Job Description

We are looking for an End-to-End Systems Engineer (Communication/Navigation) to join our Akkodis Aerospace team, working onsite at the European Space Agency in Harwell, United Kingdom.
Support on End-to-End Communications and Navigation Systems:

• Assessing and defining architectures for end-to-end communications and navigation systems, and contributing to design of the associated functions and techniques within the system, from physical layer up to the application layer;
• Assessing the end-to-end (including user) communication and navigation system design and performance in real and simulated scenarios, including performance budgets and analysis, (dynamic) link budgets, data flow analysis, and capacity and volume assessment, including interaction between different link layers, and assessment of related encryption and authentication functions;
• Supporting projects throughout all phases in respect of follow-up of industrial activities relating to end-to-end communication and navigation systems on the space, ground or user segments, including system level design and trade-offs, architecture design, system development, verification and acceptance;
• Participation in the preparation of relevant standards and their impact/implementation related to bodies including ECSS and CCSDS, and performing the associated technical supporting work; application and tailoring of standards
• Contributing to the definition of the Agency's R&D activities for long- and short-term needs, and addressing concepts and techniques related to EtE System Communications and Navigation;
• Participating in mission studies, project reviews and support to procurement proposals;

The specific duties for the resident assignment at ESA/ECSAT with Moonlight LCNS project are further defined as follows:

• Support the end-to-end system engineering activities for the Lunar Communications and Navigation Services (LCNS) system, including design, development, qualification, deployment, on-ground verification, and in-orbit validation;
• Support the definition and implementation of communication and navigation services in coordination with the relevant system functional chain leads;
• Support the definition and implementation of system integration, verification, and service validation plans, ensuring end-to-end performance;
• Support the definition, analysis, and management of service and system requirements, including user interfaces, service level agreements, and operational needs;
• Ensure consistency between technical and performance indicators, design drivers, and system specifications.
• Support the definition/management of system-internal and -external interfaces;
• Collaborate with the Space Segment team and Ground Segment team to ensure seamless integration across all segments and to support alignment between system engineering activities;
• Perform system-level analyses, including link budgets, performance budgets, and resource allocation, to ensure the system meets its technical and operational requirements;
• Support the coordination with the internal and external stakeholders to ensure interoperability and alignment with joint concepts of operations;
• Support the interactions with end users throughout the development lifecycle to capture requirements, validate system capabilities, and ensure alignment with operational needs;
• Support the study, development and elaboration of use-cases and innovative operational scenarios of the Moonlight communications and navigation services, in close cooperation with the exploration user community within the Agency and externally with Partner agencies and commercial users;
• Support R&D activities complementary to the Moonlight programme, including the exploration of new technologies and methodologies to enhance system performance.

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Akkodis has proudly supported the Aerospace & Defence industry in the Netherlands for decades. Our partnership with the European Space Agency (ESA) has been one of the many success stories allowing our people to expand their career horizons. Akkodis experts are contributing to some of the most important technical advances in Aerospace and Defence which impact the way we live our lives today, through specialised engineering expertise and other required skillsets. This could be your future. Become part of our successful team!
About ESA-ECSAT
The European Space Agency (ESA) has sites in several European countries.
The European Centre for Space Applications and Telecommunications (ECSAT) is ESA's new facility in the United Kingdom. It is based at the Harwell Science, Innovation and Business Campus in Oxfordshire.
ECSAT is the most recent addition to ESA's operational sites across Europe. First opened in 2009, ECSAT will be developed by ESA following agreements reached between the UK and ESA in November 2012. ECSAT will support activities related to telecommunications, integrated applications, climate change, technology and science.
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To successfully perform the above mentioned tasks, the following background / experience is required:

• Master degree / PhD in Telecommunication or Electrical engineering;
• At least a couple of years relevant work experience in the field of satellite TT&C and PDT Communications systems. Additionally, experience in the field of Communication and/or Navigation System Engineer applied to space is required;
• Solid experience and expertise with system engineering gained from one space application such as communications, navigation, earth observation, exploration;
• Experience of systems design, development and testing is desirable;
• Strong understanding of space system engineering principles, including design, integration, verification, and validation;
• Experience in defining, analysing, and managing users and system requirements;
• Ability to work collaboratively in cross-functional and cross-directorate teams;
• Strong problem-solving, risk management, and reporting skills;
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills to interact with stakeholders at all levels;
• Candidates must be eligible for security clearance from their national security administration.

Please send your CV to recruitmentaerospace@akkodisgroup.com before 26/11/2025 |||CandidateProfile-end|||

Skills Required