Datalink Integration & Test Engineer – Communications / MANET (all genders)

Integration • Integrate established MANET / mesh radio systems (e.g., Silvus StreamCaster, Persistent Systems Wave Relay, Rajant, Radionor) into STARK's platform architecture across the mechanical, power, RF, and network/software interfaces.

• Define and implement the integration approach for each datalink — antenna placement, RF front-end, IP networking, and interfacing with the autopilot and payload stack.
• Integrate and configure the UAV-to-GCS command-and-control link, ensuring reliable telemetry, control, and video across the full mission profile through to the terminal phase.
• Set up and tune multi-node mesh topologies that enable UAV-to-UAV connectivity and coordinated swarm operation of multiple effectors, including relay and self-healing behaviour.
• Work closely with hardware, autopilot, and systems engineering to ensure the communication subsystem is correctly matched to the platform and its constraints.

Test & Validation • Design and execute structured test campaigns — bench, hardware-in-the-loop, and field trials — to validate datalink behaviour.

• Characterise link performance across throughput, latency, range, mesh routing behaviour, and resilience under interference and degraded conditions.
• Validate swarm behaviour at the network level — multi-node mesh scaling, UAV-to-UAV and UAV-to-GCS connectivity, relay hops, and graceful degradation as nodes join, move, or drop out.
• Build up repeatable test procedures and instrumentation, and produce clear, traceable documentation of setups, methods, and results.

Collaboration & Continuous Improvement • Translate field and test findings into concrete integration and configuration improvements.

• Support trade-offs and selection decisions between candidate datalink systems with measured, defensible data.
• Contribute to the evolution of STARK's communication integration standards and test methodology.

Experience & Certifications • Professional background in Electronics / Communications Engineering or a comparable technical field.

• Hands-on experience integrating MANET / mesh radio or tactical datalink systems into a larger platform or system.
• Practical test and measurement experience (spectrum analysers, RF link testing, network diagnostics).
• Must be a citizen of a NATO member state (due to export control and security regulations).

Technical Background • Solid grounding in RF fundamentals and antenna/propagation basics.

• Strong understanding of IP networking, routing, and the OSI model as it applies to mesh and point-to-point links.
• Comfortable working in Linux networking environments and debugging at the hardware/software boundary.
• Structured, disciplined approach to test design, execution, and documentation.

Profile • Strong written and verbal communication skills in English.

• Analytical, thorough, and outcome-oriented — you want the integration to be clean and the results to hold up, not just to work once.

• Hands-on experience with specific MANET vendor ecosystems and their management/config tooling.
• Knowledge of tactical datalink bands, waveforms, FHSS, and encryption.
• Familiarity with military communication standards and secure over-the-air transmission.
• Scripting / embedded experience (Python, C++) for test automation and instrumentation.

​For more ​details please reach out to Sally Grütte-Pad, Interim Lead TA Partner via ----- style="font-size:11pt;font-family:Arial, sans-serif;color:#000000;background-color:transparent;font-weight:400;font-style:normal;text-decoration:none;">

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