Senior Mission Simulation Engineer

Location: Austin, TX (Hybrid on-site, with up to 20% travel)
Clearance Requirement: U.S. Citizen with the ability to obtain a security clearance

About NODA

NODA is a veteran-owned, venture-backed technology company transforming how unmanned systems collaborate in complex, mission-critical environments. Our distributed orchestration platform enables autonomous coordination of heterogeneous unmanned systems across air, sea, land, and space with vital applications in the defense, intelligence, and commercial sectors.

Simulation at NODA is not an afterthought - it is a core capability used for autonomy development, mission rehearsal, operator training, and customer demonstration. We are building a federated, multi-fidelity simulation architecture (“sim-of-sims”) that connects low-fidelity SITL (Software-in-the-Loop) environments with high-fidelity, geo-specific mission environments.

The Role

As a Senior Mission Simulation Engineer, you will design and own NODA’s full-fidelity simulation platform — from autopilot-in-the-loop SITL environments through to high-fidelity, geospatially accurate mission environments in Unreal Engine 5 + Cesium.

You will architect the federation layer that connects these environments, solve the distributed time synchronization problem across heterogeneous nodes, and integrate NODA’s autonomy stack so that simulations exercise real execution paths, not just visualization. This is a senior, hands-on role for an engineer who treats simulation as a hard distributed systems problem as much as a rendering problem.

Key Responsibilities

• Design a federated "sim-of-sims" architecture integrating low-fidelity SITL with high-fidelity mission environments (UE5 + Cesium for geo-specific terrain, VBS4 for combined-arms scenarios) into a unified stack.

• Solve distributed time synchronization across heterogeneous nodes; select and implement the right federation approach (HLA/DIS, custom, or hybrid).

• Integrate the autonomy stack into sim and support SITL/HITL workflows for autopilots across multi-vehicle, multi-domain scenarios, exercising real execution paths across mission planning, autonomy, and comms.

• Model realistic network and DDIL conditions to validate behavior in contested environments.

• Build observability into the stack: frame timing, sync health, scenario replay, and diagnostics.

• Partner with autonomy, systems, and field ops teams, and communicate simulation results and the company's asymmetric advantage to operators, mission leads, and C-suite.
  

Required Qualifications

• 5+ years of professional experience in simulation engineering, robotics simulation, game-engine-based simulation, or related systems engineering roles.

• Hands-on experience with Unreal Engine (UE4 or UE5) for simulation or synthetic environment generation.

• Experience with SITL or HITL (workflows using ArduPilot, PX4, or equivalent autopilot platforms.

• Demonstrated understanding of distributed simulation challenges, particularly time synchronization, determinism, and state consistency.

• Strong proficiency in C++ for engine-level development and Python for scripting and integration.

• Experience modeling communications degradation and DDIL conditions in simulation.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with Cesium for Unreal or equivalent geospatial rendering pipelines.

• Experience with VBS4 or other combined-arms simulation platforms (AFSIM, OneSAF, JSAF, or equivalent).

• Familiarity with distributed simulation federation standards (HLA, DIS, or equivalent).

• Background in DDIL autonomy, edge computing, or contested operational environments.

• Experience integrating simulation environments with autonomy stacks, mission planning systems, or C2 software.

• Exposure to multi-vehicle or swarm simulation across air, ground, and maritime domains.

• Familiarity with pub/sub middleware (Zenoh, DDS, or equivalent) in constrained, distributed, or low-bandwidth environments.

• Prior work in defense, aerospace, or contested operational environments.

Skills & Attributes

• Thinks in systems: treats simulation as a distributed systems and architecture problem, not just a fidelity or visualization problem.

• Owns hard problems: able to evaluate architectural approaches where the answer is not yet known and drive toward a decision.

• Pragmatic builder: balances fidelity, performance, and development velocity without sacrificing correctness.

• Field-minded: designs simulations that reflect real operational constraints.

• Collaborative: works effectively across autonomy, platform, and field operations teams.

• Clear communicator: able to explain simulation architecture tradeoffs to both engineers and non-technical mission leads.

• Stakeholder-focused: can visually communicate simulation results and the company’s asymmetric advantage to operators and leadership.

What We Offer

• Hybrid work environment

• Competitive pay

• Flexible time off

• Generous PTO policy

• Federal holidays

• Health, dental, and vision insurance

• Free OneMedical membership

Growth Path at NODA

Senior Mission Simulation Engineer → Staff Simulation Architect → Principal Simulation Architect, Autonomous Systems

Final leveling will be determined at the offer stage based on demonstrated scope, impact, and technical leadership.

We are an Equal Opportunity Employer and welcome applicants from all backgrounds. All qualified individuals will receive consideration for employment regardless of race, age, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or protected veteran status.