In Pictures: Top Aerospace & Defense Stories, Nov. 22 2022

Credit: Archer Aviation. The FAA has taken the first rulemaking step toward enabling commercial operations with electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) air taxis, proposing a rule that would update air carrier definitions to add powered-lift aircraft operations to the regulations.

Credit: Rolls-Royce. Operators of Rolls-Royce Trent 800-powered Boeing 777s face mandatory fuel pump removals to correct an issue linked to thrust-loss incidents, a European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) directive said.

Credit: Maxim Shemetov/Reuters/Alamy Stock Photo. The first flight of Russia’s new Oryol crewed spaceship is unlikely to take place before 2025, the Interfax news agency has reported, citing Sergey Krikalev, Roscosmos’ executive director on crewed programs.

Credit: Boeing. The U.S. Navy has declared an air-launched torpedo operational for the Boeing P-8A Poseidon fleet, completing an extended development process that began 18 years ago. 

Credit: Japan Maritime Self Defense Force. The Japan Maritime Self Defense Force (JMSDF) has successfully fired the SM-3 Block IIA and Block IIB missiles from destroyers for the first time.

Credit: STELLS. Startup STELLS Space Corp. plans to launch a mobile recharging station to the Moon by 2025.

Credit: GKN Aerospace. GKN Aerospace plans to relocate its North American additive manufacturing center of excellence to a larger, 100,000 ft.² facility in Fort Worth, Texas.

Credit: NASA. NASA’s frontline personnel are giving their Artemis I test flight high marks so far.

Credit: Rosotics. Startup Rosotics has raised $750,000 in “pre-seed funding” to develop a rapid induction metal 3D printer for making large aerospace parts.

Credit: Defense Department. U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin met with China’s defense minister on Nov. 22, pressing China to cut back on increasingly dangerous behavior by Chinese aircraft, though the Pentagon declined to provide any specifics about the incidents. 

Credit: Dassault Aviation. The Egyptian Air Force is undergoing a comprehensive modernization process effecting all areas of capability, including the delivery of Dassault Rafale multirole fighters.

Credit: NAVCENT Public Affairs. The U.S. Navy has linked a Nov. 15 UAV attack on a Liberian-flagged tanker in the northern Arabian Sea to Iran by collecting evidence of the UAV aboard the ship, identifying it as a Shahed-136. 

Artist's concept of Ariane 6.