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Engineering Manager, Software Test & Automation
Job Location:
Job Location:
San Diego, CA - USA
Yearly Salary:
USD 175000 - 220000
Yearly Salary:
Posted:
4 September 2026 (12 hours ago)
Posted:
Application Deadline:
2 December 2026
Application Deadline:
Vacancies:
1 Vacancy
Vacancies:
Department:
Job Summary
Who We Are
At Firestorm we are building the future of expeditionary defense manufacturing and autonomous systems. Modern conflict has exposed a fundamental problem: the systems needed most by operators are often too expensive too slow to produce and too difficult to sustain at scale. Firestorm exists to change that.
We develop mission-adaptable aerial systems and deployable manufacturing infrastructure designed to put capability directly into the hands of the warfighter. From modular unmanned aircraft to xCell our deployable microfactory our goal is to make defense systems rapidly deployable adaptable and producible at the point of need.
We are looking for builders operators and problem-solvers who want to work on meaningful technology with real-world impact.
About the Role
Firestorm builds modular autonomous aircraft designed to adapt across missions payloads and deployment environments. As those capabilities evolve the software integration and test system has to keep pace.
We are hiring an Engineering Manager to lead Software Test & Automation for aircraft software. The team owns end-to-end software integration testing release test planning and reporting automated test execution and the SIL HIL and VIL environments used to validate software before flight.
You will grow the team own how aircraft software is tested for release and build the test capability needed to increase coverage while keeping release cycles fast.
What Youll Do
- Lead Software Test & Automation Own the team responsible for aircraft software integration and release testing.
- Own release testing Define test plans coverage entry and exit criteria defect disposition and release reporting.
- Drive end-to-end integration testing Validate aircraft behaviors and interfaces across SIL HIL VIL and flight-representative environments.
- Scale test automation Increase automated coverage and reduce the time and manual effort required to qualify software releases.
- Own the test capability roadmap Identify gaps in environments tooling instrumentation and automation and drive the right solutions.
- Build reliable test infrastructure Improve the systems used to configure execute observe and report automated testing.
- Partner with aircraft software teams Work across autonomy embedded software controls GCS systems simulation and flight test to identify risk and close integration gaps.
- Grow the team Hire and develop engineers with strong software systems and test fundamentals.
Required Qualifications
- 8 years of software systems integration or test engineering experience
- 3 years leading engineering teams
- Experience owning integration and release testing for complex software-intensive systems
- Strong experience with test planning coverage defect management and release reporting
- Experience with SIL HIL VIL simulation or similar integrated test environments
- Strong software engineering fundamentals and experience developing test automation or test infrastructure
- Experience debugging failures across software interfaces networks hardware and system boundaries
- Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional test efforts and drive issues to closure
- Strong written and verbal communication
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience testing autonomous systems robotics aircraft or vehicles
- Experience with scenario-based system testing and fault injection
- Experience scaling automated test execution through CI/CD
- Experience supporting flight software releases and flight test
- Aerospace defense UAS or safety-critical software experience
Work Environment
- This role is based in San Diego CA.
- We welcome candidates who are local or open to relocating; relocation assistance is available and may be included in the offer package where appropriate.
Compensation
US Salary Range: $175000 $220000 USD
The posted salary range reflects an estimate based on a variety of compensation factors including but not limited to relevant experience education certifications specialized skills geographic location and business needs. Actual compensation may vary and this range is subject to change as our compensation structure or market conditions evolve.
Benefits & Perks
Our culture fosters collaboration respect and trust empowering passionate people to do their best work. We offer a competitive salary comprehensive benefits and opportunities for career addition to an opportunity to take part in an innovative collaborative and fast-growing business with a highly motivated and skilled team we also take pride in taking care of our employees. Here are just a few ways that we show our appreciation:
- We offer comprehensive medical dental and visions plans
- 401(k) Retirement Savings Plan to invest in your long-term retirement goals
- Equity grants for new hires
- Unlimited PTO
- Extremely generous company holiday calendar including a holiday hiatus in July & December.
- Generous Parental Leave
- Lifestyle Spending Account
- FSA
- DCFSA
- HSA
- Hospital Indemnity insurance
- Critical Illness insurance
- Accident insurance
- Basic Life/AD&D short-term and long-term disability insurance 100% covered by Firestorm. Plus the option to purchase additional life insurance for you and your family.
- Mental Health Resources: We provide free mental health resources 24/7 including therapy and more. Additional work-life services such as free legal and financial support are available to you as well.
Export Control Compliance
To conform to U.S. government export control regulations including the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and Export Administration Regulations (EAR) 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 otherwise eligible to obtain the required authorizations from the U.S. Department of State or U.S. Department of Commerce.
Equal Opportunity Statement
Firestorm is an equal opportunity employer committed to creating a diverse and inclusive workplace and upholding equitable hiring practices. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race color religion sex sexual orientation gender identity national origin disability protected veteran status or any other characteristic under federal state or local law including those with a criminal history in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws including the CA Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance. We actively encourage members of recognized minorities women Veterans and those with disabilities to apply and we work to create a welcoming and supportive environment for all applicants throughout the interview process.
Firestorm is committed to fostering an inclusive and accessible work environment. If you require accommodations or assistance during the application process please dont hesitate to reach out to us at so we can provide the support you need.
Required Experience:
Manager
