RF and Datalink Engineer (Engineer - RF 4) - 28784

Job Description

HII Mission Technologies has been selected as one of Military.com's "Top 25 Employers for Veterans in 2024" and we are a Forbes Best Large Employer for 2023!!!

Are you ready to take your career to the next level? We are seeking talented and motivated Spectrum and Radio Frequency Professionals to join our team!

Position Summary:

HII - Mission Technologies is seeking an RF and Datalink Engineer in the execution and delivery of contract services. The RF and Datalink Engineer is responsible for the design, deployment, maintenance, and troubleshooting of secure, resilient, and highly available communications networks in primarily garrison environments and may support austere deployed environments if the mission partner requests support. This role ensures seamless data, voice, and video transmission across various tactical platforms, integrating Line-of-Sight (LOS), Beyond-Line-of-Sight (BLOS), and satellite communication (SATCOM) systems to support mission-critical command and control (C2) operations. This role encompasses working up and down the leadership chain, within and across teams as required to provide excellence in all we do. The position will primarily work from a traditional office environment but may travel as required. Travel may include opportunities to conduct surveys and inspections of communications equipment and communications devices (radios, antenna, etc.), support customers in the field/on location with setup, operation, and breakdown of equipment, to review and validate technical specifications, manuals, and guides. Additionally, the position may participate in working groups, technical exchange meetings, conferences, and other activities to identify and establish the baseline of current capabilities and stakeholder roadmaps on future capability integration plans.

This role requires on site work in Mary Esther, FL and cannot be done remotely.

Come support our work with Air Force Special Operations Command and join a world class team of groundbreaking scientists and engineers!

Details below!

Essential Job Responsibilities

In this role the RF Datalink Team Member will:

• Work closely with the government to support and develop the Special Warfare Technology Integration Support Cooperative (SW TISC) RF/DL initiatives in support of SOF operations globally.
• Lead a team of RF/DL engineers and serve as the government stakeholder interface to prioritize and manage Innovation, Assessment, & Evaluation (IA&E) activities.
• Design and implement tactical routing, switching, and transport solutions. Configure OSPF, BGP, GRE, and IPsec protocols for tactical edge networks.
• Expand the existing RF/DL team’s capabilities by conducting development, engineering evaluation, and testing of new and emerging technologies for the advancement of SOF missions
• Integrate tactical radios (e.g., Harris, Thales) and SATCOM terminals (e.g., VSAT, BGAN) into enterprise network architectures. Manage RF propagation, transmission planning, and frequency allocations.
• Closely work with the Network team to support integration of RF/Datalink capabilities with unique networking components and design IP-over-RF solutions
• Perform Tier 2/Tier 3 troubleshooting for network outages in high-stress, time-sensitive operational environments.
• Work as a member of a diverse engineering, testing and support team to ensure all operating mission nodes (operations centers, airborne weapon systems, ground teams, and other) can interoperate and execute synchronized mission activities via their mission systems connected through various mission networks
• Provide data links and networking interoperability engineering, consultation, and support to design, develop, manufacture, integrate, test, and deploy subsystems components for air-to-air and air-to-ground communications. Support design, development, integration and testing of data link messaging such as J-Series, K-Series, and VMF messages in accordance with MIL-STDs -6016 and -6017.
• Support integration of conventional, special operations, and other systems into tactical kits used in-garrison and deployed.
• Work with other functional area leads to ensure full support and integration of unique components and government systems of record
• Provide training for products, systems and services fielded and/or supported by the SW TISC
• Assess RF and data link systems on aircraft and ground platforms to determine their technical specifications, capabilities, and limitations.
• Identify gaps in data-sharing capabilities across systems and recommend solutions to close those gaps.
• Analyze spectrum allocation, availability, and potential conflicts in operational environments.
• Produce actionable reports outlining requirements to mitigate risks and improve communications
• Review architectures, roadmaps and other Govt. provided standards and information sources to identify current and future gaps.
• Manage projects and timelines effectively, delivering high-quality outputs under tight deadlines.
• Think critically to identify innovative solutions to complex problems.
• Coordinate amongst various teams in different engineering disciplines to present a unified, integrated product to project stakeholders.

Minimum Qualifications

• 9 years relevant experience with Bachelors in related field; 7 years relevant experience with Masters in related field; 4 years relevant experience with PhD or Juris Doctorate in realted field; or High School Diploma or equivalent and 13 years relevant experience.
• Must be a U.S. citizen with a current DoD Secret security clearance with eligibility to be upgraded to TS/SCI.
• Deep understanding of RF; SATCOM, MUOS, IW, SHF, TSM and other MANET waveforms, and tactical data link systems (e.g., Link-16, Link-22, SINCGARS, SATCOM, etc.).
• Proficient in RF fundamentals, including antenna gain modeling, frequency and wavelength interactions, link-budget considerations, and decibel-based power/ratio calculations.
• Familiarity with DoD communication system acquisition processes and standards (e.g., MIL-STD-6016, MIL-STD-188).
• Familiarity in IP networking and subnetting, with hands-on experience configuring ports and protocols to integrate commercial off-the-shelf routing devices into existing networks.
• Experienced in applying RF propagation tools such as SPEED and CloudRF for coverage prediction, path analysis, and mission planning.
• Awareness of the challenges to shared RF and datalink technologies in the joint and coalition environments.
• Familiarity with ground-to-air communications and integrated battlespace operations.
• Working knowledge of tactical communication systems in military or DoD settings.
• Experience providing technical recommendations to support acquisition and system upgrades.
• Experience in creating reports, briefings, managing information.
• Self-motivated and driven desire to succeed with minimal direction.
• Strong attention to detail and accuracy.

Preferred Requirements

• TS/SCI Clearance desired but not required.
• Advanced knowledge of Airborne C2 systems, Radio Frequency and Datalink communications
• Experience supporting Special Tactics ATAK RF/DL requirements
• Experience in the development of systems utilizing networking principles and implementation, including but not limited to Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP), User Datagram Protocol (UDP), HyperText Transfer Protocol (HTTP), and Secure Sockets Layer (SSL).
• Master’s degree in communications engineering, spectrum management, or systems engineering
• Experience using tools for RF and SATCOM analysis, such as spectrum analyzers, software-defined radios (SDRs), or simulation software (e.g., STK, MATLAB, or other RF modeling tools).
• Experience working in cross-functional collaboration environments with engineering, program management, and DoD customers.

Physical Requirements

• May require working in an office or laboratory environment.