Jeff has been involved in aerospace journalism since the mid 1990s. Prior to joining Aviation Week, Jeff served as managing editor of Launchspace magazine and the International Space Industry Report. He has been the editor and chief of Aviation Week's Aerospace Daily & Defense Report since 2007 and has been a regular contributor to Aviation Week magazine. He received his B.A. from the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Va.
With renewed hope that NASA may restore funding for hypersonics, engineers at Langley Research Center in Hampton, Va., are crafting a revamped proposal for the X-43C, a larger follow-on to the record-setting X-43A demonstrator that flew twice in 2004. Funding for hypersonics appeared to dry up last year as the agency's space exploration plans took center stage and various aeronautics efforts were scaled back or canceled. Engineers at Langley were ordered to stop work on the X-43C, a 16-foot-long vehicle that would have used hydrocarbon fuel.
In response to an urgent operational need by troops in Iraq, the U.S. Marine Corps is safety testing a new shoulder-fired rocket system for urban assault based on Lockheed Martin's Predator anti-tank weapon system.
The Air Force's space surveillance network is remotely observing orbital rendezvous missions such as DART and the XSS-11 mission to gauge its ability to detect possible threats to satellites, according to an Air Force official.
