{"id":705259,"url":"https://alion.io/job/inversionspace-staff-gnc-engineer-guidance","title":"Staff GNC Engineer (Guidance)","company":{"id":678249,"name":"Inversion","domain":"inversionspace.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/inversionspace","size_band":"51-200","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Greenhouse","truth_index":{"grade":"A","score":93,"open_postings":88,"ghost_share":0.034,"stale_share":0,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":81,"computed_at":"2026-10-24T06:02:35Z"}},"role":"Aerospace","role_family":"Aerospace","seniority":"staff","employment_type":null,"work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Vista, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":{"min":161000,"max":221000,"currency":"USD","period":"year","gross":null,"usd_annual":221000},"salary_estimate":null,"experience_years_min":9,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"C++","optional":false},{"name":"Human-in-the-Loop","optional":false},{"name":"MATLAB","optional":false},{"name":"Python","optional":false},{"name":"Sensor Fusion","optional":false},{"name":"Spark","optional":false}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-08-13T05:46:57Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-10-21","last_verified_at":"2026-10-24T15:49:16Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":72,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":0,"flags":["company_stale"],"days_open":72},"description":"Advanced Reentry Technologies\nWho We Are:\n\nInversion is an aerospace and defense company pioneering advanced reentry technology to enable next-generation capabilities from space. By combining high-performance materials, precision aerodynamics, and mission-driven autonomy, Inversion is transforming reentry into an operational capability for an entirely new class of missions.\nThe company’s highly maneuverable reentry spacecraft, Arc, is designed for rapid global cargo delivery, hypersonic testing, and other national security missions that require precise, controlled flight through the atmosphere. Arc creates an entirely new transportation domain, unlocking unprecedented speed and global reach.\nHeadquartered in Los Angeles, Inversion designs, manufactures, and integrates its spacecraft under one roof, enabling the company to move rapidly from concept to flight. The company is backed by leading investors including Y Combinator, Spark Capital, and Lockheed Martin Ventures, with customers across the U.S. government and commercial space industry.\nPosition Overview:\nInversion's lifting-body reentry platform will be a highly maneuverable, highly accurate vehicle that is an industry first and its guidance system is what makes that maneuverability count. As the Staff GNC Engineer (Guidance), you will be responsible for developing the guidance architecture for a high-performance maneuvering reentry vehicle, delivering high performance in the face of real-time mission updates.\nKey Responsibilities:\nOwn the guidance architecture for a maneuvering reentry vehicle from concept through flight.\nDevelop guidance algorithms that replan trajectories onboard in response to real-time mission updates.\nBuild and exercise 3-DOF and 6-DOF flight simulations to develop, stress, and validate guidance performance.\nDevelop plant models of vehicle and subsystem dynamics to support algorithm design and simulation fidelity.\nWork with the broader GNC, simulation, and mission design teams to close vehicle-level performance.\nMentor engineers across the GNC team\nRequired Qualifications:\nBachelor's degree in Aerospace Engineering, a related field, or equivalent experience.\nTypically, 9+ years of applicable experience developing and testing guidance or GNC algorithms and systems.\nExperience with modern convex optimization methods for guidance (e.g., successive convexification / sequential convex programming, lossless convexification).\nExperience developing and exercising 3-DOF and 6-DOF flight simulations.\nStrong fundamentals in flight mechanics, optimal control, and trajectory optimization.\nProficiency in programming languages such as MATLAB, Python, or C++ for simulation and analysis.\nDemonstrated excellent verbal and written communication skills.\nCapable of working in a dynamic, fast-paced startup environment.\nMust have the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government Secret/Top Secret security clearance.\nDesired Qualifications: \nMaster's or PhD in Aerospace Engineering, a related field, or equivalent experience.\nExperience with real-time onboard optimization solvers (e.g., ECOS, CVXGEN, OSQP, or custom solvers) in compute-restricted environments.\nExperience with atmospheric entry guidance methods (e.g., numerical predictor-corrector approaches).\nExperience building plant models of aerospace systems (aerodynamics, propulsion, actuators, sensors).\nExperience with state estimation using limited data (Kalman filtering, sensor fusion).\nExperience building guidance code deployed to real flight hardware.\nHardware-in-the-Loop (HITL) test experience.\nPrior experience working in startups and/or small independent teams.\nOur office headquarters is located in Playa Vista, CA. This position requires in office presence.\nThe California annual base salary for this role is currently $161,000-$221,000. Pay Grades are determined by role, level, location, and alignment with market data. Individual pay will be determined on a case-by-case basis and may vary based on the following considerations: interviews and an assessment of several factors that are unique to each candidate, job-related skills, relevant education and experience, certifications, abilities of the candidate and internal equity. \nITAR Compliance:\nTo conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State. Learn more about the ITAR here. \nEqual Employment Opportunity:\nInversion provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, veteran status, or disability. \nInversion collects and processes personal data in accordance with applicable data protection laws. If you are a US Job Applicant see the CCPA Privacy Policy Notice for further details.","description_format":"text","description_chars":5042,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":9,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":{"level":"bachelor","optional":false},"security_clearance":true,"languages":[]},"benefits":["Equity"],"hiring_locations":[{"name":"United States","iso":"US","kind":"country"}],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Space & Aerospace","Space Services","Space Defense"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-09-11T03:44:23Z"}],"visa":[],"liveness":{"score":51,"band":"ok","label":"Likely open","p_open":1,"p_active":0.842,"p_room":0.6,"age_days":72,"expected_fill_days":81,"reasons":["conf:2","velocity","win:late","crowd:"],"computed_at":"2026-10-24T06:02:35Z"},"pay":{"stated_usd_annual":221000,"is_top_pay":false},"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/inversionspace-staff-gnc-engineer-guidance","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/inversionspace-staff-gnc-engineer-guidance.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-10-24T18:38:08Z","cache_seconds":300,"methodology":"https://alion.io/methodology","terms":"https://alion.io/terms","contact":"https://alion.io/contact","api":"https://alion.io/developers","about":"Alion is a live layer of people, companies and AI agents: who they are, whether they are real and active right now, what they do and how to work with them, readable by people and by agents and paid per call.","catalog":"https://alion.io/catalog.json","usage":{"tier":"crawler_verified","counted_by":"address","units_charged":1,"used_today":27154,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-10-25T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002,"plus_per_slice":{"credits":0.05,"usd":0.005}},"unit":"per company, plus each slice with data","note":"the employer in depth","call":{"mcp_tool":"get_company","arguments":{"id":678249},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=678249"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Finversionspace-staff-gnc-engineer-guidance"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":1,"usd":0.1},"unit":"per slice","note":"pay, demand and time to fill for this role and place","call":{"mcp_tool":"market_stats"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=market.stats&for=job%2Finversionspace-staff-gnc-engineer-guidance"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002},"unit":"per posting in a list","note":"similar open postings","call":{"mcp_tool":"search_jobs"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=job.search&for=job%2Finversionspace-staff-gnc-engineer-guidance"},{"id":"company.verify","title":"Is this company real and active right now","status":"pilot","price":null,"unit":"per company","request":{"url":"https://alion.io/catalog/request","method":"POST","body":"{\"offer\": \"company.verify\", \"for\": \"job/inversionspace-staff-gnc-engineer-guidance\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Finversionspace-staff-gnc-engineer-guidance"}]}