Application Software Engineer (Staff / Senior Staff)

This position is listed on behalf of a partner company, who manages all applications and next steps. Our partner is looking for an Application Software Engineer (Staff / Senior Staff) based in United States.

This role serves as a senior technical authority shaping the architecture and evolution of mission-critical operator software across multiple unmanned aerial systems. You will define technical direction for application frameworks, mission system interfaces, visualization platforms, and operator-facing experiences. The position combines deep software engineering expertise with systems architecture, real-time data processing, and complex system integration. You will lead cross-functional initiatives spanning avionics, autonomy, guidance and navigation, testing, and operator experience. The role also provides significant influence over long-term technical roadmaps, engineering standards, and architectural investments. This is an opportunity to mentor senior engineers and contribute to highly complex, safety-critical aerospace software from a remote U.S.-based environment.

Accountabilities:

• Define and guide application software architecture across multiple UAS platforms, ensuring modularity, maintainability, scalability, and long-term technical sustainability.
• Lead cross-functional technical initiatives spanning avionics, autonomy, guidance, navigation and control, test engineering, and operator experience.
• Establish system design decisions covering application frameworks, interfaces, API standards, data pipelines, and operator-facing mission software.
• Review, approve, and guide high-impact technical proposals, engineering change requests, and cross-program software integrations.
• Lead the resolution of complex system-level issues involving multiple subsystems, distributed data flows, performance constraints, and safety considerations.
• Drive long-term technical roadmap planning in collaboration with technical leadership, influencing feature priorities, capability evolution, and architectural investments.
• Serve as a senior escalation point for complex debugging, telemetry diagnostics, mission software failures, and issues identified during flight operations.
• Mentor senior and staff-level engineers, strengthening technical judgment, architectural thinking, knowledge sharing, and leadership capabilities.
• Represent software engineering in customer meetings, major design reviews, executive briefings, and cross-site technical alignment discussions.
• Advocate for operator-centered design principles that prioritize mission effectiveness, reliability, usability, and intuitive workflows.
• Establish and contribute to enterprise standards covering software documentation, testing rigor, integration methodologies, and system validation.
• Support the long-term evolution of application frameworks and mission software across multiple programs and platforms.
• Collaborate with engineering and program leadership to identify technical risks and develop durable, scalable solutions.
• Contribute to engineering culture-building and continuous improvement across development practices, architecture, and technical standards.

Requirements:

• Bachelor's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related technical field.
• 10-15 years of professional software engineering experience.
• Proven track record as a senior technical leader for large-scale, multi-program software systems.
• Significant experience defining architecture and long-term technical evolution for mission-critical applications.
• Experience integrating application software with avionics, autonomy, GNC, ground control, or related aerospace systems.
• Demonstrated ability to mentor senior-level engineers and lead complex initiatives across multiple technical disciplines.
• Expert-level proficiency in C++, C#, Python, or other core programming languages used in aerospace application development.
• Deep experience with UI and visualization frameworks such as Qt, WPF, WinUI, or similar technologies.
• Strong expertise in real-time data handling, multithreaded processing, networked systems, and distributed communication frameworks such as DDS, ZeroMQ, MAVLink, ROS2, or STANAG-4586.
• Extensive experience designing modular architectures, interface standards, APIs, and enterprise-level software frameworks.
• Strong understanding of system-level constraints involving avionics, autonomy, mission planning, and operator workflows.
• High proficiency with DevOps practices, CI/CD pipelines, automated testing, configuration management, and version control.
• Exceptional systems thinking and architectural leadership, with the ability to anticipate technical challenges and develop long-term solutions.
• Strong ability to influence technical leaders, executives, and broader program direction.
• Excellent cross-functional communication skills and the ability to operate effectively in complex, multi-team environments.
• Strong capabilities in mentoring, knowledge transfer, and engineering culture development.
• Demonstrated awareness of operational requirements and empathy for operator needs and mission use cases.
• A Master's degree in Computer Science, Software Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Robotics, Human-Computer Interaction, or a related field is preferred.
• Experience guiding multi-year, multi-platform software evolution is preferred.
• Experience supporting flight operations, ground system integration, SIL/HIL workflows, or mission operations is a plus.
• Experience in aerospace, defense, or other safety-critical environments with regulatory or certification constraints is preferred.
• Experience with mapping engines, advanced geospatial visualization, 3D rendering, or sensor-fusion interfaces is a plus.
• Experience designing extensible plugin architectures for long-term system growth is advantageous.
• Experience with large-scale performance optimization, telemetry analysis frameworks, or reliability engineering is preferred.
• Ability to influence engineering alignment across multiple sites and contribute to enterprise-level technical direction.

Benefits:

• $130,000-$200,000 annual salary.
• Remote work within the United States, with preference for candidates in the Eastern Time Zone.
• Matching 401(k) plan.
• Paid time off and paid holidays.
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance.
• Group short-term and long-term disability coverage.
• HSA and FSA options.
• Critical care and accident care plans.
• Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP).
• Opportunity to influence the architecture and long-term evolution of mission-critical UAS software.
• Senior-level technical leadership and mentorship opportunities across complex aerospace programs.

Additional Requirements:

• The position may involve access to information subject to International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and/or Export Administration Regulations (EAR).
• Applicants may be required to provide documentation verifying U.S. person status where required for compliance with applicable export-control regulations.
• The role may involve occasional travel by air or automobile and may require working in environments that combine standard office and production settings.
• Occasional use of personal protective equipment, such as safety glasses, safety shoes, and shop coats, may be required in production environments.