Head of Flight Safety and Regulatory

About the company

Southern Launch offers bespoke space mission services from two complementary spaceports in Australia. Its vertically integrated processes for orbital and suborbital launch, hypersonic flight, re-entries from space, and range services for advanced system testing have been proven by customers and regulators.

About the role

The Head of Flight Safety and Regulatory is responsible for developing and approving launch and re-entry safety cases, guiding regulatory engagement, and ensuring all flight activities meet Southern Launch’s safety, compliance, and risk expectations. Responsibilities include:

• Lead the Flight Safety and Regulatory function, operating independently from launch operations to preserve safety oversight integrity.
• Oversee the development and submission of operational (launch and re-entry) permit applications and supporting regulatory documents.
• Manage and support the Flight Safety and Regulatory team to deliver outcomes on time and within budget.
• Engage with customers to collect technical data, guide trajectory development, and ensure activities align with Southern Launch’s risk appetite.
• Interpret and communicate legal and regulatory requirements to staff, customers, and contractors.
• Lead engagement with regulators (e.g. CASA, ASA) and First Nations communities affected by launch and re-entry operations.
• Review safety-critical materials, challenge assumptions, and ensure consistency with expert expectations.
• Support operations teams by briefing them on approved safety controls and regulatory obligations.
• Identify opportunities to improve risk modelling methods and safety policies.
• Oversee the preparation of EVLOS and BVLOS drone applications and ensure integration with range operations.
• Ensure that clear and structured regulatory documentation is produced that articulates key risks and hazards.
• Maintain transparency and consistency in all communications with regulators.
• Contribute technical input to sales efforts by identifying missing customer information and estimating analysis effort.

About you

We are proud of the diversity of experience within our team and will be encouraged by what you can bring to this position. We are initially looking for:

• Strong understanding of the regulatory environment for rocket launches, re-entries, and drone operations
• Proven experience leading teams in safety-critical or regulatory-focused environments
• Expertise in flight safety modelling, including 3–6 degree of freedom simulations and wind weighting for unguided rockets
• Proficient in statistical methods such as kernel density estimation, probability density functions, ANOVA, and Information Theory
• Familiar with executing analyses in parallel computing environments
• Experience across multiple aerospace domains: Orbital and suborbital launches; Hypersonic and re-entry vehicles; Guidance, navigation and control (GN&C) systems; and Fixed-wing and multirotor drones.

This position requires you to hold and maintain a valid Australian Defence Security Clearance.

Southern Launch expands space exploration from the Southern Hemisphere with end-to-end launch services for your next space mission.