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Sentinel - Principal/Sr Principal Guidance Navigation & Control Engineer (15109-1*)

Northrop Grumman

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Roy, UT · Posted November 12, 2026

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About the job

RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: Relocation assistance may be available

CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: Yes

CLEARANCE TYPE: Secret

TRAVEL: Yes, 10% of the Time Description

At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history.

Join Northrop Grumman on our continued mission to push the boundaries of possible across land, sea, air, space, and cyberspace. Enjoy a culture where your voice is valued and start contributing to our team of passionate professionals providing real-life solutions to our world’s biggest challenges. We take pride in creating purposeful work and allowing our employees to grow and achieve their goals every day by Defining Possible. With our competitive pay and comprehensive benefits, we have the right opportunities to fit your life and launch your career today.

Northrop Grumman Defense Systems is seeking a Principal or Sr. Principal Guidance, Navigation, and Control (GN&C) Test Engineer to join our team. This position will be located at Roy, UT to support the Sentinel (GBSD) program in the Strategic Deterrent Systems (SDS) Division. Northrop Grumman supports the Air Force’s sustainment, development, production and deployment of hardware and system modifications for Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) Ground and Airborne Launch Control Systems, Launch Facilities and associated infrastructure. This individual will be a technical leader, providing technical expertise in support of the GN&C Integration and Testing campaign, supporting activities including Inertial Navigation Sensor ground-based testing, and GN&C-centric hardware-in-the-loop testing. This position may be filled at a higher level based on qualifications below.

Roles and Responsibilities

Work supporting and leading multi-disciplinary teams to develop, verify, and validate testing strategies for Navigation sensors

Implement guidance, navigation, and control (GN&C) algorithms in a system level test environment

Develop software tools for analyzing GN&C performance

Conduct system performance assessments for performance against mission requirements

Perform GN&C system and accuracy analysis of flight tests

Technical planning, systems integration, verification and validation, risk and opportunity identification for all integration and test activities under Guidance, Navigation, and Control

Develop test requirements, test plans and procedures, and integration of test equipment and test support equipment across multiple test cells

Support accuracy analysis using navigation sensor performance data

Performs functional analysis, timeline analysis, detail trade studies, requirements allocation and interface definition studies to translate customer requirements into test hardware and software specifications

Supporting system, segment, element and unit level trade studies

Collaborate with multiple engineering teams to define test objectives and requirements for test activities in a hardware in the loop lab

Performing customer requirements elicitation leading to Requirements Development

Coordination & collaboration with the System Engineering and AVE/IATC Segment System Engineering Teams and Test Teams

Basic Qualifications

This position may be filled at a Principal Engineer level or at a Sr. Principal Engineer level

Requires a bachelor’s degree in a Science, Technology, Engineering or Mathematics (STEM) discipline from an accredited university with 5 years of related experience; or a master’s degree with 3 years of related experience (Sr. Principal level requires 8 years with a bachelor's; 6 years with a master's; or 4 years with a PhD)

Must be a US Citizen with an active U.S. Government Secret Security Clearance, at time of application, current and within scope, with an investigation date within the last 6 years

Must have the ability to obtain and maintain Special Access Program (SAP) approval within a reasonable period of time, as determined by the company to meet its business needs

Requires 3 years of experience in guidance, navigation, or control algorithm development and/or flight/trajectory analysis for launch vehicles, missiles, spacecraft, and/or aircraft applications

Requires experience with system integration (HW and SW) and test principles

Requires experience with systems engineering principles including requirement decomposition and allocation of requirements

Requires experience with aerodynamic modeling, flight mechanics, missile/re-entry vehicle dynamics

Requires experience in sensor navigation, including inertial, radio, and/or optical navigation techniques

Requires experience with technical writing and documentation

Requires experience with strategic missile guidance and implementation of guidance algorithms

Preferred Qualifications

DoD Top Secret Clearance

Master's or PhD Degree in Aerospace Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Electrical Engineering, or related field

Experience working in an Agile team or even leading a scrum team

Experience with Object-Oriented Programming

Knowledge of estimation and control theory, such as Kalman filtering

Experience with linear stability analysis to determine control system stability margins

Experience modeling navigation sensors, such as IMU or GPS

Experience in trajectory optimization, non-linear control, and/or adaptive/autonomous flight control systems

Experience defining test objectives based on test requirements, VCRM and interface and specification documentation

Experience with data collection/instrumentation (methods, hardware, setup, and troubleshooting)

Experience with development of test plans, procedures, and reports (functional testing and checkout)

Experience modeling with Cameo Enterprise Architecture or other similar Model-Based Engineering Tools

Experience with hardware-in-the-loop (HWIL) testing, embedded control systems, and real-time software integration

Experience in sensor navigation, including inertial, radio, and/or optical navigation techniques

Experience in strategic missile guidance and implementation of guidance algorithms

Demonstrated proficiency in MATLAB/Simulink, C/C++, Python, and/or other tools for GN&C Analysis and development

Knowledge/experience with AF Test Directive 99-103

Experience with ICBMs (MM, PK, Small Missile) or DOD programs

Experience in troubleshooting anomalous hardware and software

Ability to work in a highly collaborative & dynamic team-based environment

Position Benefits

As a full-time employee of Northrop Grumman Defense Systems, you are eligible for our robust benefits package including:

Medical, Dental & Vision coverage

401k

Educational Assistance

Life Insurance

Employee Assistance Programs & Work/Life Solutions

Paid Time Off

Health & Wellness Resources

Employee Discounts

This position’s standard work schedule is 9/80. The 9/80 schedule allows employees who work a nine-hour day Monday through Thursday to take every other Friday off. This role may offer a competitive relocation assistance package.

#SentinelSystems

Primary Level Salary Range: $98,400.00 - $147,600.00

Secondary Level Salary Range: $122,800.00 - $184,200.00

The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions.

Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.

The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.

Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.