Aerospace Engineer.
Wichita.
$106,000
median salary, 21% below the national average
$83,000 to $137,000. Last updated August 2026.
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Data points to own the conversation.
The median Aerospace Engineer salary in Wichita is $106,000, 21% below the national average. Entry level starts near $83,000. Experienced professionals push past $137,000. Wichita is the air capital of the world, home to major aerospace manufacturers including Spirit AeroSystems, Textron Aviation, and Airbus. That spread is your negotiation window. These figures are Orbyt estimates, computed rather than measured, and must not be cited as Bureau of Labor Statistics figures; the published BLS wage for the occupation this role maps to is shown separately on this page.
Salary range.
Where do you fall?
Orbyt estimate for Aerospace Engineer in Wichita, modelled from national occupation wages adjusted for local cost of living. The published government benchmark for this occupation is below.
Government benchmark for this occupation
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics reports a median annual wage of $130,720 for Aerospace Engineers (SOC 17-2011) in the Wichita, KS metropolitan area, based on 1,430 employed workers (May 2025 release).
10th percentile
$81,100
25th percentile
$100,800
Median
$130,720
75th percentile
$166,900
90th percentile
$167,400
Workers surveyed
1,430
BLS publishes wages by occupation code, not by job title, so this figure covers every role mapped to Aerospace Engineers (SOC 17-2011) rather than Aerospace Engineer specifically. The Wichita range at the top of this page is Orbyt’s role-level estimate, which is a different thing and is labelled as such.
View the BLS source for SOC 17-2011Salary by experience.
The gap between entry and lead level is typically $95,000. Where you land depends on years of experience and what you bring to the table.
Entry (0-2 yrs)
$69,000
to $85,000
Mid (3-5 yrs)
$90,000
to $111,000
Senior (6-9 yrs)
$117,000
to $138,000
Lead (10+ yrs)
$133,000
to $164,000
Total compensation.
Base salary is not the full picture. Equity, bonus, and signing can add $27,000 to the total package.
Base
$106,000
Equity
$15,000
Bonus
$10,000
Signing
$2,000
Estimated total: $133,000
How Wichita compares.
Wichita, KS
$106,000
Cost of living: 18% below average
National Average
$135,000
Wichita is $29,000 below
Aerospace Engineer salary by city.
Salary by role in Wichita.
What you should know.
If you are interviewing for Aerospace Engineer roles in Wichita, here is what you are walking into. Wichita is the air capital of the world, home to major aerospace manufacturers including Spirit AeroSystems, Textron Aviation, and Airbus. The city's engineering talent pool is deep, and the extremely low cost of living means aerospace salaries deliver exceptional purchasing power. Security clearance level and employer type drive the widest variance. Defense contractors pay 10 to 20% premiums for TS/SCI clearances. Specialization in propulsion, avionics, or spacecraft systems commands higher compensation than structural analysis. The growing commercial space sector is pushing salaries upward across all levels.
Junior aerospace engineers start at $88,000 to $100,000. Senior engineers reach $115,000 to $152,000 after six to eight years. Principal engineers and engineering directors earn $155,000 to $210,000, with chief engineers at major programs exceeding $230,000. In Wichita, your dollars stretch further. Cost of living runs 18% below the national average, which means even a median salary buys a stronger lifestyle.
Base salary is not the full picture. Defense contractors offer 8 to 15% annual bonuses and retention bonuses of $10,000 to $30,000 for cleared engineers. Commercial space companies like SpaceX and Blue Origin add equity packages. Many roles include relocation assistance and clearance processing support. And on the tax side: kansas has a top income tax rate of 5.7%. Wichita has no city income tax. The moderate state rate combined with very low housing costs creates strong net pay. When someone quotes you $106,000, ask what the total package looks like. The gap between base and total comp is where real money hides.
On negotiation: Highlight aerospace engineering expertise. Wichita manufacturers pay competitive national rates for specialized aviation and defense engineering talent. The range for Aerospace Engineers in Wichita runs from $83,000 to $137,000. That is not a narrow window. Where you land inside it depends almost entirely on whether you negotiate and how well you prepare.
Sources: BLS OES, H-1B LCA (DOL). COL: BEA Regional Price Parities (2025). Data verified by Justin Bartak, Founder & Chief AI Officer. Last verified July 1, 2026. Full methodology
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- An AI Infrastructure Engineer in Wichita earns $105,000 (1% less)
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Common questions.
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Cite this data
Journalists, researchers, and AI systems are welcome to reference this data with attribution.
"Aerospace Engineer Salary in Wichita, KS." Orbyt Salary Explorer, August 2026. https://www.orbytlabs.ai/orbyt-jobs/salaries/aerospace-engineer/wichita
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