Associate Principal Director – Western Range Directorate

The Aerospace Corporation is the trusted partner to the nation’s space programs, solving the hardest problems and providing unmatched technical expertise. As the operator of a federally funded research and development center (FFRDC), we are broadly engaged across all aspects of space— delivering innovative solutions that span satellite, launch, ground, and cyber systems for defense, civil and commercial customers. When you join our team, you’ll be part of a special collection of problem solvers, thought leaders, and innovators.

Join us and take your place in space.

The Defense Systems Group (DSG) provides analysis-based decision support to senior leaders on space architectures, policy and strategy, technology development, warfighter capability enablers, systems integration, defense industrial base, and threat reduction to help shape existing and future space missions across the national security space (NSS) enterprise. DSG is unique at Aerospace as it not only directly supports major customers, including the U.S. Space Force, U.S. Space Command, Air Force Materiel Command, and senior leadership at the Pentagon, but also provides a broad range of technical support across the national space enterprise, maintaining vertical responsibilities with customers’ portfolios as well as horizontal, matrixed responsibilities across the corporation.

Additionally, DSG provides deep technical expertise to the Space Force Space Systems Command (SSC) in the conception, design, acquisition, launch and operations of satellite, launch vehicle, ground control, and range systems.

We are seeking an Associate Principal Director for our Western Range at Vandenberg Space Force Base (VSFB), California. This person will be the senior Aerospace leader at VSFB and will support the Cape Canaveral Space Force Station (CCSFS) based Principal Director that has oversight of CCSFS and VSFB launch site operations. As the senior Aerospace leader at VSFB, this person will be expected to resolve problems quickly, execute processes and procedures, and work closely with leaders, colleagues and customers across the enterprise to ensure defined responsibilities are supported.

This person will additionally serve as the deputy to the Principal Director for execution of all launch site support activities.

This person will be required to work full-time, on-site at our VSFB office location in California.

Focal and overall responsibility for Sentinel, Missile Defense Agency (MDA), Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Spacelift Telemetry Acquisition and Reporting System (STARS) facilities and operations at VSFB and CCSFS, and VSFB Infrastructure support:

• Budget responsibility for areas of focus as well as overall operations at VSFB
• Overall responsibility and unique authority for Missile Programs Mission Assurance process
• Assigned personnel management and staff compliance with Aerospace policies, processes, and practices
• Provide safety and operations engineering support to the applicable program office
• Work to identify and provide the right Aerospace resources to execute the focus areas
• Overall responsibility for work execution within the focus areas
• Coordinate with and support Space Force customer counterparts within the areas of focus
• Bi-Weekly report inputs in conjunction with applicable System Director

• Administrative support for CCSFS personnel traveling to VSFB and for VSFB based personnel
• Facilitate seating/office space for CCSFS traveling personnel
• Facilitate seating/office space for NSS Launch Programs Tiger Team traveling personnel
• Provide awareness to Principal Director and applicable Launch Program System Directors for significant VSFB infrastructure and base issues or other program issues (i.e., MDA, Sentinel etc.) that could impact NSS Launch Programs
• Support meetings with VSFB Space Force personnel related to Launch Program support and provide awareness to Principal Director and applicable Launch Program System Directors for significant issues or questions
• Host the Aerospace Launch Readiness Review (ALRR) for VSFB NSS Launch Program missions and coordinate…