Data Engineer

Citizenship: U.S. Citizens Only Clearance: Active DoD Secret We are seeking a Data Engineer (Proprietary Data Ingestion) to design and maintain robust data pipelines for mission‑critical flight data systems. This onsite role in Poway, CA is ideal for an engineer who enjoys low‑level data work, legacy modernization, and operating in a secure defense environment. Key Responsibilities • Design, build, and maintain Apache NiFi ETL pipelines to ingest, transform, and route proprietary binary flight data. • Develop and optimize Python and C++ code to decode, parse, and validate complex binary data formats. • Support and enhance existing data workflows on Oracle databases while planning and executing migration efforts to PostgreSQL. • Collaborate with software, systems, and analytics teams to ensure data quality, integrity, and availability for downstream consumers. • Implement monitoring, logging, and performance tuning for data pipelines operating in secure, air‑gapped environments. • Create and maintain technical documentation, including data schemas, pipeline designs, and migration runbooks. Required Qualifications • U.S. Citizen with an active DoD Secret clearance. • Strong hands‑on experience building ETL/ELT pipelines, preferably with Apache NiFi or similar tools. • Proficiency in Python and C++, with demonstrated experience working with binary data formats. • Experience working with Oracle databases and practical exposure to PostgreSQL, including schema design, performance considerations, and data migration. • Solid understanding of data modeling, data quality, and data governance principles. • Ability to work effectively in a secure, highly regulated environment with strict change‑control processes. Preferred Qualifications • Experience in defense, aerospace, or other mission‑critical domains involving telemetry or flight data. • Familiarity with operating in air‑gapped or classified networks. • Experience with ETL job scheduling, observability, and incident response for data pipelines.