In a certain aircraft S-shaped inlet is used, which is of complex shape and high demands on the rigidity, assembly, inner surface quality and weight. It is needed to design such an inlet structure which meets all the demands. The inlet is designed by using the composites whole shaping and automatic tow laying technology. The development of the program and implementation methods are described in detail. It is made by finite element analysis and experimental verification. The results showed that the inlet structure meets the strength and stiffness requirements. Automatic tow laying technology can be effectively applied to variable cross section S-shaped inlet development. The results of the study could provides the basis for the development of other complex shape aircraft inlet.