The posting
Fortastra | Strength Among the Stars
Fortastra operates at the intersection of aerospace, national defense, and advanced technology. We design and deploy cutting-edge space and defense systems with the speed and focus of a startup, and the discipline required to meet the most demanding mission requirements. Our work directly supports the security and resilience of the United States and its allies, and we approach that mission with urgency, innovation, and a deep sense of responsibility.
Our Engineering Team
You’ll join Fortastra’s Security Division, working at the intersection of software, cloud infrastructure, and mission security. Our cloud, DevOps, and security architecture stack underpins everything from simulation and CI/CD to mission tools, and Product Security is a first-class citizen.
The Role
Fortastra is seeking a Staff DevOps Engineer with strong cloud and DevSecOps experience. You will architect secure CI/CD pipelines, cloud infrastructure, participate in secure design for space vehicles and ground segments. You will focus on reliability, automation, and security, enabling engineers to ship quickly while staying within well-defined guardrails.
You'll be a hands-on engineer who treats infrastructure code, build pipelines, and release processes as product security controls, and who understands the spacecraft and ground segment well enough to know what those controls need to protect.
Key Responsibilities
- Own software supply chain and build integrity, including SBOMs, provenance, and artifact signing
- Build security gates into CI/CD for flight and ground software, including static analysis, fuzzing, and vulnerability scanning
- Own the key and signing lifecycle for builds, releases, and firmware, and align it with command authentication and secure update
- Write Terraform to secure ground and mission environments in AWS GovCloud, including segmentation, IAM, and boundary controls
- Define how development, simulator, hardware-in-the-loop, and flight-representative environments are isolated and promoted
- Run vulnerability triage processes across containers, dependencies, cloud configuration, and flight and ground code
- Own logging and detection across pipelines, cloud, and ground systems, and extend it toward mission telemetry
- Generate NIST 800-53 and 800-171 compliance evidence from pipeline and infrastructure state, and support classified accreditation
Required Qualifications and Skills
- A security mindset: you think like an adversary and communicate risk in terms engineers and leadership can act on
- Strong hands-on Terraform and AWS experience, ideally GovCloud or other regulated environments
- Experience securing CI/CD pipelines and software delivery (scanning, signing, secrets, supply chain)
- Strong network security and architecture skills in cloud and hybrid environments
- Architectural understanding of securing space systems, including the vehicle, the ground segment, and the links between them
- Defense or other regulated-environment experience, with working knowledge of NIST frameworks
Preferred Qualifications
- Hands-on embedded, firmware, or flight software security experience
- Knowledge of RF links, satellite communications, and ground station implementation
- Experience with KMS/HSM, code signing, or PKI
- Scripting or programming skills (Python, Go, Bash; C/C++)
- Experience supporting classified system accreditation
- Certifications such as CISSP, AWS Security Specialty, CCSP, or OSCP
Requirements
- 5 days on-site in Torrance, CA
- U.S. Citizenship required
- Ability to obtain or hold an active TS/SCI clearance
Why Fortastra
We are a small, high-impact team building the next generation of autonomous orbital control systems for national security space. At Fortastra, leaders own outcomes from first principles through flight and directly shape the future of resilient, mission-critical spacecraft autonomy.
FORTASTRA TALENT & CULTURE PRINCIPLES
Values Driven by First Principles
We value engineers and operators who prioritize sound judgment, candor, technical rigor, bias for action, and intellectual honesty over corporate consensus. We care about the caliber of the system you build and the speed at which you solve problems.
Talent Density Over Headcount
A high-performing startup is built on dense talent, not organizational bloat. A single exceptional engineer designs, tests, and delivers faster than a bloated committee. We intentionally maintain a lean, elite engineering crew where every contributor directly moves the needle on the mission.
High Autonomy, High Ownership
We hire domain experts to execute, not to micromanage them. You own your systems end-to-end, from initial architecture and hardware design to testing and deployment. With absolute ownership comes the responsibility to deliver mission critical reliability.
Mission Context Over Bureaucracy
The best execution happens when teams are provided clear technical objectives, constraints, and operational context, rather than rigid top-down policies. We strip away red tape so builders can iterate, make decisions, and push hardware and flight software forward rapidly.
Disciplined Speed & Flight Rigor
We move fast because we test often and kill artificial bottlenecks, not because we cut corners. Rapid iteration on the test stand and in simulation is how we learn; an uncompromising flight-readiness bar is how we earn trust. Precision without friction, speed without recklessness.
Direct Impact, Not Career Bureaucracy
You don’t come to Fortastra to climb a corporate ladder or manage slide decks; you come to build complex, flight-ready systems from day one. Growth here is organic, driven by the magnitude of technical challenges you solve and the trust you build across the team.
Benefits
We take care of our employees so they can focus on what matters most: family, well-being, and life outside of work.
Unlimited Paid Time Off so that you have the time you need to rest and recharge.
Comprehensive Healthcare: Medical, dental, and vision coverage for you and your dependents, because peace of mind starts with feeling cared for.
Equity: Share in Fortastra's success with equity in the company you're helping build.
401(k): A 401(k) plan to help you invest in your future and plan for what's ahead.
Social Events: Regular social events, team outings, and company-sponsored activities that make this a place people are glad to be part of.
The pay range for this role is $232,500.00 - $266,250.00. Where an offer falls within that range depends on factors like your qualifications, experience, location, and interview performance, which we weigh against the market rate for the position.
Recruiters & Agencies: Fortastra does not accept unsolicited resumes or candidate submissions from recruiters, agencies, or third parties. Any candidate submitted without a signed agreement and prior written authorization from Fortastra will not be subject to any fee, and no relationship is implied. Please do not contact Fortastra employees, hiring managers, or recruiting team directly.
