Head of Avionics
STOKE Space Technologies
Operations
Kent, WA, USA
Posted on Feb 14, 2026
At Stoke, we believe that a thriving space economy leads to a vibrant, sustainable, and equitable future here on Earth. That is why we are building our fully and rapidly reusable vehicle, Nova. It is designed to fly daily and solve the core challenges of space transportation – it reduces cost, increases availability, and enhances reliability. By radically lowering the cost and increasing the cadence of launch, we’re able to create a truly scalable space industry.
Our team is mission-driven, collaborative, and empowered with ownership of their work. If you want to work with some of the most dedicated and talented people on Earth, come join us.
Description
As Head of Avionics, you will own the end-to-end strategy, architecture, development, qualification, and production scaling for all avionics systems on Stoke's 100% reusable rockets. This includes flight computers, power distribution, sensors, actuators, RF communications, guidance/navigation/control (GNC) interfaces, flight termination systems, and environmental survivability for both ascent and reentry. You will drive innovation in compact, reliable, radiation-tolerant, and rapidly producible avionics tailored to high-cadence reusability - while leading a high-performing team in a fast-paced startup environment.
Responsibilities
- Provide technical leadership and strategic direction for the avionics organization, including roadmap development for current (Nova) and next-generation vehicles.
- Own avionics system architecture, requirements, design reviews, verification/validation, and certification/qualification processes to meet mission reliability and reusability goals.
- Lead cross-functional collaboration with propulsion, structures, GNC/software, manufacturing, test, and operations teams to ensure seamless vehicle integration.
- Scale avionics production from prototypes to manufacturing, emphasizing design-for-manufacturability, rapid iteration, and cost reduction.
- Build, mentor, and grow a world-class avionics team, fostering a culture of ownership, speed, and technical excellence.
- Manage budgets, schedules, and resource allocation across avionics subsystems and projects.
- Drive risk reduction through hardware-in-the-loop testing, environmental qualification (vibration, thermal, EMI/EMC, radiation), and flight/vehicle-level testing.
- Support mission planning, anomaly resolution, and post-flight data reviews to continuously improve avionics performance across repeated flights.
- Drive execution against aggressive development schedules while maintaining safety and quality.
Qualifications
- Bachelor of Science or Master of Science degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or a related discipline, and 10+ years’ experience developing flight-critical avionics for spacecraft, launch vehicles, or other high-reliability systems, or an equivalent combination of education and experience
- 5+ years’ experience building, leading, and scaling high performing engineering teams responsible for flight hardware
- Deep technical expertise in multiple avionics domains: embedded systems, flight computers, power electronics, RF/communications, harness design, sensors/actuators, and environmental hardening.
- Experience architecting fault-tolerant, distributed avionics systems for launch vehicles or spacecraft
- Experience owning avionics systems across the full mission lifecycle, from architecture and development through qualification, launch, and flight operations
- Ability to make principled engineering trade-offs under schedule pressure
- Experience leading through ambiguity and rapid iteration
- Strong systems thinking and cross-disciplinary collaboration
- Self-starter with demonstrated history of ownership and accountability
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with a capacity to identify issues and implement effective solutions
Benefits
- Equity – We know that our employees are the reason we succeed. To give everyone a stake in our future, we are pleased to offer equity in the form of stock options to all regular, full-time employees.
- Comprehensive benefits program including subsidized medical, dental, and vision insurance
- Company-paid life and disability insurance
- 401(k) plan with employer match
- 4 weeks’ Paid Time Off
- Holidays – 10 days (including an end-of-year closure)
- Paid Family/Parental Leave
- On-site gym or monthly wellness stipend (depending on location)
- Dog friendly offices!
Compensation
Target Levels:
- Level 4 range: $151,305 - $252,105
- Level 5 range: $176,505 - $327,810
Our job posts are intentionally written to attract a wide variety of experience levels, and we make decisions about the right fit on a per-candidate basis.
Your actual level and base salary will be decided based on your specific experience and skill level.
ITAR Requirements
To conform to U.S. Government space technology export regulations, including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR), you must be a U.S. citizen, lawful permanent resident of the U.S., protected individual as defined by 8 U.S.C. 1324b(a)(3), or eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State.
Equal Opportunity
The Company is an Equal Opportunity Employer, including with respect to disability and veteran status. It is committed to compliance with all equal opportunity laws, including the Immigration and Nationality Act (INA) and Title VII. It does not discriminate on the basis of nationality, race, citizenship, immigration status, or any other protected class when it comes to employment practices, including hiring.
Employment at the Company is contingent upon satisfactory completion of reference and background checks, and on your ability to prove your identity and authorization to work in the U.S. for the Company. Employees must comply with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services employment verification requirements, and, therefore, they must complete an Employment Eligibility Verification Form I-9 at the start of employment and re-verify authorization to work periodically.
Separate from this I-9 process, this position entails access to certain technology and technical data that is restricted under U.S. export control laws and regulations. Employment or continued employment may be conditioned on your legal authorization to work with or have access to export control materials as necessary to perform your job.
E-Verify
Stoke Space uses E-Verify to confirm the identity and employment eligibility of all new hires.