--- title: 'Satellite Systems Engineer at Loft Orbital Solutions' canonical: 'https://feeny.ai/job/satellite-systems-engineer-loft-orbital-solutions-abu-dhabi-xxabe4e5hkse' type: 'job' last_seen: '2026-11-03' --- # Satellite Systems Engineer at Loft Orbital Solutions - **Company:** Loft Orbital Solutions - **Location:** Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates - **Work type:** onsite - **Posted:** 2026-11-03 - **Last confirmed live:** 2026-11-03 - **Apply:** https://jobs.lever.co/loftorbital/b37978d2-9c5e-4f17-ae11-6965e278a38b ## Job description Wanna join the adventure? Orbitworks' mission is to make space simple for organizations that want to deploy physical and virtual missions to space. Building on Loft Orbital's heritage, Orbitworks will be the first commercial firm in the United Arab Emirates to mass-manufacture satellites. Orbitworks aims to manufacture tens of satellites annually and operates out of a 50,000-square-foot facility in Abu Dhabi. As a Senior Satellite Systems Engineer at Orbitworks, you will work as a senior engineer for one or several satellite missions simultaneously, each one flying a single/multi-payload configuration. You will be a technical reference for these missions, working closely with the mission manager and all the Orbitworks and Loft teams: product development teams, flight and ground software, AIT, and operations. Using flight-proven satellite buses and Loft-designed payload hub infrastructure, you will lead the development activities of the missions you are in charge of. About this Role: - Work with customers to develop and manage system requirements and verification techniques, and flow down to software or hardware teams. - Develop, in collaboration with team members, interface specifications and derive overall satellite architecture and design. - Work with product and sub-systems engineers to develop and maintain technical budgets for spacecraft performance. - Work with flight operations to develop mission CONOPS, supporting the development of Service Level Agreements with Loft's customers. - Assist with program management and product management, including interfacing with customers on programmatic and scheduling matters. - Support test procedures, and participate in the integration, test campaign, launch and in-orbit commissioning. Must Haves: - You have 10 years or more demonstrated experience as a spacecraft / satellite systems engineer, or equivalent experience in at least two different subsystems (ADCS, Mechanical, Thermal, Power, Avionics, …). - You have experience in satellite assembly, integration and test campaigns from a systems perspective and/or in spacecraft delivery to orbit. - You challenge norms in aerospace engineering and testing activities and are experienced in fast-paced development environment. - You handle pressure positively and are always ready to get hands-on. - You have strong communication and organizational skills. Nice to Haves: - Experience working on small sats (less than 500kg). - Experience in Electrical sub-systems. - Proficient with STK. - Knowledge of Python. - International experience. Orbitworks' mission is to make space simple for organizations that want to deploy physical and virtual missions to space. Building on Loft Orbital's heritage, Orbitworks will be the first commercial firm in the United Arab Emirates to mass-manufacture satellites. Orbitworks aims to manufacture tens of satellites annually and operates out of a 50,000-square-foot facility in Abu Dhabi. ## About Loft Orbital Solutions ## Company Overview - **One-liner**: Loft Orbital is a space infrastructure company that provides simple, fast, and reliable ways for customers to deploy and operate physical payloads and software missions in low Earth orbit. - **Entity Type**: Private (Series C – $170M round announced, total funding $326.9M) - **Headquarters**: San Francisco, California, United States (with additional offices in Golden, Colorado and Toulouse, France) - **Founded**: 2017 - **Founders**: Not listed in provided sources ## Core Business - **Primary Industry**: Defense and Space Manufacturing - **Target Customers**: B2B – commercial space startups, established aerospace and defense primes, cloud and AI companies, and government agencies worldwide (including U..S, France, Canada) - **Mission/Purpose**: “Space Made Simple” – enabling customers to focus on their mission while Loft handles end-to-end space infrastructure ## Products & Services - **Physical Payload Missions**: Loft integrates, tests, launches, and operates customer hardware payloads on its standardized satellite platforms (e.g.., optical, hyperspectral, RF sensors). - **Virtual / Software-Only Missions**: Customers can deploy software directly to Loft’s on-orbit satellites to process and analyze data in near-real time (e..g., AI edge processing via partners like SkyServe, SSCI). - **YAM (Yet Another Mission)** satellites: A fleet of multi-mission satellite buses available for rapid deployment; Loft maintains an inventory of pre-assembled platforms. - **Hub & Cockpit**: Proprietary hardware and software abstraction layers that simplify payload integration and satellite operations. - **Loft Federal**: A FOCI-mitigated division focused on US national security space missions (only US citizens). ## Market Standing - **Valuation/Market Cap**: Not disclosed (total funding $326..9M – LinkedIn) - **Key Metric**: Total Funding $326..9M (8 rounds incl. $170M Series C); Annual Revenue estimated $27..8M (LinkedIn) - **Notable Investors/Partners**: Lead seed investor Uncork Capital; partners include Honeywell (Canadian Space Agency mission), Wyvern (Dragonette constellation), Esper, Helsing, SmartSat CRC, EarthDaily ($150M constellation), SkyServe, SSCI, Airbus OneWeb Satellites (15 bus order). - **Growth Signals**: 270 employees (+14.9% YoY), 41k+ LinkedIn followers (+41.4% YoY), 14 satellites launched, 60+ customers, 15+ AI missions on-orbit, selected as prime contractor for France’s first space-based radar imaging program. ## Competitive Advantages - **Standardized Satellite Platform**: Uses a commodity satellite bus with custom hardware/software layers, eliminating non-recurring engineering and enabling “turnkey” plug-and-play. - **Speed to Orbit**: Maintains an inventory of pre-assembled buses and pre-booked launches, drastically reducing lead times compared to traditional aerospace. - **Flight Heritage**: Over 600 copies of the bus in orbit today, providing proven reliability - **Misson Agnosticism**: Can fly any payload that fits within standard platform constraints; supports both physical and virtual missions. ## Strategic Focus - **Expand AI Edge Computing**: Deploying onboard AI processing (e..g., STORM from SkyServe, POET experiment for SDA) to enable near-real-time decision making. - **National Security Growth**: Loft Federal continues to win US government contracts. - **Constellation Scale-Up**: Partnering with EarthDaily for $150M satellite constellation; ordering 15 additional buses from Airbus OneWeb. - **International Partnerships**: Strengthening ties with France (prime contractor for radar imaging) and Canada (SmartSat CRC, Honeywell). ## Why Work Here - **Culture**: Collaborative, respectful, professional environment described as “non-negotiable.” Rated 4..5/5 on LinkedIn (35 reviews) with Culture 4.5, Compensation 4.1, Work-Life 3.6, Career 4.2. - **Wor Environment**: Distributed team with core hubs in San Francisco, Golden (CO), and Toulouse. Supports remote collaboration but roles may require on-site presence (per job listings). Recruiting process involves intro call, technical screening, challenge, and hiring panel. - **Notable Perks**: Opportunity to work on cutting-edge space infrastructure with a fast-growing company; involvement in both commercial and government missions; international team. ## Sources 1. [loftorbital..com](https://loftorbital.com/) 2. [loftorbital.com/about/](https://loftorbital.com/about/) 3. [loftorbital.com/careers/](https://loftorbital.com/careers/) 4. [jobs.lever.co/loftorbital](https://jobs.lever.co/loftorbital/) 5. 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