Principal Linux Systems Administrator / Sr. Principal Linux Systems Administrator (AHT)
Northrop Grumman · Redondo Beach, CA
$103,600–$193,900from the description
Jun 28, 2026
Redondo Beach, CA
Jul 21, 2026
What this job asks for AI summary
A Linux Systems Administrator role supporting an Army air defense program, responsible for configuring, patching, hardening, and troubleshooting Red Hat-based workstations and servers in lab and development environments. The work involves diagnosing hardware and OS-level issues, supporting software build workflows alongside engineering teams, and maintaining documentation and infrastructure inventories. The role suits experienced Linux administrators comfortable working in a defense program environment with a Secret clearance requirement.
Senior level · 5+ years · Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA · Secret clearance · Full-time
Advertised as Principal, but the requirements read as Senior.
We read this from the posting text with AI. Skim the description below before ruling yourself out.
How this req sits in the market our data
Most people in this occupation already list these. Still required — just not what gets you shortlisted.
What the occupation pays Median $106,290 (middle half $86,170–$131,290). This posting is about at that midpoint.
Estimated from BLS employment for this occupation and area, per-skill prevalence across our listing corpus, and published wage benchmarks — as of Jul 28, 2026. It is a model, not a headcount.
Why we read it this way (7)
This posting covers two levels simultaneously: Principal Systems Administrator (5+ years, or 9 without a degree) and Senior Principal Systems Administrator (8+ years, or 12 without a degree). The salary range spans both levels ($103,600–$193,900). The overall years minimum is set to 5, reflecting the lower (Principal) threshold.
A degree (Bachelor's in CS or related field) is listed as the baseline credential, but the JD explicitly accepts 9 or 12 years of experience in lieu of a degree, so the degree requirement is set to None.
The JD states the candidate must 'hold or be able to obtain' a DoD Secret clearance — this is a hard gate for start.
Shell scripting is listed under Basic Qualifications with a softening qualifier ('e.g., shell scripting') indicating the specific language is flexible, but scripting ability itself is a hard requirement.
VMware and vulnerability scanning appear under the explicitly labeled 'good to have, but not required' section.
The alternative occupation code (15-1252 Software Developers) is noted because the role involves building custom RPMs, kernel/driver work, and supporting build/deployment environments — but the primary day-to-day work is clearly systems administration, so 15-1244 is the primary classification.
Requires a Secret clearance — the cleared population is a small fraction of this occupation, so the real candidate pool is materially smaller than the estimate below, which does not model clearance.
Read the full posting
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