What are the responsibilities and job description for the Lead RF Test Engineer position at Kratos Defense and Security Solutions?
Job Description
Readiness Delivered. Kratos builds high-performance hardware used in ground systems and space communications. Our products help communicate with satellites, spacecraft, and other mission-critical platforms. We’re hiring a Lead RF Test Engineer to serve as the RF technical lead within Production Engineering. This person will support production test for RF, modem, and wideband digitizer products including OpenSpace Edge 6500R, SpectralNet Wideband, SpectralNet Narrowband, and project-specific hardware.
This is primarily a technical coaching and strategy role for RF production test, with hands-on troubleshooting when needed for high-risk or high-impact issues. The primary mission is to raise the RF technical capability of Production Engineering, not become the owner of every RF test issue. You’ll help set troubleshooting direction, recommend changes to RF test methods, equipment, fixtures, procedures, automation, and test strategy, and work with the team to turn those changes into repeatable production practice.
This role reports to the Senior Production Engineering Manager and works with a Production Engineering team of roughly 10 people, along with technicians, design engineers, quality engineers, program teams, and production leadership.
This role is also intended to build technical leadership depth within Production Engineering. For the right person, it may grow into broader production engineering ownership, cross-functional execution, team development, and people leadership over time.
The right person knows RF test equipment, understands RF performance metrics, can script or automate test equipment, and has the maturity to lead others through messy production problems when schedule pressure is real.
Success in this role means production RF issues are solved faster, first-pass yield improves, troubleshooting time decreases, and repeat failures are driven to root cause instead of worked around. Over time, junior engineers and technicians should have stronger RF test guidance, new products enter production with robust test strategy, and the production team become more capable, more confident, and less dependent on ad hoc troubleshooting.
What You’ll Do
Experience with one or more of the following is helpful:
At Kratos, you’ll work on real hardware used in ground systems and space communications. You’ll have the opportunity to make technical decisions, improve how products are tested and built, and directly influence the success of production hardware.
We’re smaller and more direct than many large defense companies. Engineers here are close to the hardware, close to production, and close to the decisions. Some work will involve legacy test systems, but the goal is to improve repeatability, reduce recurring failures, and move the team toward better long-term test capability. You will not be buried under layers of process, but you will be expected to help solve real production problems.
The grade-based pay range for this job is listed below. Individual salaries within that range are determined through a wide variety of factors including but not limited to education, experience, knowledge, and skills.
Competitive salary based on experience and education
Salary Range: $110,000-$160,000
Kratos is valued for our ability to design and deliver leading edge, resilient solutions for aerospace communication, control, awareness and mission success across a continuum of offerings—from commercial to tailored custom solutions and integrated programs. Customers trust us to stay relevant and know we are in it for the long-haul. We bring both the capability and confidence that our customers value and depend on. And we always deliver.
This posting will close within 90 days from the Posting Date.
Job Benefits
Kratos Defense is an Equal Opportunity Affirmative Action Employer. EOE, Minorities, Females, Vet, Disabled, Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity or any other protected class. All qualified job seekers are encouraged to apply. Kratos Defense is committed to America's veterans by providing opportunities for them to continue contributing after service to our nation. We also work to provide reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities.
EEO Is The Law
Disability Accessibility Accommodation
If you require an accommodation to navigate or apply to our careers site, please send your request to HRAccessibility@kratosdefense.com or call 858-964-2916. Any inquires not related to requesting an accommodation will be discarded.
Pay Transparency
The company will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant.
Job Applicant Privacy Notice
For applicants in the EU and California residents, please review our privacy notice.
Readiness Delivered. Kratos builds high-performance hardware used in ground systems and space communications. Our products help communicate with satellites, spacecraft, and other mission-critical platforms. We’re hiring a Lead RF Test Engineer to serve as the RF technical lead within Production Engineering. This person will support production test for RF, modem, and wideband digitizer products including OpenSpace Edge 6500R, SpectralNet Wideband, SpectralNet Narrowband, and project-specific hardware.
This is primarily a technical coaching and strategy role for RF production test, with hands-on troubleshooting when needed for high-risk or high-impact issues. The primary mission is to raise the RF technical capability of Production Engineering, not become the owner of every RF test issue. You’ll help set troubleshooting direction, recommend changes to RF test methods, equipment, fixtures, procedures, automation, and test strategy, and work with the team to turn those changes into repeatable production practice.
This role reports to the Senior Production Engineering Manager and works with a Production Engineering team of roughly 10 people, along with technicians, design engineers, quality engineers, program teams, and production leadership.
This role is also intended to build technical leadership depth within Production Engineering. For the right person, it may grow into broader production engineering ownership, cross-functional execution, team development, and people leadership over time.
The right person knows RF test equipment, understands RF performance metrics, can script or automate test equipment, and has the maturity to lead others through messy production problems when schedule pressure is real.
Success in this role means production RF issues are solved faster, first-pass yield improves, troubleshooting time decreases, and repeat failures are driven to root cause instead of worked around. Over time, junior engineers and technicians should have stronger RF test guidance, new products enter production with robust test strategy, and the production team become more capable, more confident, and less dependent on ad hoc troubleshooting.
What You’ll Do
- Serve as the RF technical lead for Production Engineering, providing technical direction and guidance to junior engineers, technicians, and cross-functional teams.
- Lead the troubleshooting approach for RF production issues, coaching engineers and technicians through diagnosis, containment, root cause, and corrective action.
- Improve first-pass yield, reduce repeat failures, and decrease troubleshooting time by building stronger RF troubleshooting discipline and root-cause follow-through across the team.
- Support production test for RF, modem, and wideband digitizer hardware using equipment such as spectrum analyzers, VNAs, signal generators, power meters, and oscilloscopes.
- Develop, maintain, and improve automated and legacy test systems using scripting or tools such as Python, LabVIEW, or TestStand.
- Partner with Design Engineering on test strategy, test coverage, NPI readiness, and design-for-test improvements so production test needs are addressed earlier in the product lifecycle.
- Recommend, review, and improve RF test methods, equipment, fixtures, procedures, automation, and documentation for clarity, repeatability, technical accuracy, and long-term test capability.
- Escalate and drive recurring technical issues toward root cause when test strategy, product design, documentation, fixtures, or equipment are creating production failures.
- Escalate production RF risks with clear data, recommended actions, and ownership so schedule, quality, and program tradeoffs can be resolved by the right decision makers.
- Help establish operating discipline around production RF issues, including clear ownership, escalation, root cause follow-through, and communication across Engineering, Production, Quality, Supply Chain, and Program Management.
- U.S. Citizenship.
- 5 years of hands-on RF test experience.
- Strong understanding of RF test fundamentals and RF measurements, with hands-on experience using equipment such as spectrum analyzers, vector network analyzers, signal generators, power meters, and oscilloscopes.
- Experience troubleshooting RF failures in a lab or production environment.
- Experience scripting or programming test equipment using Python or similar tools.
- Ability to mentor engineers and technicians.
- Ability to work mostly onsite due to lab and production hardware.
- Strong judgment under production schedule pressure, with a practical problem-solving mindset and willingness to work close to production hardware.
- Ability to communicate clearly across technical and non-technical groups when production, quality, or schedule risk is present.
Experience with one or more of the following is helpful:
- Experience with RF systems operating roughly from 70 MHz to 3 GHz, including L-band, S-band, modems, receivers, downconverters, or wideband digitizers.
- RF performance metrics such as phase noise, noise figure, SFDR, spurious performance, TOI/IP3, gain flatness, sensitivity, or EVM.
- Automated production test systems.
- Python, LabVIEW, TestStand, Linux, Git, Bitbucket, Jira, or similar tools.
- NPI, design-for-test reviews, aerospace, defense, satellite communications, or ground systems.
- Leading cross-functional technical issues involving Production, Engineering, Quality, Supply Chain, or Program Management.
- Experience mentoring engineers or technicians, leading technical reviews, or helping establish team-level engineering discipline.
At Kratos, you’ll work on real hardware used in ground systems and space communications. You’ll have the opportunity to make technical decisions, improve how products are tested and built, and directly influence the success of production hardware.
We’re smaller and more direct than many large defense companies. Engineers here are close to the hardware, close to production, and close to the decisions. Some work will involve legacy test systems, but the goal is to improve repeatability, reduce recurring failures, and move the team toward better long-term test capability. You will not be buried under layers of process, but you will be expected to help solve real production problems.
The grade-based pay range for this job is listed below. Individual salaries within that range are determined through a wide variety of factors including but not limited to education, experience, knowledge, and skills.
Competitive salary based on experience and education
Salary Range: $110,000-$160,000
Kratos is valued for our ability to design and deliver leading edge, resilient solutions for aerospace communication, control, awareness and mission success across a continuum of offerings—from commercial to tailored custom solutions and integrated programs. Customers trust us to stay relevant and know we are in it for the long-haul. We bring both the capability and confidence that our customers value and depend on. And we always deliver.
This posting will close within 90 days from the Posting Date.
Job Benefits
- Medical, Dental & Vision Insurance Coverage
- Life/ADD & Short/Long Term Disability Insurance
- 401(k) Savings Plan
- Employee Stock Purchase Plan (ESPP)
- Paid Time-Off (PTO)
- Holidays
- Education Reimbursement
Kratos Defense is an Equal Opportunity Affirmative Action Employer. EOE, Minorities, Females, Vet, Disabled, Sexual Orientation, Gender Identity or any other protected class. All qualified job seekers are encouraged to apply. Kratos Defense is committed to America's veterans by providing opportunities for them to continue contributing after service to our nation. We also work to provide reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities.
EEO Is The Law
Disability Accessibility Accommodation
If you require an accommodation to navigate or apply to our careers site, please send your request to HRAccessibility@kratosdefense.com or call 858-964-2916. Any inquires not related to requesting an accommodation will be discarded.
Pay Transparency
The company will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant.
Job Applicant Privacy Notice
For applicants in the EU and California residents, please review our privacy notice.
Salary : $110,000 - $160,000