MK2 Vehicle Engineering Flight Performance Principal Systems Engineer

This role is part of the Lunar Permanence business unit, which develops Blue Origin’s Blue Moon landers and related products. To further Blue Origin's mission of millions of people living and working in space for the benefit of Earth, we are building sustainable infrastructure for our transport of crew and cargo from Earth to the lunar surface. 

As the Flight Performance Systems Lead, you will lead cross‑subsystem flight performance integration across MK2 mission phases. You will integrate attitude/pointing profiles, guidance and control performance, engine/thruster duty cycles and envelopes, prop system constraints, and mission timelines in collaboration with GN&C, Fluids & Propulsion, Power, Thermal, Avionics/Comms, Mass Properties, and Mission Operations. You will partner closely with the external Mission Design team to consume trajectory and ephemeris products and ensure all MK2 performance artifacts are consistent with the mission plan. You will work with technical integrators (Power, Thermal, Fluids & Propulsion, TPMs, Water/consumables) to deliver a single, internally consistent performance picture for design trades, verification, and reviews. Passion for our mission and vision is required! 

Responsibilities include but are not limited to: 

• Own the cross-cutting flight performance integration and envelope: align assumptions, constraints, and margins that affect attitude, pointing, and control performance throughout the mission timeline. 

• Define, derive, and track pointing and attitude-related requirements and TPMs: pointing accuracy/stability/jitter, slew rates and settle times, gimbal/actuator limits, keepout zones, FOV constraints, comm link geometry windows, solar incidence and powerpositive attitudes. 

• Lead integration with GN&C and Fluids & Propulsion: ensure consistency between guidance profiles, control authority, engine/thruster duty cycles and throttling envelopes, pressure/thermal/ullage constraints, and plume/impingement keepouts. 

• Interface with the Mission Design team (outside MK2): consume trajectory, ephemeris, and event timelines; reconcile dispersions and environments; maintain a clear handshake on inputs/outputs, updates, and change impacts. 

• Coordinate the technical inputs to the MK2 and mission timelines including pointing profiles for comm/power/thermal/landing sensors. 

• Define analysis cases and dispersions: nominal/offnominal/stress cases for pointing/attitude performance; coordinate Monte Carlo and 6DOF campaigns with GN&C; document assumptions, uncertainties, and sensitivities. 

• Integrate analysis and test data: correlate models with subsystem and system tests (e.g., actuator dynamics, sensor performance, engine/transient behavior); update margins and uncertainties; capture verification evidence linked to requirements. 

• Translate performance risks into flight rules and test objectives: propose ground/flight test points, instrumentation/data needs, and success criteria to reduce top uncertainties. Elevate flight performance risks and help the product teams define and manage mitigation strategies.  

• Manage interfaces and data: publish definitions for inputs/outputs, units, reference frames, coordinate conventions, assumptions, and versioning; keep an authoritative assumptions/constraints log and decision history. 

• Communicate crisply: provide executiveready briefings, dashboards, and review packages showing margins, risks, and decisions; deliver consistent content for reviews with actions tracked to closure. 

• Operate the toolchain pragmatically: 

• Analysis/simulation: MATLAB/Python; STK or equivalent for geometry/coverage; 6DOF/Monte Carlo frameworks in collaboration with GN&C. 

• Collaboration: Jama (requirements/verification linking), Jira (tasks and dependencies), Smartsheet/Baserow (structured registers), Confluence/SharePoint (artifacts and review prep); may coordinate with P6 schedulers (reader) for alignment to the IMS. 

Minimum Qualifications:

• 6+ years of experience in flight dynamics, GN&C performance, or cross disciplinary systems integration on complex aerospace or spaceflight programs (8+ years preferred for senior ownership). 

• Demonstrated experience integrating pointing/attitude performance across subsystems and coordinating with GN&C and propulsion/fluids teams. 

• Proficiency in MATLAB and/or Python; ability to run and post process simulation campaigns and create clear visualizations. 

• Strong systems mindset: align assumptions across teams, resolve discrepancies, and communicate implications to design, test, and operations. 

• Experience producing review ready performance artifacts and presenting in major design/test reviews. 

• Familiarity with collaboration and requirements tools (Jama, Jira, Confluence/SharePoint) and working with schedulers to align to an IMS. 

• Ability to work on-site and collaborate across time zones; ability to travel as needed to company, supplier, test, and customer sites. 

Preferred Qualifications: 

• MS in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering or related field. 

• Lunar or planetary mission experience (descent/landing, ascent, prox ops) and familiarity with propulsion transients, throttling envelopes, and RCS operations. 

• Experience defining and managing pointing budgets and TPMs; translating performance risks into flight rules and test objectives. 

• Hands-on model correlation to test (actuator/sensor dynamics, control performance, thrust vector control) and incorporation of evidence into verification artifacts. 

• Familiarity with NASA lifecycle and standards (e.g., NPR 7120/7123), analysis deliverables, and CDRLs. 

• Tool depth a plus: STK/GMAT/Copernicus, Trick or similar 6DOF environments; Power BI/Tableau for dashboards; scripting for data plumbing between tools. 

• Demonstrated collaboration with Power/Thermal/Mass Properties integration and comm/coverage analysis for pointing windows.