With U.S. hypersonic weapon testing poised to ramp up, NASA has awarded Northrop Grumman Systems a $70 million contract to support the SkyRange program to field a long-range, flight-test data collection capability based on high-altitude, long-endurance unmanned aircraft.

Speaking at the 7th Meeting of the UN World Tourism Organization (UNWTO) Global Tourism Crisis Committee last week, ICAO Secretary General Dr Fang Liu emphasised that a combination of measures, coordinated between governments and industry, will be essential to the re-establishment of public confidence in air travel.

Addressing the ICAO Global Symposium on the Implementation of Innovation in Aviation today, ICAO’s leaders highlighted the sector’s high reliance on innovation to address pandemic recovery and future sustainability.

Startup ZeroAvia has raised $37.7 million in funding to develop a zero-emission hydrogen fuel-cell propulsion system to power 19-seat regional airliners. 

Honeywell International’s venture capital arm has invested in DarwinAI, an “explainable” artificial intelligence (AI) company located in Waterloo, Canada.

A decade of research and simulation is transitioning into a flight test series of autonomous aircraft projects in 2021.

French company Moment, which specialises in on-board digital solutions and has a large footprint in Africa, is currently working on a trial with French aviation group Amelia (by Regourd Aviation) to implement Moment’s Flymingo box aboard its planes.

The UK is looking to use alternative, sustainable fuels for its combat aircraft and helicopters in a bid to lower carbon emissions.