The next U.S. Air Force fighter will be designed to outmatch so-called sixth-generation warplanes that Moscow and Beijing are already researching for introduction in the 2030s and beyond.
The U.S. Navy has entered into a new three-year contract arrangement with BAE Systems worth up to $600 million that will allow the company to significantly ramp up production of its laser-guided rocket kits.
Dave Vos, head of the Project Wing drone delivery initiative, is leaving Google’s advanced research arm “to pursue other opportunities,” parent company Alphabet confirms.
A Robinson R44 light helicopter modified to electric power has completed initial flights, including hovering and a 5-min. cruise at 400 ft. and speeds up to 80 kt.
Textron AirLand has begun production of its self-funded, light-attack Scorpion jet ahead of a planned first flight of the production-representative version later this year, though the company is still searching for a buyer.
ROYAL CANADIAN AIR FORCE completed major upgrade of all 17 CC-130J Hercules aircraft, with final upgraded aircraft received Oct. 13. RAYTHEON has $255m U.S. Navy contract to complete development of Joint Precision Approach and Landing System (JPALS), including finalizing integration with F-35. AEROJET ROCKETDYNE delivered first set of hardware for Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner commercial crew transport service module propulsion system.
Stratistics Market Research says the global maritime satellite communication market will expand at a compound annual growth rate of 10.1% from 2015 to 2022, or $2.25 billion last year to $4.41 annually in six years. The increasing need for enhanced data communication and extensive use are major market movers. But “low awareness” among users and “huge” infrastructure costs are hampering the market, the group says. “Bridging satellite and cellular communication technology is the opportunity for market growth,” researchers say.
Airbus Helicopters and French naval ship builder DCNS are to partner on the development of an unmanned helicopter to meet an upcoming French navy requirement.
Textron’s Scorpion jet has completed its first weapons exercise, demonstrating the aircraft’s close air support mission capability through the employment of three weapon systems.
Boeing’s Insitu subsidiary is offering the ViDAR sensor-carrying derivative of the ScanEagle unmanned air system to meet a U.S. Coast Guard requirement for a shipborne UAV to operate off its National Security Cutters.
The U.S. Air Force plans to begin re-winging 235 Boeing F-15 Eagle air superiority fighters starting with initial production deliveries in fiscal 2022.
The European Space Agency was still waiting to hear from the ExoMars mission’s Schiaparelli lander as of 9 p.m. local time Oct. 19, while the trace gas orbiter seemed to have succeeded in entering Mars’ orbit.
