Lead Site Reliability Engineer Defense Tech / National Security US Defense Tech Startup Early-stage defense technology leader building modern software for air-gapped, high-side, and accredited environments. Backed by a $99M defense contract to bridge legacy military software with modern AI-driven, secure infrastructure.

Specializes in secure software deployment across cloud, on-premises, and disconnected edge networks for defense and national security missions. Founding engineering role: build and lead the deployment and DevSecOps function from the ground up. Solve extreme technical challenges across air-gapped networks, Kubernetes clusters, and mission-critical applications.

High-impact, agile technical culture with direct ownership over production environments. Clear growth trajectory into a leadership role as the core platform and engineering team expands. Establish company-wide deployment standards, operational practices, and architecture for accredited production environments.

Manage Kubernetes clusters, container orchestration, workload configuration, and resource allocation across cloud and edge enclaves. Package, release, and operate proprietary mission software alongside third-party applications (TAK, TRAX). Build, automate, and maintain robust CI/CD pipelines, configuration management, and Infrastructure as Code (IaC).

Integrate security scanning and DevSecOps tooling directly into pipeline workflows to maintain compliance and ATO boundaries. Maintain availability and performance of cloud and physical Linux infrastructure powering disconnected and air-gapped deployments. Partner directly with software engineering teams to make mission applications deployable and resilient in high-side production.

Security Clearance and U.Proven Linux systems administration experience in enterprise or government production environments (RHEL or equivalent). Experience building CI/CD pipelines and using Infrastructure as Code (Terraform, GitLab CI, Jenkins, Helm). Willingness to work onsite in secure facilities in the Washington, D.C. area (DMV) with up to 30-40% travel.

Experience deploying and operating software inside accredited, air-gapped, or classified environments under active ATOs. Hands-on experience supporting operational defense platforms like TAK or TRAX. DoD 8570 IAT Level II+ certifications (Security+, CISSP) or Linux certifications (RHCE, Linux+). If you are interested in this role, please apply with your resume through this site.

No terminology in this advert is intended to discriminate on the grounds of age, sex, race, religion or belief, disability, pregnancy and maternity, marriage and civil partnership, sexual orientation, gender, and/or gender reassignment, and we confirm that we are happy to accept applications from anyone for this role.

Lead DevSecOps Engineer, Site Reliability Engineer, SRE, Kubernetes, Linux System Administrator, CI CD Pipeline, Terraform, Podman, Air Gapped Infrastructure, Security Clearance, Defense Tech, High Side Operations, Cloud Security Engineer