for submission, depending on program requirements, after an offer is accepted and must be able to maintain the applicable clearance/access.

Preferred Education, Experience, & Skills

  • SolidWorks proficiency (or equivalent CAD software).

Pay Information

Full-Time Salary Range: $118095 - $200762

Please note: This range is based on our market pay structures. However, individual salaries are determined by a variety of factors including, but not limited to: business considerations, local market conditions, and internal equity, as well as candidate qualifications, such as skills, education, and experience.

Employee Benefits: At BAE Systems, we support our employees in all aspects of their life, including their health and financial well-being. Regular employees scheduled to work 20 hours per week are offered: health, dental, and vision insurance; health savings accounts; a 401(k) savings plan; disability coverage; and life and accident insurance. We also have an employee assistance program, a legal plan, and other perks including discounts on things like home, auto, and pet insurance. Our leave programs include paid time off, paid holidays, as well as other types of leave, including paid parental, military, bereavement, and any applicable federal and state sick leave. Employees may participate in the company recognition program to receive monetary or non-monetary recognition awards. Other incentives may be available based on position level and/or job specifics.

Engineer Principal Spacecraft Mechanical Design

132227BR

EEO Career Site Equal Opportunity Employer. Minorities . females . veterans . individuals with disabilities . sexual orientation . gender identity . gender expression

How this job compares

Set against the 7,647 open Mechanical Engineer jobs on Olive Jobs, counted November 4, 2026.

Pay
  • This posting$118–201K/yr
  • Colorado median$107–160K/yr240 salary ranges
  • US median$105–160K/yr4,577 salary ranges

This range's midpoint, $159K, is 16% above the Colorado median midpoint ($137K) — in the middle half of Mechanical Engineer salary ranges in Colorado.

Openings
Olive Jobs lists 291 open Mechanical Engineer jobs in Colorado and 7,647 across the US. 2% of them nationwide are listed as remote or flexible.
Hiring the most in Colorado
Experience
This posting asks for at least 6 years of experience; Mechanical Engineer postings that state a minimum ask for 5 years at the median (6,332 postings).
Education
5,250 of the 7,647 open Mechanical Engineer jobs (69%) ask for a bachelor's degree or higher.

Counted across the open, public US postings on Olive Jobs on November 4, 2026. Pay medians are the middle values of the low ends and of the high ends of postings that list both ends of a range in the same cadence (a yearly salary or an hourly rate); a range's midpoint is halfway between its ends. Pay and experience figures resting on fewer than 20 postings are left out.

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