{"id":2637984,"url":"https://alion.io/job/space-kinetic-assembly-integration-and-test-ait-engineer","title":"Assembly, Integration, and Test (AIT) Engineer","company":{"id":685289,"name":"Space Kinetic","domain":"spacekinetic.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/spacekinetic","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":36,"ghost_share":0.028,"stale_share":0,"repost_share":0,"time_to_fill_p50_days":145,"computed_at":"2026-10-17T05:46:00Z"}},"role":"Industrial Engineering","role_family":"Industrial Engineering","seniority":"junior","employment_type":null,"work_mode":"on_site","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["El Segundo, United States"],"countries":["US"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":null,"salary_estimate":{"min_usd":79000,"max_usd":143000,"period":"year","method":"role_seniority_country_remote_cell","sample_n":3735},"experience_years_min":2,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[{"name":"SolidWorks","optional":false}],"status":"live","first_seen_at":"2026-10-15T17:27:35Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-10-15","last_verified_at":"2026-10-19T03:20:10Z","board_verified":true,"closed_at":null,"days_open":3,"trust":{"level":"ok","repost_count":0,"flags":["company_stale"],"days_open":2},"description":"A New Paradigm for Space Operations\nWho We Are\nSpace Kinetic is a dual-use space technology startup building a completely new architecture for space operations - one that brings the advantages of proliferated drone technology (low-cost, operationally flexible, attainable, distributed) to space missions while reducing the ecosystem's reliance on consumable fuel. In a world where many companies are focused on incrementally improving the status quo, we are focused on creating something entirely different - an architecture underpinned by new first principles to meet the opportunities and challenges of the third space age head-on. Our goal is to move away from one-to-one space architectures - where each satellite in a constellation has one (or a small # of) primary payloads attached to the bus -- and unlock a ‘one-to-many’ system, where each satellite has a large number of payloads which can be deployed from their host spacecraft at high velocities without firing a thruster.\nThis is not a role for someone looking for a traditional 40-hour work week. Space Kinetic is building ambitious, first-of-its-kind technology, and that requires urgency, ownership, and a high level of commitment to changing the foundational assumptions for everything we do in space.\nWhat You’ll Do:\nWe are seeking an Assembly, Integration, and Test (AIT) Engineer to support the assembly, integration, verification, and testing of complex aerospace hardware and systems.This hands-on engineering role will help move hardware from engineering release through assembly, integration, functional testing, environmental testing, and final verification. The ideal candidate has practical experience working with aerospace hardware, understands mechanical and electrical integration fundamentals, and enjoys troubleshooting technical challenges in a fast-paced development environment.\nYou will collaborate with mechanical, electrical, systems, software, manufacturing, quality, and test engineering teams to ensure hardware is assembled correctly, tested thoroughly, and delivered on schedule.\nJob Responsibilities:\nSupport assembly, integration, and testing activities for aerospace vehicles, spacecraft, payloads, subsystems, and ground support equipment.\nDevelop and maintain assembly procedures, work instructions, integration plans, and test procedures.\nPerform mechanical and electrical integration of structures, mechanisms, avionics, harnesses, sensors, payloads, and other hardware.\nProvide hands-on support during hardware builds and integration activities; troubleshoot mechanical, electrical, and system-level issues.\nAssist with root cause investigations, failure analysis, nonconformance resolution, and corrective actions.\nExecute functional checkouts and support environmental testing, including thermal vacuum (TVAC), vibration, shock, and EMI/EMC testing.\nSupport test configuration planning, instrumentation, data acquisition, and the development of tooling, fixtures, test equipment, and ground support equipment.\nReview engineering drawings, CAD models, schematics, wiring diagrams, and requirements to verify hardware readiness.\nMaintain configuration control, hardware traceability, test records, and accurate as-built documentation.\nCollaborate with engineering, manufacturing, supply chain, quality, and program teams to meet integration schedules and resolve technical issues.\nIdentify opportunities to improve AIT processes, test repeatability, quality, efficiency, and production throughput, including supporting automated test equipment and test scripts.\nWhat It Takes\nBachelor’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, or a related technical field.\n2+ years of relevant professional experience in aerospace, defense, aviation, spacecraft, manufacturing, hardware integration, or test engineering.\nHands-on experience with hardware assembly, integration, testing, manufacturing, or production processes.\nExperience developing, maintaining, or executing assembly procedures, work instructions, or test procedures.\nAbility to troubleshoot mechanical, electrical, or system-level hardware issues and contribute to root cause analysis and corrective actions.\nAbility to interpret engineering drawings, CAD models, GD&T, electrical schematics, wiring diagrams, or technical requirements.\nUnderstanding of engineering configuration control, hardware traceability, and technical documentation.\nAbility to work effectively with technicians and engineers in hands-on build and test environments.\nStrong problem-solving, communication, organization, and collaboration skills.\nAbility to take ownership of assigned tasks, resolve issues, and work across multidisciplinary engineering teams.\nWhat We’d Love\nExperience with spacecraft, satellites, launch vehicles, payloads, missiles, aircraft, or other flight hardware.\nExposure to subsystem integration, vehicle-level verification, qualification testing, or acceptance testing.\nFamiliarity with environmental testing, including TVAC, vibration, shock, acoustics, and EMI/EMC.\nExperience with avionics, electrical power systems, wiring harnesses, sensors, RF systems, mechanisms, or propulsion systems.\nFamiliarity with mechanical assembly processes, including bolted joints, precision alignment, bonding, staking, torquing, shimming, and flight hardware installation.\nExperience with test fixtures, integration tooling, ground support equipment, or automated test equipment.\nFamiliarity with oscilloscopes, digital multimeters, power supplies, electronic loads, or data acquisition systems.\nExperience with CAD and PLM tools, such as Siemens NX or SolidWorks.\nFamiliarity with aerospace workmanship, quality standards, and launch-site integration.\nInterest in scaling hardware integration and test processes for higher-rate production.\nWhere You’ll Be\nThe position is onsite at our headquarters in El Segundo, CA. Domestic travel may be required (up to ~20% of the year). \nWhat We Offer\nEquity-based compensation\n401(k) retirement plan with a 3.5% company match\nCompetitive PTO\nPaid company holidays and winter break\nComprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance\nPerformance-based bonus opportunities\nITAR Requirements\nTo conform to U.S. Government export regulations, applicants must be a U.S. citizen or national, a U.S. lawful permanent resident, a refugee under 8 U.S.C. § 1157, an asylee under 8 U.S.C. § 1158, or otherwise eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.\nEqual Employment Opportunity\nSpace Kinetic 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, disability, or any other legally protected status. The annual base salary for this role is below. 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/experience, certifications, abilities of the candidate, and internal equity. \nThe annual base salary for this role is below. 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/experience, certifications, abilities of the candidate and internal equity. \nPay Range\n$130,000—$145,000 USD","description_format":"text","description_chars":7705,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":2,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":{"level":"bachelor","optional":false},"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":["Equity","Retirement plans","Vision insurance"],"hiring_locations":[{"name":"United States","iso":"US","kind":"country"}],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Missiles","Space Services"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-10-15T17:56:34Z"}],"visa":[],"liveness":{"score":86,"band":"hot","label":"Hiring now","p_open":1,"p_active":0.86,"p_room":1,"age_days":1,"expected_fill_days":145,"reasons":["conf:3","win:early","comp:junior"],"computed_at":"2026-10-17T05:46:00Z"},"pay":null,"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/space-kinetic-assembly-integration-and-test-ait-engineer","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/space-kinetic-assembly-integration-and-test-ait-engineer.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-10-19T04:20:47Z","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":2535,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-10-20T00:00:00Z"}},"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":685289},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=685289"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fspace-kinetic-assembly-integration-and-test-ait-engineer"},{"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%2Fspace-kinetic-assembly-integration-and-test-ait-engineer"},{"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%2Fspace-kinetic-assembly-integration-and-test-ait-engineer"},{"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/space-kinetic-assembly-integration-and-test-ait-engineer\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fspace-kinetic-assembly-integration-and-test-ait-engineer"}]}