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Magazine Issue

Aerospace Daily & Defense Report, March 20, 2026

VOL. 295 NO. 54 March 20, 2026
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Daily Briefs

Daily Briefs
article

Daily Briefs

Mar 19, 2026
GD gets $15b Columbia sub award... CSIS appoints former USMC commandant as next CEO... MDA raises ceiling for RAYTHEON’s SM-3 contract...

Operations

Credit: U.S. Air Force
article

U.S. F-35 Forced To Land After Iran Mission; More Aircraft Join Fight

Mar 19, 2026
A U.S. Lockheed Martin F-35 was forced to make an emergency landing at a Middle East base following a combat mission over Iran on March 19.
porte
article

Macron Names €10 Billion New Aircraft Carrier ‘France Libre’

Mar 18, 2026
France’s future aircraft carrier has been named “France Libre,” or “Free France” by President Emmanuel Macron.
From left, NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Chris Williams
article

NASA Spacewalkers Prep ISS For Next Chapter Of Solar Power Upgrade

Mar 18, 2026
NASA conducted a spacewalk March 18 to prepare for the installation of a final pair of solar-power-augmenting Roll-Out Solar Arrays (iROSAs).

Programs

concept image of the rq-180 flying above clouds
article

Debrief: ‘Lady of Larissa’ Adds Details To Classified UAS Lore

Mar 19, 2026
An unidentified flying-wing uncrewed aircraft system was photographed and videoed at low altitude near Larissa Air Base, Greece, on March 18.
Emmanuel Macron with Friedrich Merz
article

Franco-German FCAS Spat On The Brink As Decisive Meeting Nears

Mar 19, 2026
France and Germany are poised to make a decision on whether they can repair the fractured defense industrial relationship for the Future Combat Air System.
Northrop Grumman
article

Northrop CCA Testbed Switched Autonomy Systems In Flight

Mar 19, 2026
Northrop Grumman completed a new right of passage for aspiring Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA) producers.
Caption: Portal Space Systems and Paladin Space plan to offer recurring debris removal "as a service." Credit: Portal Space Systems
article

Portal, Paladin Team Up To Tackle Commercial Space Debris Removal

Mar 19, 2026
Two space startups want to make on-orbit debris removal as seamless as street sweeping.
Shahed 136s
article

BAE Details How BATS Will Target Hostile Drone Ops

Mar 18, 2026
BAE Systems has revealed more details about its new, rapidly developed anti-drone defense software system.
Caption: Concept art of BAE Systems’ Resilient Missile Warning and Tracking in MEO satellites for the U.S. Space Force. Credit: BAE Systems
article

Kratos Awarded $447 Million For Missile Warning Ground Support

Mar 19, 2026
The U.S. Space Force has awarded a follow-on contract to Kratos to provide ground management and integration services for its forthcoming MEO missile warning and tracking satellite program.

Funding & Policy

esa
article

ESA Boss Set For Artemis Talks With NASA

Mar 19, 2026
European Space Agency Director General Josef Aschbacher is poised to meet with NASA next week to discuss Artemis plans.
thales missile
article

UK Convenes Industry Meeting To Boost Weapons Support To Gulf Allies

Mar 19, 2026
London wants to buy more Thales air defense missiles to aid Gulf allies drawn into the Iran war and convened talks with industry to see what more could be done.

Aviation Week Forecasts

Forecast_CCA
article

Aviation Week Forecasts: CCA Ramp Up Starts Now

Mar 19, 2026
Aviation Week has identified $23.1 billion in open opportunities to supply CCAs between 2026 and 2035 that have officially been announced by operators.