Aviation Week & Space Technology

An immediate reform will permit state shares to fall below 50% while keeping control. A later reform may merge two or all three of the largest Chinese airlines.

Our roundup of the main aerospace and defense stories making the news this week.

UK leaders need to wake up—fast—and figure out how to keep their enviable aerospace sector from going the way of the British Empire.

Upcoming aviation and aerospace industry events and Aviation Week Network events

The Aerospace Industries Association has hired David Silver as vice president of civil aviation. GE Aviation has hired John Mansfield as chief digital officer.

Sikorsky is also looking to make a name for one of the precious few fixed-wing aircraft in its lineup, the M28 turboprop.

After going out of business due to financial problems, reconstituted Firefly is developing a upgraded small-satellite launch vehicle.

LCC-owned lessors are targeting third-party business as the next phase of their evolution.

Using the concept of a quiet STOL airliner as the target, German researchers are advancing the state of the art in aircraft high-lift systems in an effort to improve flexibility and reduce noise.

Iran testing Kosar military trainer; Turkey looks to Russia, Europe for missile defense systems; Honeywell and IAI team to protect aircraft from jamming attacks; Boeing upgrades French AWACS; and Leonardo and Moog partner to make U.S. Army counter-UAS system.

Two experts on combat aircraft with two very different perspectives on the F-35 debate the pros and cons of the Pentagon’s costliest and most controversial fighter.

Two experts on combat aircraft return for additional debate about the quality of testing and ultimate cost of the Joint Strike Fighter.

North Korea’s acceleration of missile testing could see the U.S. expand its antiballistic missile system as the Missile Defense Agency also speeds development of tech to counter-maneuvering hypersonic glide weapons.

A look at North Korea’s growing missile arsenal and the U.S. Ground-Based Midcourse Defense system's first successful intercept of an ICBM.

Readers supply background on early UAVs, compare/contrast 1950s vs. 1960s U-2 aircraft, debate F-35 merits and note how science fiction often becomes science fact.

Vancouver’s MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates is making inroads in satellite-servicing markets once dominated by U.S. companies.

The reentry vehicle of Hyunmu 2C notably features fins, implying it is maneuverable and terminally guided. In the latest test, it fell within about 5 m of the target.

The European low-cost carrier has hit a few snags in its effort to reinvent long-haul flying in the open skies era.

Fighter, maritime patrol aircraft and artillery pieces are on France and Germany “must develop” list, as they seek to form a tighter relationship.

Aviation Week takes part in a NASA-funded flight research program to determine if upset recovery guidance provided to a pilot on the primary flight display will help that pilot to more effectively and efficiently recover the aircraft.

With completion of Brexit 20 months away, airlines and regulators scramble to resolve multiple legal entanglements created by the UK’s decision to exit the EU.

Thermoplastic composites may replace thermosets for aerospace uses and have some advantages over metal alloys as well.

The Russian military intends to buy more Sukhoi Su-35 fighters and Tu-160M2 bombers while next-generation systems continue development.

Five NASA spacecraft either orbiting or on Mars will be isolated from terrestrial commanding due to a Red Planet solar conjunction between July 22-Aug. 1.

U.S. legacy carriers are delaying orders for new widebody aircraft, mulling the Boeing NMA and other options.