Aerospace Daily & Defense Report

By Graham Warwick
Facebook is preparing to fly its Aquila stratospheric unmanned aircraft for a second time as the NTSB investigates the structural failure that occurred when the aircraft encountered turbulence just before landing on its June 28 first flight.
Defense and Space

By Tony Osborne
The Swedish defense ministry has reintroduced the ground-launched version of Saab’s RBS-15 anti-ship missile because of Russia’s increased activity in the Baltic Sea.
Defense and Space

The U.S. Navy’s long-running quest for an unmanned maritime patrol aircraft is entering its final stages.
Defense and Space

RAYTHEON plans to expand Southern Arizona operations, adding nearly 2,000 jobs at Missile Systems business headquarters over five years.

Senate Armed Services Committee Chairman John McCain (R-Ariz.) still considers the defense of Europe against Russia important, and has issued a warning about Russian President Vladimir Putin’s recent reciprocal olive branch to President-elect Donald Trump. “We should place as much faith in such statements as any other made by a former KGB agent who has plunged his country into tyranny, murdered his political opponents, invaded his neighbors, threatened America’s allies, and attempted to undermine America’s elections,” McCain says.

Operators are finding that Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Lightning II is fundamentally changing the way the U.S. Marine Corps thinks about operating from amphibious assault ships.
Defense and Space

Lockheed Martin has snagged a $1.2 billion contract to upgrade 134 F-16 fighters for the Republic of Korea Air Force to the advanced F-16V configuration equipped with Northrop Grumman’s advanced electronically scanned array (AESA) radar.
Defense and Space

To list an event, send information in calendar format to Donna Thomas at [email protected]. For a complete list of Aviation Week Network’s upcoming events, and to register, visit www.aviationweek.com/events (Bold type indicates new calendar listing.) Jan 9-13, 2017—AIAA Modeling and Simulation Technologies Conference, Gaylord, Texas. For more information go to www.aiaa.org/research/

By Mark Carreau
Orbital ATK’s sixth NASA-contracted Cygnus resupply mission spacecraft departed the International Space Station early Nov. 21 to carry out a set of post-ISS objectives over the next six days.
Defense and Space

By Mark Carreau
Astronomer and former NASA Ames Research Center Director Pete Warden is floating a proposed commercially and internationally backed near-term human flyby of Venus and Mars.
Defense and Space

By Mark Carreau
The International Space Station has been restored to six-person operations for the first time since late October.
Defense and Space

By Mark Carreau
NASA Administrator Charles Bolden gave his agency high marks Nov. 19 as he watched from Mission Control Moscow as friend and fellow astronaut Peggy Whitson reached the International Space Station
Defense and Space

View the Forecast Friday: Western-Designed Piloted Military Aircraft chart in PDF format.

EUROCONSULT estimates global maritime satcom market reached $953m in revenue at the satellite operator level and $1.7b at service provider level in 2015.

ASDReports says the aerospace fasteners market will grow from $5.49 billion in 2016 to $7.73 billion by 2021.

President-Elect Donald Trump retired U.S. Army Lt. Gen. Michael Flyn to be his National Security Adviser.
Defense and Space

Repairs are complete on the last of 13 U.S. F-35As affected by a cooling lines issue, and all have returned to normal flying operations.
Defense and Space

By Tony Osborne
Aircraft from VFA-147 “Argonauts” should embark on the USS Carl Vinson in 2021.
Defense and Space

By Thierry Dubois
Thanks to the Nov. 17 launch by an Ariane 5 rocket of four Galileo satellites, the European space industry has further built confidence in its ability to progress toward more autonomy, despite glitches onboard previously launched Galileo spacecraft.
Defense and Space

The crew set a duration record for Chinese human spaceflight.
Defense and Space

The State Department has approved the long-awaited proposed sales of Boeing F-15s and F/A-18s to two Persian Gulf states.
Defense and Space

the Pentagon is hosting a “Hard Kill Challenge” for industry and government entities to demonstrate novel approaches for swatting small UAVs.
Defense and Space

By Bradley Perrett
Malaysia has no plans to economize by buying Chinese combat aircraft, despite a budget squeeze that is forcing the Southeast Asian nation to defer equipment purchases.
Defense and Space

NEW ZEALAND unveiled NZ$20b ($14b) Defense Capability Plan 2016, including replacing Anzac frigates and new transport aircraft to replace C-130 and B757 fleets.

The global C4ISR (command, control, communications, computers, intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance) market will rise at a compound annual growth rate of 3.78% by 2020.