Aerospace Daily & Defense Report

This week the Air Force Association’s annual symposium gets underway near Washington.

Epsilon Systems Solutions Inc., Portsmouth, Virginia (N39430-16-D-1831); and General Dynamics Information Technology Inc., Fairfax, Virginia (N39430-16-D-1832), are each being awarded a ...

In record turnaround time, the F-35 program office and Lockheed Martin will begin fixing the 15 F-35 aircraft that were grounded due to crumbling insulation inside the fuel tanks as soon as next week.

Aurora Flight Science’s record-breaking Orion UAV will fly again, but the company has declined to provide details about specific flights and who is sponsoring them as they are still being finalized.

One of five twin-seat TU-2S trainer aircraft assigned to the 9th Reconnaissance Wing at Beale AFB, California, has been destroyed in a fatal flight mishap.

Before the U.S. Air Force releases its final request for proposals for the next-generation T-X trainer in December, requirements officers are considering issuing one last draft of the document to industry competitors.

Japan will field unmanned aircraft for air combat and ballistic missile defense in the 2030s, according to a defense ministry technology development road map.

Sikorsky says utilization of its S-92 helicopter has increased by a fifth, due in part to the grounding of the Airbus H225/EC225.

India has developed an advanced guided missile destroyer, which is planned to be inducted into its naval forces in the next two years.

The Mexican air force has ended fast jet operations with the retirement of its Northrop F-5 Tiger fleet.

Orbital ATK has lifted the veil on its extended-range variant of the AGM-88E Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile.

Lockheed Martin is touting its production-ready T-50A as the lowest risk – if not the lowest cost – solution for the service’s T-X program.

View the U.S. DoD - Major C4ISR and Electronic Programs: FY15-FY17 chart in PDF format.

LEONARDO-FINMECCANICA and Argentinian Ministry for Science Technology and Productive Innovation signed in Buenos Aires a Memorandum of Understanding to evaluate commercial partnerships, develop-technology, in fields of aerospace, defence and security. ROYAL NEW ZEALAND AIR FORCE flew first operational mission with Seasprite helicopter with offshore patrol vessel, delivering staff and supplies to Kermadec Islands.

Aviation MRO and support provider AAR said Sept. 14 it acquired an aircraft paint stripping and washing business, Sonic Aviation at Miami International Airport. “The acquisition of Sonic moves AAR into an adjacent vertical and will further extend our ability to provide value-added services to airlines,” said Brian Loomer, general manager of AAR Aircraft Services – Miami.

If NASA’s aspirations of reaching Mars with humans are to succeed, policymakers must address a demanding set of requirements, two agency mission architecture veterans say.

The U.S. Air Force's B-21 will be called the Raider, in honor of the Doolittle Raiders who took on the Japanese during World War II.

Airbus Helicopters and Denel Aviation have signed a cooperation deal to modernize South Africa’s fleet of Rooivalk attack helicopters.

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.) Sept. 19—SpeedNews 4th Annual European Aerospace Raw Materials & Manufacturers Supply Chain Conference (ERMC), Hotel Paladia, Toulouse, France. For more information go to www.awin.aviationweek.com/events

An officially unspecified technical issue will delay the planned Sept. 23 launching of Russia’s Soyuz MS-02 spacecraft with a three-man U.S. and Russian crew to the International Space Station.

A consortium led by European missile manufacturer MBDA has been awarded a £30 million ($39.25 million) contract to develop and demonstrate a laser weapon for the UK defense ministry.

The British defense ministry has become the launch customer for Leonardo-Finmeccanica’s BriteCloud expendable active decoy, following successful trials of the system from a Royal Air Force Panavia Tornado GR4 last year.

The Aerial Dragnet concept is a network of surveillance nodes, mounted on tethered or long-endurance UAS, each covering a neighborhood.

The U.S. Air Force has increased the number of non-development helicopters it wants to procure to replace its 1970-vintage Bell UH-1N Twin Hueys.

Although the U.S. Air Force has been fighting for years to sunset the A-10 attack plane so it can move resources to newer fighters, Secretary Deborah Lee James tells Aviation Week the air arm may once again delay plans to retire the Thunderbolt II.