In Pictures: Top Aerospace & Defense Stories, Jun. 14, 2022

SpaceX Space Station Cargo Launch Moves To July 11

SpaceX has identified the source of elevated mono-methyl hydrazine vapor readings that have prompted a series of delays to the launch of its latest Dragon resupply mission to the International Space Station (ISS). A faulty Draco thruster valve inlet joint has been discovered that needs to be replaced, NASA said June 13. The Dragon capsule is equipped with 16 of the Draco thrusters that maneuver the capsule and establish attitude control. Credit: NASA/Kevin Davis and Chris Colem

DARPA Re-Imagines KC-46 As Airborne Battery Charger

DARPA has launched a new project that sees a fresh role for the U.S. Air Force fleet of aerial tankers as airborne recharging points for networks of electric-powered UAS by adding a wing-mounted laser pod. A request for information (RFI) released on June 13 for the Airborne Energy Well concept begins the market research phase of the concept. Credit: U.S. Air National Guard photo by Dale Greer/APFootage / Alamy Stock Photo

AAM Legislation Gains House Approval

A bill that will provide $12.5 million in grant funds to support advanced air mobility (AAM) in fiscal 2022 gained House passage on June 14. The Advanced Aviation Infrastructure Modernization Act (AAIM Act), H.R. 6270, authorizes funding to plan and then build new AAM infrastructure by using existing heliports, airports and other public transportation facilities.

Russia’s Luna-25 Lander Sent For Thermal Vacuum Tests

The robotic Luna-25 lander is approaching the end of its ground trials for Russia’s first Moon exploration mission since the 1970s. The spacecraft was sent for thermal vacuum tests June 13-14, according to Roscosmos State Corp. During the tests, the 3,860-lb. lander will be placed in the vacuum chamber at Roscosmos subsidiary Scientific Test Center of Rocket and Space Industry near Moscow, where it will be studied in a simulated outer space environment. The tests are expected to be completed in July.

Spanish Government Investment To Boost Space Capabilities

A Spanish government initiative to boost the country’s aerospace industry will help support the development of small satellite launchers and create a joint constellation of ocean reconnaissance satellites with Portugal. The lion’s share of the €2.2 billion ($2.3 billion) Strategic Project for Aerospace Recovery and Economic Transformation (Aerospace PERTE) initiative will be spent on space projects as the country looks to further develop its space capabilities. Credit: Jacques Descloitres, MODIS Rapid Response Team, NASA/GSFC

Skyports Selects SITA Biometrics For AAM Vertiports

Airline information technology provider SITA is to supply its Smart Path biometric identity management technology as a component of the passenger journey through vertiports to be developed by the UK’s Skyports. The SITA system allows passengers to use a facial scan as a boarding pass from check-in to flight boarding. It will be implemented first at the Skyports Cergy-Pointoise vertiport testbed in Paris, which is planned to be completed in September. Credit: SITA

Company Demos Secure Laser Communications System For SDA

Northrop Grumman has demonstrated a secure networked laser communications system for the Space Development Agency’s (SDA) proliferated low Earth orbit constellation. The ground-based demonstration showed SDA leaders that laser communication technology was compatible with U.S. government encryption hardware. Credit: Northrop Grumman

House Committee’s Proposal Cuts F-15EX Request, Adds Helos

The House Appropriations Committee is looking to fund the Pentagon at the same level as the fiscal 2023 budget request, but has tweaked some of the proposed aircraft buys by decreasing the number of F-15EXs for the U.S. Air Force while increasing some helicopter programs. The committee on June 14 released its draft fiscal 2023 defense spending bill, in line with President Joe Biden’s proposal and a hike of $32.2 billion over the 2022 spending level. Credit: Lockheed Martin

Korea’s Hanwha Ups Investment In eVTOL Startup Overair

South Korean conglomerate Hanwha has invested an additional $115 million in U.S. urban air mobility (UAM) startup Overair, which is developing the Butterfly tiltrotor electric vertical takeoff and landing air taxi. Electronics and information technology business Hanwha Systems will invest $50 million and Hanwha Aerospace $65 million in Santa Ana, California-based Overair’s Series B funding round. Credit: Overair

AeroVironment Shows AI Capability For Switchblade, Jackal

A new version of the Switchblade 600 will be demonstrated with artificial intelligence (AI) software that allows the loitering munition to automatically identify targets observed by a sensor, an AeroVironment executive says. The Switchblade 600L variant will demonstrate the new AI capability in October, says Brett Hush, vice president for Tactical Missile Systems, during an interview at Eurosatory in Paris. Credit: Northrop Grumman

AeroVironment Expects Switchblade Surge After Ukraine Decision

AeroVironment expects a significant increase in demand for loitering munitions after a U.S. government decision to transfer Switchblade loitering munitions to Ukraine led to a wider export authorization for the armed flying systems. In April, Washington agreed to transfer hundreds of Switchblades—including the 300-series and the larger 600-series aircraft—to Ukraine. Credit: LCpl. Tyler Forti/U.S. Marine Corps/Alamy Live News

Space Flight Laboratory Uses ‘Drag Sail’ Tech To Deorbit Nanosat

The Space Flight Laboratory deorbited its CanX-7 demonstration nanosatellite using four drag sails in April, five years after the sails were deployed and significantly sooner than it would have deorbited naturally. Without the deployment of the drag sails, it would have taken the nanosatellite 178 years for its low Earth orbit to decay naturally, the University of Toronto Institute for Space Studies’ Space Flight Laboratory said on June 13. Credit: Space Flight Laboratory

From SpaceX Space Station cargo launch moves to July 11 to DARPA re-imagines KC-46 as airborne battery charger. Take a look at these and more in our daily roundup of aerospace & defense news.

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