County finance staff and commissioners tout Wichita delegation’s Paris Airshow outreach and several aerospace partnerships

County economic development and finance staff briefed commissioners on a recent trip to Austria and the Paris Airshow that included city, county and private sector participation and several announcements about partnerships and relocations that county leaders said could bring jobs and investment to the Wichita region.

Trip highlights - Site visit in Austria to a composites‑technology company that signaled strategic ties to local firm Fiber Dynamics. County staff described the Austrian firm’s apprenticeship model as instructive for local workforce development. - Four announced collaborations/relocations: a nomadic electronic‑welfare/vertical software company said it would relocate its corporate headquarters from Northern Virginia to Wichita; Excela (an advanced composites firm) announced a collaboration with Wichita State University on composite development; Fiber Dynamics announced a strategic partnership with an Austrian engineering firm to expand advanced composite manufacturing in the region; Asterisk Sky Supply said it will partner with Wichita State for domestic supply chain, digital engineering, manufacturing testing and DoD certification support. - Regional participation: the delegation included business, higher education (Wichita State University, WSU Tech) and elected officials; the Greater Wichita Partnership led coordination and hosted an “Air Capital of the World” reception with national officials and delegations.

Why it matters Commissioners praised the delegation’s work to promote regional aerospace assets — skilled workforce, university research and supplier networks — and said the trip reinforced Wichita’s industry brand. Several county leaders said they expect the announced cooperative ventures to strengthen the regional supply chain and support job growth.

Speakers and references are drawn from the meeting transcript.