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.
Commercial spacecraft developers eager to begin building their vehicles are lobbying Congress to define the difference between an aircraft and a suborbital reusable launch vehicle (RLV), according to Jeff Greason, president of XCOR Aerospace. Congress passed the Commercial Space Launch Act of 1984 to provide a streamlined licensing regime for commercial space launches. Lawmakers amended the act in the 1990s to cover suborbital RLVs as well, but didn't define them, according to Greason.
Boeing and The Insitu Group of Bingen, Wash., have signed a new long-term contract to continue their collaboration on the ScanEagle unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), which Boeing hopes to market in military communication, surveillance, and homeland security roles. The new agreement lays the groundwork for future production of the vehicle, although Boeing still is trying to sign a first customer.
Organizers are confident that key players in the unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) industry will vote to begin developing consensus standards at an upcoming meeting in Baltimore, according to Pat Picariello, director of developmental operations at The American Society for Testing and Materials (ASTM) International.
