Vast develops commercial space stations to support sustained human activity, research, and manufacturing in low-Earth orbit and beyond.
<div class="content-intro"><p>At Vast, our mission is to contribute to a future where billions of people are living and thriving in space. Vast is developing next-generation space stations to ensure a continuous human presence in space for America and its allies, enabling advanced microgravity research and manufacturing, and unlocking a new space economy for government, corporate, and private customers. Using an incremental, hardware-rich and low-cost approach, Vast is rapidly developing its multi-module Haven Station. Haven Demo’s 2025 success made Vast the only operational commercial space station company to fly and operate its own spacecraft. Next, Haven-1 is expected to become the world’s first commercial space station when it launches, followed by additional Haven modules to enable permanent human presence by 2030. Our team is all-in, committed to executing our mission safely and on time. If you want to work with the most talented people on Earth furthering space exploration for humanity, come join us.</p></div><p>Vast is looking for a <strong>Staff Flight Software Engineer</strong>, reporting to <strong>Senior Manager, Flight Software, </strong>to support the development of the systems that will be required for the design and build of artificial-gravity human-rated space stations. </p> <p>This will be a <strong>full</strong>-<strong>time</strong>, <strong>exempt</strong> position located in our <strong>Long Beach</strong> location.</p> <p>You will develop fault-tolerant code for safety-critical systems, and work closely with the avionics team to integrate flight code with avionics hardware. Most importantly, you will work as part of a team that believes that finding and fixing errors is a positive experience that will make everyone’s work better, and makes the team stronger as we continuously improve our processes and products.</p> <p><strong>Responsibilities:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Work with the Flight Software team to create highly reliable flight software for all Haven missions</li> <li>Work cross functionally with all other disciplines GNC, Thermal, Propulsion, Power, and ECLSS to support algorithm implementation and integration into the flight software</li> <li>Assess and critique code, ensuring adherence to best practices and established standards, in code reviews</li> <li>Develop driver-level code to interface with radios, sensors, and actuators onboard for all Haven missions</li> <li>Develop and maintain the Telemetry and Commanding Systems which will be used to communicate with our vehicles</li> <li>Develop unit and integrated tests, and establish continuous integration framework for flight</li> </ul> <p><strong>Minimum Qualifications:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Bachelor’s degree in computer science, computer engineering, electrical engineering or other engineering discipline</li> <li>10+ years of experience coding in C++</li> </ul> <p><strong>Preferred Qualifications:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Fault-tolerant and safety-critical software design</li> <li>Experience developing software for complex systems such as spacecraft, aircraft or autonomous vehicles</li> <li>Experience working in a continuous build and test environment</li> <li>Experience with Embedded Systems</li> <li>Experience working with satellite communications or telemetry systems</li> <li>Hands-on experience with serial protocols such as UART, CAN, I2C, SPI, and/or Ethernet (TCP/UDP)</li> <li>Understanding of Linux kernel software and drivers</li> <li>Network programming experience</li> <li>Familiarity with oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and digital multimeters</li> <li>Familiarity with the Atlassian Suite (JIRA, Bitbucket, Confluence)</li> <li>Familiarity with Git, Cmake, and GNU tools</li> <li>Able to work in a Linux environment</li> </ul> <p><strong>Additional Requirements:</strong></p> <ul> <li>Willingness to work evenings and/or weekends to support critical mission milestones</li> </ul><div class="content-pay-transparency"><div class="pay-input"><div class="title">Pay Range: California</div><div class="pay-range"><span>$188,600</span><span class="divider">—</span><span>$267,700 USD</span></div></div></div><div class="content-conclusion"><p style="line-height: 1;"><strong>COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS<br></strong><br>Base salary will vary depending on job-related knowledge, education, skills, experience, business needs, and market demand. Salary is just one component of our comprehensive compensation package. Full-time employees also receive company equity, as well as access to a full suite of compelling benefits and perks, including: medical, dental, and vision coverage for employees and dependents, generous paid time off; up to 20+ days of vacation for exempt staff and up to 10+ days of vacation for non-exempt staff with the ability to cash-out unused vacation annually, paid parental leave, short and long-term disability insurance, life insurance, access to a 401(k) retirement plan, ClassPass credits, personalized mental healthcare through Spring Health, and other discounts and perks. We also take pride in offering exceptional food perks, with snacks, drip coffee & onsite barista, cold drinks, and dinner meals remaining free of charge, and lunch subsidized as part of Vast’s ongoing commitment to providing high-quality meals for employees.</p> <p style="line-height: 1;"><strong><br>U.S. EXPORT CONTROL COMPLIANCE STATUS<br><br></strong>The person hired will have access to information and items subject to U.S. export controls, and therefore, must either be a “U.S. person” as defined by <a href="https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-22/section-120.62">22 C.F.R. § 120.62</a> or otherwise eligible for deemed export licensing. This status includes U.S. citizens, U.S. nationals, lawful permanent residents (green card holders), and asylees and refugees with such status granted, not pending.<br><br></p> <p style="line-height: 1;"><strong>EQUAL OPPORTUNITY</strong><br><br>Vast is an Equal Opportunity Employ