Lockheed Martin has reiterated its commitment to delivering 100 F-35 Joint Strike Fighters to Turkey after a failed coup, but several analysts warn that the country’s major defense procurement programs could be at risk.
British parliamentarians have overwhelmingly approved the replacement of the U.K.’s fleet of ballistic missile submarines and committed to a continuous at-sea deterrent capability.
Leonardo Helicopters—formally AgustaWestland—is planning to test fly an active rotor blade system as part of a U.K.-based rotary-wing technology research program.
The U.S. and Singaporean navies are upping the sophistication ante during this year’s 22nd annual Cooperation Afloat Readiness and Training (Carat) exercise that will advanced aerial and surface-ship antisubmarine drills.
Boeing’s Training Systems and Government Services is moving ahead with construction of a Boeing KC-46A virtual learning center at McConnell AFB in Wichita, besting five rivals to claim a $45.3 million, seven-year Pegasus maintenance training system deal.
Although Lockheed Martin is facing a gap in F-16 production starting next year, top officials say the company is keeping the line warm in anticipation of new international orders of the lightweight fighter before too long.
Russia’s Progress MS-03 cargo capsule, the first of two closely scheduled resupply missions expected to reach the six-person International Space Station this week, docked successfully with the orbiting science laboratory late July 18.
Louise M. Prockter, an assistant branch supervisor in the Applied Physics Laboratory’s Space Department at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, has been selected by the Universities Space Research Association to direct the Lunar and Planetary Institute in Houston.
NASA’s Mars 2020 rover passed Key Decision Point (KDP) C review, clearing way for final design and construction in anticipation of 2020 launch and February 2021 landing. LEONARDO-FINMECCANICA has contract for avionics and engine upgrade of five Lynx Mk. 95 helicopters in service with Portuguese Navy. BAE SYSTEMS and LEONARDO-FINMECCANICA entered 10-year partnership agreement on €600M ($664M) Joint Avionics Solution (JAS) for U.K. Typhoon fleet, part of overall BAE-led U.K. Typhoon support agreement worth $2.5B
Airbus is testing the use of small unmanned aircraft to perform exterior quality inspections on airliners, to reduce the time now required to find problems by manual visual inspection. The UAV, carrying a high-definition camera, follows a pre-determined flight path over the upper surface of the aircraft, flown by an automatic flight control system supervised by a human pilot. Images are collected automatically, compiled into a 3D digital model and recorded in a database for analysis. Data acquisition by drone takes 10-15 min. compared with 2 hr.
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). July 23-24—Advanced High-Speed Air-Breathing Propulsion Technology, Salt Palace Convention Center, Salt Lake City, Utah. For more information go to www.aiaa.org/CourseListing.aspx?evtCode=MPE16
Boeing’s KC-46 successfully refueled an A-10 Warthog last week, the final flight test required before the Pentagon can approve initial production of the next-generation tanker.
Boeing has secured its largest contract award yet for early design of America’s next presidential airliner, as the amount of time and money it takes to keep the current Air Force One fleet flying increases.
Russia’s Progress MS-03 cargo capsule, the first of two closely scheduled resupply missions expected to reach the six-person International Space Station within days of one another, lifted off from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan late July 16.
Bell-Boeing has booked the order for what could be its 52nd and final operational special forces CV-22 Osprey to come off the production lines in Pennsylvania and Texas, as the Navy-led program office warns of higher unit costs for the additional Air Force CV-22 model going forward.
The B-29 Superfortress called “Doc” triumphantly flew for the first time since 1956 on July 17 following a 16-year restoration project here and more than 350,000 hr. of volunteer work.
The U.S. Navy’s unmanned MQ-4C Triton has successfully transferred Full Motion Video (FMV) to a P-8A Poseidon for the first time in flight, proving a key capability that the service hopes will significantly enhance its ability to detect, track and eliminate maritime threats.
