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Magazine Issue

Aerospace Daily & Defense Report, September 18, 2025

VOL. 293 NO. 56 September 18, 2025
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Daily Briefs

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Daily Briefs

Sep 18, 2025
PRATT gets $670m F135 award... ASCENT SOLAR TECHNOLOGIES ties up with defense-focused partner... RED CAT plans IPO...

In Brief

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In Brief: China Advances Tianlong-3 With Nine-Engine Test

Sep 18, 2025
News in brief.

Technology

Beacon
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Northrop Grumman Set To Fly Autonomy Testbed

Sep 17, 2025
Northrop Grumman’s new testbed with its company-developed autonomy software is set to fly imminently.

Funding & Policy

Troels Lund Poulsen
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Denmark To Acquire Long-Range Weapons

Sep 17, 2025
Denmark is to acquire long-range precision weapons in a bid to strengthen the country’s security in the face of the new regional threat, Defense Minister Troels Lund Poulsen says.
Spacerise
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ESA Eyes €600M Request For IRIS² At Budget Summit

Sep 17, 2025
The ESA is poised to ask member states to back the European sovereign satellite communications IRIS² program with €600 million in the next funding cycle.
Robert Wall,Robert.Wall@aviationweek.com
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Counterspace Gains Focus For European Militaries

Sep 16, 2025
Germany and Spain are among the countries looking to move quickly to get counterspace systems into orbit.

Programs

Space Pioneer Advances Tianlong-3 With Nine-Engine Test Photo credit: State media Xinhua Singapore – China’s Space Pioneer completed the first-stage engine test of its Tianlong-3 rocket on Sept. 15, clearing a key milestone toward a planned debut flight by late 2025. The test, conducted on an offshore platform at the Haiyang Oriental Aerospace Port off Shandong Province, involved firing nine Tianhuo (Heavenly Fire)-12 liquid-propellant engines. The campaign validated vibration resistance, lightning protecti
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Portugal Signs Agreement For Sixth C-390, 10 Purchase Options

Sep 17, 2025
The Portuguese government has signed an amendment in its contract with Embraer to purchase a sixth KC-390 airlifter and has added 10 purchase options.
Aarok
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Turgis Gaillard Makes Long-Awaited Aarok UAS First Flight

Sep 17, 2025
Aarok, the medium-altitude, long-endurance turboprop uncrewed aircraft system developed by French company Turgis Gaillard, has made its first flight.
Tony Osborne – Aviation Week
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UK Begins Grob Tutor Replacement Hunt

Sep 17, 2025
The UK defense ministry has formally launched the hunt for a new light aerobatic training aircraft to replace the Grob G115 Tutor.
AS1 Amber Mayall – Royal Air Force
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Debrief: British Small Diameter Bomb Derivative Emerges

Sep 17, 2025
British-made alternative to the StormBreaker small diameter glide bomb.
Credit: Israel Ministry of Defense
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Israel’s Iron Beam Clears Graduation Exercise For Production Deliveries

Sep 17, 2025
Iron Beam prime contractor Rafael, along with the Israeli Air Force and the Directorate of Defense Research & Development, have completed weeks of testing in southern Israel.
swarmer
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Swarmer Takes $15 Million Series A In First For Ukrainian Startup

Sep 17, 2025
U.S. investors led a $15 million Series A round in a Ukrainian software developer for swarming drones.
Credit: HawkEye 360
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HawkEye 360 Readies New Satellite Configuration For Deployment

Sep 17, 2025
HawkEye 360 is gearing up to start deploying a new generation of its electronic intelligence spacecraft that should slash production costs.

Operations

Credit: United Launch Alliance
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SpaceOps: ULA, Arianespace Gear Up For Kuiper Launch Blitz

Sep 17, 2025
Amazon is preparing its fifth batch of Kuiper broadband satellites for launch next week.
NASA/SpaceX Caption: The Cygnus XL spacecraft began what was expected to be a 60-hr ride to the ISS at 6:25 p.m. Sept. 14.
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Cygnus Cargo Ship To Miss Planned ISS Rendezvous

Sep 17, 2025
NASA and Northrop Grumman are revising the flight plan for the Cygnus XL cargo ship to rendezvous with International Space Station.

Business

Atmos
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Atmos Space Pushes Deeper Into Military Market

Sep 17, 2025
Atmos Space Cargo is expanding its focus on the defense market, floating the idea of using its capsule to allow military users to rapidly deploy missiles from space.
Electron launch
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Rocket Lab Looks To Raise $750M In Share Sale

Sep 17, 2025
Space access and satellite provider Rocket Lab is looking to raise $750 million gross from a share sale, according to a securities filing.
Credit: Viasat
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Space42, Viasat Open To Partners For LEO Push

Sep 16, 2025
The United Arab Emirates’ Space42 and Viasat are hoping to attract partners in their new direct-to-device global low Earth orbit satellite service venture, Equatys.
starlink image high rise building
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SpaceX In Sovereign Satcom Talks With Foreign Governments

Sep 17, 2025
SpaceX is in talks with countries to give them sovereign satellite communications capabilities, says Gwynne Shotwell, the company’s president.