2026 Summer Intern: Engineering (Product Development & Production)

Flight begins at Spirit AeroSystems, where our products are taking off somewhere around the world every minute of every day. We design and build large structural parts for the world's premier commercial aircraft (think Boeing and Airbus), as well as top Defense and other cutting-edge programs.

Spirit AeroSystems is a global company headquartered in Wichita, Kansas with a diverse work force spread across three continents. Our Summer Internship Program has been rated a US Top 100 Internship Program, and this is based on our program focusing on meaningful projects/work, intern professional development, social activities, career shadowing opportunities, mentoring support, and our history of offering interns full time positions. At Spirit AeroSystems we are focused on inventing, designing, and building what's best in aerospace and we welcome you to consider joining us in this endeavor!

Responsibilities:

Flight begins with you at Spirit AeroSystems, a place where you can explore your interests and grow your career by working on impactful projects. As an Engineering intern, you will work in one of these disciplines:

Design Engineering:

• Apply knowledge of engineering and physical science principles, materials, and tools in a collaborative environment
• Develop, integrate, document and evaluate flight vehicle structure designs for performance, functional adequacy, cost effectiveness, manufacturability, and compliance with customer and regulatory requirements
• Areas of expertise may include primary and secondary structure design, payloads design, weights, and lofting

Stress Engineering:

• Apply knowledge of structural analysis (e.g., materials technology, finite element modeling, static analysis, fatigue analysis, damage tolerance analysis, thermal analysis, vibration analysis and structural testing)
• Determine structural adequacy for customer requirements and regulatory compliance
• Collaborate on structural design, manufacturing, and post-delivery of products

Systems Engineering:

• Apply interdisciplinary knowledge and Systems Engineering processes and methods to plan, design, develop, integrate and verify products that meet customer needs within project constraints
• Develop, analyze and manage system and subsystem requirements and architectures
• Develop and evaluate alternative concepts, architectures and designs to select optimal, balanced solutions reflecting life-cycle considerations
• Analyze system functionality and effectiveness with respect to performance and cost to support project decision-making and ensure product compliance with technical requirements and project constraints
• Apply technical analyses to identify performance trends and root causes to propose corrective action
• Develop and document allocations, predictions, assessments, and analyses that compare the product design capabilities and usage experience to contract requirements
• Identify, define and manage product interfaces
• Plan, conduct and monitor integration and verification activities
• Plan and execute project-specific technical activities to implement Systems Engineering methodology. This includes coordinating multi-disciplined engineering efforts, managing technical subcontracts and supporting project Risk Management, Decision Analysis and Resolution, Configuration and Data Management, etc.
• Improve Spirit enterprise Systems Engineering capability through development, assessment and deployment of company standards, processes and tools

Liaison Engineering:

• Represent the entirety of Engineering, as members of the Material Review Board (MRB), in an Aerospace production or preproduction environment
• Candidate should be self-motivated and possess the ability to act decisively, communicate effectively, and demonstrate innovation and resourcefulness when exercising his or her role in MRB delegated or non-delegated environments
• Apply knowledge of engineering and physical science principles, materials, and tools in a collaborative environment
• Possess the ability to investigate for root causes and recommend resolution to design discrepancies
• Must demonstrate willingness to participate in cross-functional teams to accomplish engineering and manufacturing initiatives

There are multiple opportunities in each area listed above. If you are selected to be an intern on this requisition, we will place you in one of the above areas based on your top preferences and the needs of the business.

Also, should you be selected as a 2026 Spirit AeroSystems Summer Intern, you will have exposure to several activities including:

• Multiple Manufacturing Plant Tours
• Professional development workshops
• Project Expo (An opportunity to present an intern project for Executive Leaders)
• Social/Networking Events

Requirements:

• You must be a US Person (US Citizen or US Permanent Resident)
• You must be enrolled full-time in a university degree program aligned to the area of internship
• You must be a current sophomore, junior, senior or graduate student in good academic standing

Spirit AeroSystems is an equal opportunity employer and considers qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, marital or civil partnership status, pregnancy, age, disability, veteran status or any other protected factor under federal, state or local law.