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,…