Jobs Companies Northrop Grumman Principal Software Engineer / Sr. Principal Software Engineer- (AHT)

About this Principal Software Engineer / Sr. Principal Software Engineer- (AHT) role at Northrop Grumman

Northrop Grumman · Onsite · United States-California-Redondo Beach
RELOCATION ASSISTANCE: Relocation assistance may be available

CLEARANCE REQUIRED FOR START: No

CLEARANCE TYPE: None

TRAVEL: No

Description

At Northrop Grumman, our employees have incredible opportunities to work on revolutionary systems that impact people's lives around the world today, and for generations to come. Our pioneering and inventive spirit has enabled us to be at the forefront of many technological advancements in our nation's history - from the first flight across the Atlantic Ocean, to stealth bombers, to landing on the moon. We look for people who have bold new ideas, courage and a pioneering spirit to join forces to invent the future, and have fun along the way. Our culture thrives on intellectual curiosity, cognitive diversity and bringing your whole self to work — and we have an insatiable drive to do what others think is impossible. Our employees are not only part of history, they're making history.

Northrop Grumman Defense Systems seeks a Software Engineer to join our diverse team, working on the Forward Area Air Defense (FAAD) portfolio of programs in Redondo Beach, CA. The selected candidate will perform system administration duties for an Army Air Defense System that includes defense against manned aircraft; rockets, artillery, and mortars; unmanned aerial systems (UAS); and cruise missile defense.

This requisition may be filled at the Principal Software Engineer or Senior Principal Software Engineer level:

  • Principal Software Engineer - Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related discipline (and 5 years of relevant experience in Object Oriented Languages (OOL); or 3 Years with Masters; 0 Years with PhD) or 9 years of experience in lieu of degree may be considered
  • Senior Principal Software Engineer - Bachelor's degree in Computer Science or related discipline (and 8 years of relevant experience in Object Oriented Languages (OOL); or 6 Years with Masters; 3 Years with PhD) or 12 years of experience in lieu of degree may be considered

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

  • Administer, monitor, and maintain Linux-based systems in lab and development environments, including configuration, patching, and troubleshooting
  • Load, customize, and harden Linux development workstations and servers to meet program security and performance requirements
  • Troubleshoot and repair hardware problems, including diagnosing faulty components and coordinating repair or replacement
  • Respond rapidly to high priority incidents, diagnose root causes across OS, network, and hardware layers, and restore service for critical lab environments
  • Collaborate closely with software developers and other engineering teams to support build environments, development workflows, and OS-related issues
  • Document system configurations, procedures, and changes, and contribute to maintaining accurate lab infrastructure inventories

Basic Qualifications:

  • Strong understanding of Linux system administration (Red Hat or similar enterprise distributions) in lab, development, or production environments
  • Experience installing, configuring, and troubleshooting Linux operating systems, software, servers, and associated lab hardware, including managing user accounts, groups, and file system permissions
  • Experience troubleshooting operating systems, networks, and hardware issues across servers and workstations
  • Experience performing OS level package management, building and maintaining custom RPMs, handling kernel/driver interactions, and conducting performance tuning in Linux environments
  • Familiarity with scripting (e.g., shell scripting) for system configuration, automation, and maintenance tasks
  • Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively with engineers and technical leads on schedule driven programs
  • Hold or able to obtain DoD Secret clearance

Following are good to have, but are not required:

  • Familiarity with virtualization platforms (e.g., VMware) and applying security patches and updates to virtualized environments
  • Experience supporting backup and restore solutions
  • Experience with vulnerability scanning and security compliance, applying OS/security patches, managing patch repositories, and maintaining antivirus tools
  • Experience supporting build and deployment environments, including maintaining build scripts and installation media for development environments
  • Current DoD Secret clearance

Primary Level Salary Range: $114,000.00 - $171,000.00

Secondary Level Salary Range: $142,200.00 - $213,400.00

The above salary range represents a general guideline; however, Northrop Grumman considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate's experience, education, skills and current market conditions.

Depending on the position, employees may be eligible for overtime, shift differential, and a discretionary bonus in addition to base pay. Annual bonuses are designed to reward individual contributions as well as allow employees to share in company results. Employees in Vice President or Director positions may be eligible for Long Term Incentives. In addition, Northrop Grumman provides a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, savings plan, Company paid holidays and paid time off (PTO) for vacation and/or personal business.

The application period for the job is estimated to be 20 days from the job posting date. However, this timeline may be shortened or extended depending on business needs and the availability of qualified candidates.

Northrop Grumman is an Equal Opportunity Employer, making decisions without regard to race, color, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, marital status, national origin, age, veteran status, disability, or any other protected class. For our complete EEO and pay transparency statement, please visit http://www.northropgrumman.com/EEO. U.S. Citizenship is required for all positions with a government clearance and certain other restricted positions.
Ready to apply to Northrop Grumman?
Apply to Northrop Grumman

How this Principal Engineer salary compares

This role pays $142,500/yrin line with the typical range for Principal Engineer roles.

$114,700 median $142,500 $164,840

Typical range $126,200–$156,600/yr, from 32 comparable Principal Engineer listings on JobsRadar (pay annualized to USD). See Principal Engineer salary insights →

About Northrop Grumman

We are a pioneering company. With careers across all areas: air, cyber, land, sea and space – our 90,000 employees work as one to defend and define the future. Northrop Grumman careers and internships are as varied as your interests, with a lifetime of potential that will give you every opportunity to do your best work. Working together with people from many backgrounds, personal passions and disciplines, we share a drive to push the boundaries of science, technology and engineering to meet the ever evolving needs of our customers worldwide.

See all jobs at Northrop Grumman →

Similar jobs

Northrop Grumman
Principal / Senior Principal Systems Engineer
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-Redon... Onsite $114,000–$171,000
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 2d ago
Northrop Grumman
Principal / Senior Principal Systems Engineer
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-Redon... Onsite $114,000–$171,000
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 2d ago
Northrop Grumman
Principal OR Sr. Principal Engineer – Dynamics & Aeroelastics
Northrop Grumman
⚡ Apply early United States-California-Redon... Onsite $114,000–$171,000
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 1w ago
Plane Software, Inc.
Principal Engineer, DevOps
Plane Software, Inc.
⚡ Apply early India Onsite
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 3h ago
Toast
Principal Software Engineer
Toast
⚡ Apply early Chennai Hybrid
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 4h ago
Equinix
Senior Principal Engineer, Enterprise Networking Architecture, Automation and AI
Equinix
⚡ Apply early Dallas Infomart Office DAI Onsite
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 4h ago
MongoDB
Principal Application Engineer
MongoDB
⚡ Apply early France Onsite
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 4h ago
AeroVironment
Principal Mechanical Engineer
AeroVironment
⚡ Apply early Moorpark, CA Onsite $147,000–$224,250
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 4h ago
Cadence Design Systems
Senior Principal Digital Design Engineer
Cadence Design Systems
⚡ Apply early SAN JOSE Onsite $154,000–$286,000
● New 👁 Seen ✓ Applied 4h ago

Sign up for suggestions tailored to the jobs you open and the searches you save.

More jobs at Northrop Grumman

See all jobs at Northrop Grumman →

Apply now
🤖

Whoa — hold up

JobsRadar was built for real people having a rough time in their job search — not for automated requests. You're clicking way too fast and you're now temporarily blocked.

Come back later. If you're genuinely job hunting, we've got your back — just act like a human.

Catch your next role the second it’s posted.

Create a free account and we’ll watch the boards for you — the instant a job matches your search, it lands in your inbox or Telegram. No digging, no refreshing.

Create free account

Free forever · takes 30 seconds · already have one?

Get an edge on your job hunt.

Join our Telegram channel for the stuff that helps you land the role — salary benchmarks, the weekly market pulse, and new-feature drops. No spam, just signal.

Join the channel — it's free