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Spacecraft Operations Engineer Jobs in Arizona (NOW HIRING)

... operations tools What you'll need * 2+ years' Space / Mission Systems engineering experience * Proven experience with a flight spacecraft/mission delivery or flight space hardware delivery effort

Space Mission Systems Engineer

Tempe, AZ · On-site

$149K - $224K/yr

... operations tools What you'll need * 2+ years' Space / Mission Systems engineering experience * Proven experience with a flight spacecraft/mission delivery or flight space hardware delivery effort

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Spacecraft Operations Engineer information

See Arizona salary details

$33.5K

$79.2K

$125.8K

How much do spacecraft operations engineer jobs pay per year?

As of Jun 17, 2026, the average yearly pay for spacecraft operations engineer in Arizona is $79,237.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $64,800.00 and $87,600.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What are some typical challenges faced by Spacecraft Operations Engineers during mission operations?

Spacecraft Operations Engineers often encounter challenges such as coordinating real-time responses to unexpected anomalies, managing complex schedules for satellite maneuvers, and ensuring seamless communication between ground control and the spacecraft. The role requires balancing strict adherence to operational procedures while quickly adapting to unforeseen technical issues. Effective teamwork and cross-functional collaboration with systems engineers, mission planners, and ground station personnel are crucial to successfully navigating these challenges.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a Spacecraft Operations Engineer, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Spacecraft Operations Engineer, you need a solid background in aerospace engineering, physics, or a related field, often complemented by experience in satellite or spacecraft mission operations. Familiarity with ground control software, mission planning tools, and certifications such as ECSS or ITIL are typically required. Strong problem-solving skills, attention to detail, and effective teamwork and communication abilities make candidates excel in this position. These skills are crucial for ensuring the safe, efficient, and successful operation of spacecraft in complex and high-stakes environments.

What does a Spacecraft Operations Engineer do?

A Spacecraft Operations Engineer is responsible for monitoring, controlling, and managing spacecraft during its mission life. They work in mission control centers to ensure the spacecraft operates safely and efficiently, troubleshooting issues and executing commands as required. Their duties often include planning mission activities, analyzing telemetry data, and coordinating with other engineering teams to resolve technical problems. This role is critical for ensuring the success of satellite, probe, or crewed missions, both during routine operations and in emergency situations.

What is the difference between Spacecraft Operations Engineer vs Satellite Operations Engineer?

AspectSpacecraft Operations EngineerSatellite Operations Engineer
CredentialsBachelor's in aerospace, electrical, or systems engineering; certifications like PMP or satellite-specific trainingBachelor's in engineering or related field; satellite operation certifications
Work EnvironmentMission control centers, spacecraft ground stations, aerospace companiesSatellite control centers, telecom companies, aerospace firms
Industry UsageSpace agencies, commercial spaceflight, satellite launch providersTelecommunications, broadcasting, satellite service providers
Job FocusManaging spacecraft health, mission operations, troubleshootingMonitoring satellite performance, orbit adjustments, data collection

Both roles involve spacecraft or satellite management, requiring similar technical skills and certifications. The main difference lies in the scope: Spacecraft Operations Engineers focus on space missions and spacecraft health in orbit, while Satellite Operations Engineers primarily manage satellite functions in telecommunications or broadcasting industries.

What are popular job titles related to Spacecraft Operations Engineer jobs in Arizona? For Spacecraft Operations Engineer jobs in Arizona, the most frequently searched job titles are:
What job categories do people searching Spacecraft Operations Engineer jobs in Arizona look for? The top searched job categories for Spacecraft Operations Engineer jobs in Arizona are:
Senior Engineer - Storage & Virtualization

Senior Engineer - Storage & Virtualization

EchoStar

Gilbert, AZ • On-site

Full-time

Medical, Retirement

Posted 19 days ago


EchoStar rating

7.0

Company rating: 7.0 out of 10

Based on 70 frontline employees who took The Breakroom Quiz

51st of 78 rated telecommunications companies


Job description

Company Summary

EchoStar is reimagining the future of connectivity. Our business reach spans satellite television service, live-streaming and on-demand programming, smart home installation services, mobile plans and products.
Today, our brands include Boost Mobile, DISH TV, Gen Mobile, Hughes and Sling TV.


Department Summary

Our DISH Technology team challenges the status quo and reimagines capabilities across industries. Whether through research and development, technology innovation or solution engineering, our team members play vital roles in connecting consumers with the products and platforms of tomorrow.


Job Duties and Responsibilities

Candidates must be willing to participate in at least one in-person interview, which may include a live whiteboarding or technical assessment session.

This role tackles the challenge of maintaining high-availability storage and virtualization infrastructure within a mission-critical spacecraft operations environment. The Senior Engineer ensures seamless data flow and storage reliability, preventing downtime that could jeopardize active missions. By automating complex workflows and upgrading legacy hardware, this position bridges the gap between traditional data center management and modern, scalable infrastructure-as-code architectures.

What Success Looks Like (Objectives)
  • Maintain 99.9% uptime for mission-critical production data center storage and virtualization systems through proactive fault management and resolution

  • Accelerate deployment cycles by developing infrastructure automation and configuration management scripts, shifting the team toward a "storage-as-code" model

  • Optimize performance and security by leading end-to-end software and hardware upgrades for Dell, Pure, and Cisco MDS infrastructure

  • Design storage requirements in collaboration with Spacecraft Engineering teams to ensure data accessibility and integrity for satellite operations

  • Leverage AI-driven predictive analytics and storage monitoring tools to identify capacity trends and potential hardware failures before they impact production

  • Drive the adoption of DevOps and SRE principles within the storage stack to streamline CI/CD pipelines and infrastructure resilience

  • Collaborate with primary systems and network engineers to develop the expertise required to serve as a backup administrator for essential systems.

  • Identify and resolve fundamental software, network, and RF problems, utilizing escalation protocols when appropriate

  • Contribute to talent development by participating in hiring and onboarding, and providing occasional mentorship and task guidance to interns or junior engineers

  • Other duties may be assigned.


Skills, Experience and Requirements
Core Skills and Competencies (What you’ll bring)
  • Deep technical expertise in managing enterprise-grade storage arrays such as Dell PowerStore and Pure Flash Array

  • Advanced proficiency in designing and maintaining high-performance Cisco MDS fiber channel storage networks and fabric zoning

  • Mastery of VMware environments and the intricate orchestration of storage resources within virtualized clusters

  • Strong software development skills in Python or Go, including the ability to apply AI-assisted coding tools for infrastructure automation and efficiency

  • Comprehensive knowledge of Linux and Windows Server administration within an Active Directory environment

  • Proven ability to lead complex technical projects simultaneously while adapting to the fast-paced requirements of spacecraft operations

Additional Qualifications
  • Advanced experience administering Microsoft Distributed File System (DFS) Namespaces and Replication in an enterprise setting

  • Familiarity with configuration management tools such as SALT, Chef, Puppet, or Ansible

  • Foundational understanding of GitOps, CI/CD pipelines, and cloud-native architecture

Minimum Requirements
  • Minimum Education: Bachelor’s Degree in a technical discipline (Computer Science, Engineering, or related field)

  • Minimum Experience: 5+ years of experience in systems engineering or storage administration

  • Required Technical Skills: Must have at least 2 years of experience with:

    • Dell Unity, PowerStore, or Pure Flash storage arrays

    • Fibre Channel or iSCSI storage fabrics and switches (Cisco MDS preferred).

    • VMware Virtualization environments

    • Software development using Python, GoLang, or Java

  • Legal Requirement: Must be a U.S. Person (a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident) as position requires access to U.S. export-restricted materials. Design storage requirements in collaboration with Spacecraft Engineering and Operations teams to ensure data accessibility and integrity for satellite operations

  • Availability: Must be able to participate in 24/7 on-call duties

Working Conditions

  • Position requires work in/near a normal office environment adjacent to 24/7 operations and equipment data centers with possible: electrical shock, radiation, vibration, and computer/equipment noise exposure

  • Typically works M-F normal business hours, but must be able to support work and on-call duties during off hours, weekends, and holidays as dictated by the needs of a 24x7 operation. Up to 10% travel.

  • The role necessitates regular physical activity, including walking, sitting, and reaching, alongside the ability to handle computer hardware, maintain hand-eye coordination, and perform tasks involving climbing, balancing, kneeling, or crawling. Additionally, employees must be able to lift up to 50 lbs and utilize senses such as hearing and smell to ensure operational safety

Visa sponsorship not available for this role


Salary Ranges
Compensation: $96,250.00/Year - $137,500.00/Year
Benefits

We offer versatile health perks, including flexible spending accounts, HSA, a 401(k) Plan with company match, ESPP, career opportunities, and a flexible time away plan; all benefits can be viewed here: EchoStar Benefits.

The base pay range shown is a guideline. Individual total compensation will vary based on factors such as qualifications, skill level, and competencies; compensation is based on the role's location and is subject to change based on work location. 

Candidates need to successfully complete a pre-employment screen, which may include a drug test and DMV check. Our company is committed to fostering an inclusive and equitable workplace where every individual has the opportunity to succeed. We are dedicated to providing individuals with criminal or arrest records a fair chance of employment in accordance with local, state, and federal laws.

The posting will be active for a minimum of 3 days. The active posting will continue to extend by 3 days until the position is filled.

We pride ourselves on developing and promoting talent as an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status. EchoStar will accommodate the sincerely held religious beliefs of employees if such accommodations are not undue hardships and are otherwise within the bounds of applicable law. All qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records will be considered for employment in accordance with local, state, and federal law. You may redact any information that identifies age, date of birth, or dates of school/graduation from your application documents before submission and throughout our application process.
EchoStar will provide reasonable accommodation to otherwise qualified job applicants and employees with known physical or mental disabilities, unless doing so poses an undue hardship on the Company, poses a direct threat of substantial harm to others, or is otherwise not required by law. EchoStar has a more detailed Accommodation Policy that applies to employees. EchoStar endeavors to make echostar.com and jobs.echostar.com accessible to users. Please contact leaves@dish.com if you would like to discuss the accessibility of our website or need assistance completing the application process. This contact information is for accommodation requests only; do not use this contact information to inquire about the status of applications.
Click the links to access the following statements: EEO Policy Statement, Pay Transparency, EEOC Know Your Rights (English/Spanish)

Qualifications:Core Skills and Competencies (What you’ll bring)
  • Deep technical expertise in managing enterprise-grade storage arrays such as Dell PowerStore and Pure Flash Array

  • Advanced proficiency in designing and maintaining high-performance Cisco MDS fiber channel storage networks and fabric zoning

  • Mastery of VMware environments and the intricate orchestration of storage resources within virtualized clusters

  • Strong software development skills in Python or Go, including the ability to apply AI-assisted coding tools for infrastructure automation and efficiency

  • Comprehensive knowledge of Linux and Windows Server administration within an Active Directory environment

  • Proven ability to lead complex technical projects simultaneously while adapting to the fast-paced requirements of spacecraft operations

Additional Qualifications
  • Advanced experience administering Microsoft Distributed File System (DFS) Namespaces and Replication in an enterprise setting

  • Familiarity with configuration management tools such as SALT, Chef, Puppet, or Ansible

  • Foundational understanding of GitOps, CI/CD pipelines, and cloud-native architecture

Minimum Requirements
  • Minimum Education: Bachelor’s Degree in a technical discipline (Computer Science, Engineering, or related field)

  • Minimum Experience: 5+ years of experience in systems engineering or storage administration

  • Required Technical Skills: Must have at least 2 years of experience with:

    • Dell Unity, PowerStore, or Pure Flash storage arrays

    • Fibre Channel or iSCSI storage fabrics and switches (Cisco MDS preferred).

    • VMware Virtualization environments

    • Software development using Python, GoLang, or Java

  • Legal Requirement: Must be a U.S. Person (a U.S. citizen or lawful permanent resident) as position requires access to U.S. export-restricted materials. Design storage requirements in collaboration with Spacecraft Engineering and Operations teams to ensure data accessibility and integrity for satellite operations

  • Availability: Must be able to participate in 24/7 on-call duties

Working Conditions

  • Position requires work in/near a normal office environment adjacent to 24/7 operations and equipment data centers with possible: electrical shock, radiation, vibration, and computer/equipment noise exposure

  • Typically works M-F normal business hours, but must be able to support work and on-call duties during off hours, weekends, and holidays as dictated by the needs of a 24x7 operation. Up to 10% travel.

  • The role necessitates regular physical activity, including walking, sitting, and reaching, alongside the ability to handle computer hardware, maintain hand-eye coordination, and perform tasks involving climbing, balancing, kneeling, or crawling. Additionally, employees must be able to lift up to 50 lbs and utilize senses such as hearing and smell to ensure operational safety

Visa sponsorship not available for this role

Education:UNAVAILABLEEmployment Type: FULL_TIME

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