In Pictures: Top Aerospace & Defense Stories, May. 03 2023

Credit: USAF.

The F-35’s hot production line is one bright spot for the U.S. Foreign Military Sales (FMS) program, the Pentagon’s top acquisition chief told the Council on Foreign Relations.

Credit: ACSL.

Iran is preparing its first indigenous light military transport aircraft—Simorgh—for its first flight.

Credit: Stratolaunch/Ethan Wagner.

Stratolaunch is targeting a key separation test of its Talon hypersonic test vehicle before the end of May, but says the looming closure of the longest runway at Mojave Air and Space Port for upgrade work means the first powered Talon flight will be pushed into the second half of the year.

Credit: U.S. Air Force.

The Department of the Air Force’s future ground-moving target indication capability from space will be a scaled-up version of an existing National Reconnaissance Office (NRO)-designed constellation, an adoption that the service says will allow them to operate the mission faster than expected.

Credit: Mercury Systems.

Mercury Systems had a respectable fiscal third quarter, but overshadowing the performance was significant pressure on margins tied to slow-moving development programs. 

Credit: Turkish Aerospace.

Turkish Aerospace is awaiting a new arrangement between the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) and Turkey’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation before completing certification of its new T625 Gokbey utility helicopter. 

Credit: Chen Chuanren.

ST Engineering says the Veloce 60 (V60) vertical-takeoff-and-landing (VTOL) drone is in its final stage of development and nearing production.