# Staff Engineer, Mission Systems - Fleet Support

**Company:** [Shield AI](https://hotfix.jobs/companies/shield-ai)
**Location:** Dallas, TX
**Role:** Solutions Architecture
**Salary:** $140k – $210k/yr
**Experience:** 5+ years
**Skills:** Systems Engineering, Payload Integration, Sensor Integration, Mission Systems, Avionics Integration, Aircraft Systems Engineering, Hardware Troubleshooting, Software Troubleshooting, Networking, Eo/Ir Payloads, Radar, Transponders, Interface Control Documents, Flight Test Support
**Posted:** 2026-06-17

> Senior Mission Systems Engineer serving as SME for V-BAT Fleet Support, owning customer-facing engineering support for payload and transponder issues and emerging mission tech integrations. Requires 5+ years in payload/sensor/mission systems integration plus strong cross-functional troubleshooting skills.

## Job Description

## What you'll do
- Serve as the mission systems SME for Fleet Support and lead escalated investigations involving payloads, transponders, and externally connected mission systems.
- Diagnose payload integration and performance issues involving power, thermal behavior, compute, configuration, data interfaces, timing, and subsystem interoperability.
- Troubleshoot systems that communicate with external sources or provide data externally, including mission-data outputs, external interfaces, and system-to-system connectivity issues.
- Support the introduction of emerging technologies and new mission capabilities into the fielded fleet by identifying support risks, validation needs, and integration challenges.
- Work directly with customers, operators, and maintainers to understand mission impact, reproduce issues, and define corrective actions.
- Partner with electrical, software, and RF teams on cross-functional mission-system problems.
- Support lab validation, hardware integration, test readiness, and field demonstrations related to mission-system fixes.
- Create technical guidance, interface notes, troubleshooting procedures, and customer-facing documentation for fielded mission capabilities.
- Capture recurring issues and feed lessons learned back into product, systems, and design teams.

## Required qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in Systems Engineering, Aerospace Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or a related discipline.
- 5+ years of experience in payload integration, sensor integration, mission systems, avionics integration, or aircraft systems engineering.
- Experience troubleshooting complex systems that span hardware, software, networking, and operational workflows.
- Strong ability to move between high-level mission context and detailed subsystem investigation.
- Experience working across design, integration, test, and field-support environments.
- Strong written and verbal communication skills in customer-facing technical settings.

## Preferred qualifications
- Experience with electro-optical and infrared (EO/IR) payloads, radar, transponders, or other externally connected aircraft mission systems.
- Experience with interface control documents, validation planning, and flight-test support.
- Experience introducing new payloads or mission kits into operational fleets.
- Experience with defense, maritime, or expeditionary mission systems.

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