Compensation for the role will depend on a number of factors, including a candidate's qualifications, education, skills, and experience as well as market demands. These factors impact the salary/wage offered.
Benefits:
FlightSafety offers a competitive total rewards package, which includes vacation, sick leave, a 401k match, healthcare coverage and a broad range of other benefits.
About FlightSafety International
FlightSafety International is the world’s premier professional aviation training company and supplier of flight simulators, visual systems and displays to commercial, government and military organizations. The company provides training for pilots, technicians and other aviation professionals from 167 countries and independent territories. FlightSafety operates the world’s largest fleet of advanced full-flight simulators and award-winning maintenance training at Learning Centers and training locations in the United States, Canada, France and the United Kingdom.
Position Overview
FlightSafety Defense Corporation is gearing to become a recognized integration partner and solution provider for the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Navy in the Joint Simulation Environment (JSE) and Simulator Common Architecture Requirements and Standards (SCARS) ecosystem. The JSE Lead Open Systems Architect is a senior technical contributor who owns FSI Defense's open architecture strategy across the JSE/SCARS ecosystem and Government Reference Architecture (GRA) landscape. This role is responsible for ensuring that FlightSafety's Weapon System Trainer (WST) portfolio and JSE-connected simulation products are positioned to compete and win in an acquisition environment built on open architectures, sustained competition, and modular, vendor-agnostic design.
This individual brings deep familiarity with the full spectrum of Government-owned open architectures and candidate standards — including AMS-GRA, A-GRA, OMS, UCI, SCARS, SOSA, and related frameworks — and understands how each maps to training system design, JSE integration, and FSI Defense's strategic growth opportunities. The role directly supports FSI Defense's response to the DoD's Next Generation Acquisition Model and its emphasis on government-owned open architectures as the foundation for agile, competitive, and sustainable defense programs.
Key Responsibilities
The JSE Lead Open Systems Architect defines and maintains FSI Defense's open systems architecture strategy for all JSE/SCARS pursuits, ensuring that simulator designs, integration approaches, and product roadmaps align with the MOSA ecosystem and the Government's GRA-based acquisition framework. This includes mapping FSI Defense capabilities against candidate GRAs (AMS-GRA, A-GRA) and candidate open standards (e.g., OMS, UCI, UAI, WOSA, SCARS, etc.) to identify gaps, compliance requirements, and competitive positioning.
The architect leads the design of modular, open, and platform-agnostic simulation architectures for FSI Defense's WST and JSE-connected products. This includes decoupling operator interfaces from aircraft-specific implementations, enabling Virtual Aircraft Services (VAS) and reconfigurable cockpit architectures, and integrating simulation components with the JSE Technical Baseline (JTB) via the Global Reusable Interface Domain (GRID). Solutions designed by this role must demonstrate scalability to large, multi-site training environments with 100 or more players across shared synthetic battlespace environments.
The JSE Lead Open Systems Architect serves as the primary technical resource for Government Reference Architecture compliance across bids and programs. The role reviews solicitations, Requests for Proposals, and DIU Commercial Solutions Opening (CSO) submissions for open architecture requirements and ensures FSI Defense's technical volumes accurately and compellingly represent the company's GRA alignment. This architect shapes proposal responses, oral presentation content, and architecture documentation for JSE/SCARS-relevant programs.
The role works closely with the JSE Architect and Project Lead to align FSI Defense's SCARS compliance roadmap — including Architecture Standard Increment 5, the DevSecOps Process Standard, and the Common Security Controls Standard — with the broader MOSA and GRA requirements flowing from AFLCMC and HAF/A3T. The architect also coordinates with MBSE modelers and simulation engineers to maintain SysML-based architecture models, interface control documents (ICDs), and compliance traceability artifacts that reflect FSI Defense's open systems posture.
The JSE Lead Open Systems Architect participates in government industry days, SCARS collaboration events, and relevant technical interchange meetings (TIMs), building FSI Defense's visibility and credibility within the JSE/SCARS and GRA communities. Travel to Government program offices and test events at JSE facility locations is anticipated throughout the year.
Required Qualifications
• Bachelor's degree in systems engineering, aerospace engineering, computer science, electrical engineering, or a closely related technical discipline; master's degree preferred
• 8 or more years of experience in open systems architecture, distributed simulation, or defense training system development for DoD customers
• Demonstrated knowledge of the Government-owned open architecture ecosystem, including AMS-GRA, A-GRA, OMS/UCI, SCARS, and the AFLCMC Next Generation Acquisition Model
• Familiarity with the Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA) and its application to DoD acquisition programs, including experience identifying and closing vendor-lock risks through open interface adoption
• Experience with JSE, GRID, or related government synthetic environment frameworks, including familiarity with the JSE Technical Baseline (JTB) and SCARS Increment 5 standards
• Proficiency in distributed simulation protocols (HLA, DIS, TENA) and API-driven simulation architectures using middlewares such as DDS, EMQX, or Apache Kafka
• Experience working with interface control documents (ICDs), interface design documents (IDDs), and MBSE-based architecture models (SysML, Cameo Systems Modeler, or equivalent)
• Strong technical writing and communication skills, with demonstrated experience authoring architecture documents, compliance matrices, and Government proposal volumes
• Active Secret clearance; ability to obtain Top Secret clearance
Preferred Qualifications
• Direct experience with SCARS Affiliate compliance activities, including integration with SCARS On-Premise Equipment (OPE) and execution of SCARS certification testing
• Familiarity with the Unified Command and Control Interface (UCI), Agile Mission Suite GRA (AMS-GRA), or Autonomy GRA (A-GRA) as applied to airborne training systems
• Experience with the SOSA Technical Standard or FACE Technical Standard in a DoD avionics or simulation context
• Knowledge of RMF and Authority to Operate (ATO) processes as applied to JSE-connected training devices
• Experience supporting DIU CSO submissions, OT proposals, or other non-traditional acquisition instruments
• Prior experience in a lead architect or chief engineer role on a major simulation, training system, or open architecture program
• Familiarity with AFLCMC program offices, including AFLCMC/EB (Weapons) and A3T-sponsored simulation initiatives
Why This Role
The DoD's shift to government-owned open architectures and sustained competition is reshaping how defense training systems are designed, acquired, and evolved. The JSE Lead Open Systems Architect is the individual who will ensure FSI Defense is not only compliant with this shift — but positioned to lead within it. This role carries both technical depth and strategic influence, directly determining how FlightSafety engages with the GRA ecosystem and whether the company can credibly compete for JSE-connected programs that are built on open, modular, and competitive foundations. For the right candidate, this is an opportunity to define a company's architecture identity at a pivotal moment in defense acquisition.
FlightSafety is an Equal Opportunity Employer/Vet/Disabled. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, or disability.
Any offer of employment is contingent upon successful completion of required compliance reviews, including verification that the candidate is not prohibited from employment under U.S. economic sanctions programs administered by the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC).
This position may require access to export-controlled technology or services subject to the International Traffic in Arms Regulations (ITAR) and/or the Export Administration Regulations (EAR). Employment consideration and any offer of employment are contingent upon the applicant’s ability to comply with these requirements, including qualifying as a “U.S. Person” under applicable regulations or otherwise eligible for export authorization within a timeframe consistent with business needs. A “U.S. Person” includes U.S. citizens, lawful permanent residents (holders of approved and unexpired green cards), and certain refugees or asylees with protected status under U.S. law.
This position may also require eligibility to obtain and maintain a U.S. Government security clearance for the duration of employment.
Cybersecurity Notice: All official recruiting communication from FlightSafety International will come from an @flightsafety.com email address. FlightSafety International will never ask for personal or financial information through social media or third-party email providers.
Washington State Candidates: To report concerns or corrections regarding pay transparency compliance for this posting, please contact us at [email protected].
