Michael Altamirano

Systems Engineer | Site Reliability Engineer | Data & ML Engineer

About Me

I'm a Systems/Reliability Engineer with 25+ years of experience building reliable systems—from maintaining NASA's Deep Space Network, to 12+ years in power semiconductor reliability at International Rectifier/Infineon, to 13 years managing large-scale infrastructure at DirecTV serving 21 million subscribers.

My technical foundation spans hardware validation (MOSFETs, IGBTs, GaN technologies), enterprise infrastructure (1,000+ server environments), and modern cloud platforms (AWS, Docker, Kubernetes). I bring a deep appreciation for system reliability, rigorous testing methodologies, and safety-critical design.

Currently, I'm an Electronics Engineer at Leidos, supporting the FAA's National Airspace System modernization—designing system integration packages for NEXCOM Radios, Air-to-Ground Protocol Converters, and Airport Cable Loop infrastructure. I'm also actively building skills in data engineering and ML operations.

What I'm Working On

  • Completing Data Engineering Zoomcamp 2026 (Docker, SQL, Terraform)
  • Peer reviewer for ML Zoomcamp 2025 and AI Dev Tools Zoomcamp 2025
  • Recently completed ML Zoomcamp 2025 (computer vision, deployment, orchestration)

Recent Projects

ML Model Registry & Deployment Dashboard

Full-stack application for managing and deploying machine learning models with a React frontend and FastAPI backend, deployed on Railway.

FastAPI React TypeScript Railway

End-to-End ML Pipelines

Production-ready machine learning pipelines with Docker and Kubernetes orchestration, implementing best practices for reproducibility and scalability.

Docker Kubernetes MLOps

Transfer Learning Systems

Computer vision projects implementing transfer learning for image classification and human activity recognition with state-of-the-art models.

Computer Vision TensorFlow Python

Real-Time Collaborative Platform

WebSocket-powered platform enabling real-time collaborative code editing with synchronized state across multiple users.

WebSocket Real-Time Full-Stack

Work Experience

Leidos

Dec 2025 - Present

Federal contractor supporting FAA infrastructure

Electronics Engineer

El Segundo, CA · On-site

Provide electronics engineering support to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA)

Riverstreamz

Oct 2025 - Nov 2025

Contract · Los Angeles County Election Support

Field Service Technician

Los Angeles Metropolitan Area · Hybrid

  • Provided technical support for LA County's November 2025 Statewide Special Election
  • Maintained voting booth equipment at assigned voting locations across the county
  • Monitored polling equipment and supported voters with technical issues on-site

DirecTV

Aug 2012 - Feb 2025

Digital television entertainment services

Site Reliability Engineer Feb 2017 - Feb 2025

  • Managed infrastructure of 1,000+ servers for VOD and Streaming services
  • Implemented ActiveMQ queuing solutions for scalability and efficiency
  • Developed Bash/Python automation for file management, metadata, and access control
  • Led server/blade deployments and cloud migration (AWS, Docker, Kubernetes)
  • Automated responses to performance metrics, reducing downtime

Production Engineer Jan 2015 - Feb 2017

  • Administered VOD library delivery to millions of subscribers
  • Integrated legacy satellite and modern IP-based streaming technologies
  • Coordinated troubleshooting for buffering, error codes, and content availability

Application Engineer Apr 2013 - Jan 2015

  • Operated nationwide Conditional Access Management Center (CAMC)
  • Led encryption and smart card upgrades for 21 million subscribers
  • Managed STB transactions during DirecTV/AT&T merger integration

STB Hardware Engineer Aug 2012 - Apr 2013

  • Developed test methodologies for transcoder ICs
  • Analyzed MPEG transport streams for video delivery optimization
  • Integrated hardware interfaces: HDMI, USB, Ethernet, RF

International Rectifier / Infineon

Nov 2000 - Aug 2012

Power management technology leader

Device Engineer Oct 2009 - Aug 2012

  • Validated DirectFET technology for improved thermal performance
  • Evaluated GaN platform for next-generation power semiconductors
  • Conducted failure analysis and application-specific testing

Engineering Technician Nov 2000 - Oct 2009

  • Performance testing on MOSFETs, IGBTs, and diodes
  • Designed specialized test stations for product validation
  • Supervised second shift operations

Earlier Experience

1996 - 2000
  • Arroyo Optics - Fiber/Chamber Technician (1999-2000): Fiber optic coupler testing and precision splicing for telecom
  • Ortel Corp - Fiber/RF Technician (1997-1999): RF testing, frequency response analysis, EPROM programming
  • Allied Signal / JPL - Computer Technician (1996-1997): Maintained computer systems for NASA's Deep Space Network

Technical Skills

Cloud & Infrastructure

  • AWS (EC2, S3, VPC, IAM)
  • Docker
  • Kubernetes
  • VMware / ESXi
  • Terraform

Programming

  • Python
  • Bash
  • SQL
  • C++
  • Java

Monitoring

  • Splunk
  • Prometheus
  • Grafana
  • ActiveMQ

Operating Systems

  • Linux (Primary)
  • UNIX
  • Windows Server

Security

  • Vulnerability Management
  • CIS Benchmarks / STIG
  • Nessus / Qualys
  • ISO 9001

Hardware & Testing

  • Oscilloscopes
  • Spectrum Analyzers
  • RF/Analog/Digital Test
  • MATLAB / LabVIEW

Education

Master of Science in Electrical Engineering

California State University, Long Beach 2013

Master of Business Administration

Keller Graduate School of Management 2011

BS in Computer Engineering Technology

DeVry University, Long Beach 2010

BS in Electronics Engineering Technology

DeVry University, Long Beach 2009

Professional Development

AI Dev Tools Zoomcamp 2025

DataTalksClub · Nov 2025 - Jan 2026

  • Introduction to AI Development Tools
  • End-to-End Project Development
  • Model Context Protocol (MCP)
  • Capstone Project (Review Completed)

Machine Learning Zoomcamp 2025

mlzoomcamp.com · Oct 2025 - Jan 2026

  • Machine Learning for Regression and Classification
  • Evaluation Metrics and Model Deployment
  • Decision Trees and Ensemble Learning
  • Neural Networks and Deep Learning
  • Serverless Deep Learning
  • Kubernetes for ML deployment
  • Midterm Project (Passed)
  • Capstone Project (Passed)

Artificial Intelligence (AI) With Data Science

Career Break · Aug 2025 - Oct 2025

  • Python programming for data science (NumPy, Pandas)
  • Data manipulation, cleaning, and statistical analysis
  • Deep learning and neural networks fundamentals
  • Image classification and segmentation with CNNs
  • Machine learning techniques (supervised/unsupervised)
  • Data Science with R Programming
  • Hands-on projects with Google Colaboratory

Certifications

  • NASA/JPL Certified - Hand Soldering, Wire Wrap, ESD Awareness
  • CompTIA A+ Computer Troubleshooting
  • Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP)
  • Kester Lead Free Hand Soldering

Contact

Interested in working together? Feel free to reach out.

mikealtamirano@yahoo.com LinkedIn GitHub

Los Angeles, CA | U.S. Citizen | Available Immediately