Mission Systems Engineer (m/w/d) / Space & Defense Industry

Once contracts are won, you carry your mission concept into execution. As a founding technical hire, you own the analysis that underpins every German proposal and delivery.

Job Description

• Technical proposal lead: Lead the technical volume of RFI/RFP responses and customer proposals and provide mission content for national and European funding applications: mission concept, solution description, feasibility evidence, and technical risks and mitigations. Provide technical input to the compliance matrix, work breakdown structure, schedule, and cost, which the Proposal & Project Manager owns.
• Bid strategy & win themes: Work with Business Development and the Proposal & Project Manager on bid/no-bid decisions, win themes, and technical discriminators; drive technical reviews and answer clarification questions through to submission.
• Mission analysis ownership: Own RPO and in-orbit servicing mission analysis, including orbit and trajectory design, approach and abort strategies, safety and collision-avoidance concepts, and Δv and timeline budgets.
• Mission concept & ConOps: Define mission architectures and concepts of operations across all mission phases, from launch and early operations through to end of life.
• Requirements & allocation: Derive mission requirements from customer needs and allocate them to space segment, ground segment, launch, and operations; define the spacecraft-level requirements baseline together with the Satellite Systems Engineer.
• End-to-end trade-offs: Run and document system-level trade-offs, ensuring technical coherence across all segments.
• Sales & business development support: Provide technical depth in early customer conversations and capability presentations, and qualify new opportunities with Business Development.
• Project execution: Own technical workstreams on won contracts, in particular concept and feasibility studies (Phase 0/A), ensuring delivery against mission and contractual requirements.
• Group coordination: Work with Engineering in Toulouse and other Group entities to align mission analysis methods and leverage existing product and technology solutions across the Infinite Orbits Group.

Requirements

Education & Experience

• Engineering degree in aerospace, astrodynamics, space systems engineering, or a related field, or equivalent.
• 3+ years of experience in mission analysis or mission systems engineering, with a track record of independently owning technical workstreams.
• Hands-on experience preparing technical proposals, study proposals, or funding applications in the space or defense sector (e.g. ESA, DLR, Bundeswehr, EU).
• Experience with RPO, GNC, formation flying, or in-orbit servicing missions is a strong plus.

Skills & Other Requirements

• Strong command of mission analysis tools and methods (e.g. STK, GMAT, Orekit, Python).
• Working knowledge across space segment, ground segment, launcher interfaces, and user segment integration.
• Ability to size, defend, and iterate mission solutions under customer or stakeholder scrutiny.
• Excellent structured writing: able to turn technical analysis into compelling, compliant proposal content under deadline pressure.
• Comfortable engaging directly with customers and prospects to support sales and business development conversations.
• Autonomy and ownership: comfortable owning workstreams independently in an early-stage, cross-border team environment, working closely with Group entities in France and beyond.
• Fluent in German and English.
• Willingness to undergo a German security clearance procedure (Sicherheitsüberprüfung).
• Frequent travel required within Germany and to Infinite Orbits' HQ in Toulouse and other European locations.

What we offer

• A founding technical role with direct ownership of mission concepts and technical proposals in a growing European space and defense company.
• Direct exposure to customers, bids, and cross-border collaboration with the Infinite Orbits Group.

WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO YOUR APPLICATION!

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