Aerospace Daily & Defense Report

Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd. (HAL) has chosen Honeywell’s TPE331-12B turboprop engine for its HTT-40 military training aircraft for the Indian air force. The HTT-40 program’s future had been uncertain because the Indian air force opposed the purchase of HAL-made trainers. And earlier this year, India opted to buy 38 PC-7 Mk. 2 trainers from Pilatus to meet its requirement for 181 Stage 1 basic trainer aircraft.

RAYTHEON and CSC teamed to compete for U.S. Army Training Aids, Devices, Simulators and Simulations Maintenance Program. AEROJET ROCKETDYNE signed Space Act Agreement with NASA for test services/test stand support of AR1 rocket engine preburner and main injector. AR1 is being designed as replacement for Russian RD-180 used on Atlas V.

U.S. Air Force officials suggest the F-35's performance in the exercise validates the theory of service leaders that sacrificing weapons load for stealth in the F-35’s design proved sound.

MBDA says that it could deliver a working laser weapon to destroy small UAVs or rockets by the end of the decade.

Fresh off completing a merger with military electronics provider Exelis, Harris CEO Bill Brown is rolling up his sleeves to integrate what he calls two complementary companies.

BlackSky Global, part of Spaceflight Industries, plans to launch a 60-satellite constellation to provide 1-meter imagery of the Earth with a quick turnaround.

U.S. military service chiefs want the Defense Department to do a better job holding to requirements and other acquisition decisions, according to a recent Government Accountability Office (GAO) report.

Russian Helicopters affiliate Rosvertol has begun serial production of the upgraded version of its Mi-26 heavy lift helicopter.

IAI and Airbus want to follow successful Heron lease to Germany with the Heron TP.

Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd. could put Britain at the head of a new market in low-cost SAR spacecraft.

As the Paris Air Show wraps up, Avio will be ready for a new milestone: the fifth launch of its Vega, to send a Sentinel 2 satellite into orbit on June 23.

Simulated training appears to be an idea very much in tune with affordability and cost reduction goals.

Current and future European operators will be able to conduct pilot and sensor-operator qualifications without leaving the continent.

The spacecraft weighed in at 5,800 lb. unfueled when it was launched from Japan’s Tanegashima Space Center on Nov. 27, 1997, to study rainfall in the tropics and subtropics and improve models of global warming and climate change.

GENERAL ATOMICS has $737m U.S. Navy contract for one Advanced Arresting Gear (AAG) and one Electromagnetic Aircraft Launch System (EMALS) shipset in

The Paris air show is underway, bringing together civil, industry and military aviation leaders for a week of newsmaking and networking. Meanwhile

As developer and producer of the Antares core stage, Yuzhnoye is working toward a March 2016 Antares launch, which is expected to carry Orbital ATK’s Cygnus cargo vessel to the International Space Station (ISS) under a $1.9 billion fixed-price agreement with NASA to haul 20,000 kg (44,000 lb.) to the orbiting outpost by the end of 2017.

Financial terms of the agreement were not disclosed, though Arianespace said it expects to remain an independent company, with plans to keep its Evry, France-based headquarters, launch facilities in French Guiana and offices in Washington, Singapore and Tokyo.

The agreement, signed by CNES President Jean-Yves Le Gall and NASA Administrator Charles Bolden here June 16, aims to improve the agencies’ means and methods for orbital collision avoidance in an effort to boost the safety of satellite mission operations.

The vice commander of U.S. Strategic Command is suggesting there needs to be a national discussion about removing the mission of an “FAA for space”—directing traffic and handling collision avoidance of the growing number of satellites orbiting Earth—from the military.

Further details about how work will be divided within the Meads International Consortium—comprising MBDA, Lockheed Martin and additional suppliers—will be part of discussions yet to come, says Thomas Homberg, managing director of MBDA.

Textron is talking with Northrop Grumman, Raytheon and Exelis about an active electronically scanned array radar that can be integrated in the front of the aircraft.

With Ford-class aircraft carrier technology making it possible to broaden the design choices for future aircraft, the U.S. Navy and Air Force are collaborating on the next-generation fighter the Navy is calling FA-XX.

Currently, the launching of Russia’s Soyuz TMA-17M with NASA’s Kjell Lindgren, Japan’s Kimiya Yui and Russia’s Oleg Kononenko to restore normal six-person operations, once set for May 26, is planned for late July 22.

Launching the X6 program at the Paris air show, Airbus Helicopters CEO, Guillaume Faury has also stated that the X6 will be the company’s first commercial product to adopt a fly-by-wire control system. The NH90 is currently the only helicopter in the Airbus stable to use such a system. The aircraft will also feature a full de-icing system.