13 July 2023
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — An Australian company is coming to the Air Capital of the World. Quickstep, Australia’s largest independent aerospace composite manufacturer, has chosen the Wichita area as its preferred location for its first U.S. engineering and manufacturing facility.
“Wichita is a globally recognized center of excellence for aerospace technology. The location itself will offer significant business-winning opportunities,” Quickstep Inc. Vice President Steve Osborne said in a news release.
The company spent eight months considering more than 20 U.S. locations before choosing Wichita. The Greater Wichita Partnership announced the decision Thursday morning but did not say an exact location or how many jobs this will bring to the area.
The Greater Wichita Partnership says Quickstep is a global leader in making drones, missiles and commercial and military aircraft. Some of Quickstep’s customers include Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Northrop Grumman.
In Wichita, Quickstep will initially focus on commercial and defense unmanned aircraft system markets with plans to “increasingly expand into commercial and defense aerostructures and aviation electrification.”
The Greater Wichita Partnership says Quickstep’s expansion in the U.S. should start soon, with the facility operational sometime in 2024.