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.
A coalition of unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) supporters are conducting flight tests of automatic collision avoidance systems that the team hopes will help persuade the FAA to ease restrictions on the use of UAVs in the national airspace. The flight tests will use Scaled Composites' Proteus as a UAV stand-in, along with a variety of other manned aircraft flying simulated collision courses. The flights will take place March 13 and 14 in Las Cruces, N.M.
The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has awarded Boeing Phantom Works of Seal Beach, Calif. $100 million to demonstrate autonomous on-orbit satellite servicing, as part of the agency's Orbital Express program. Orbital Express is an Advanced Technology Demonstration (ATD) program aimed at developing architectures and technologies for a routine, cost-effective, autonomous capability for the resupply, upgrading, refueling and reconfiguration of on-orbit spacecraft in the post-2010 timeframe.
Declining research and development investments and an overtaxed air traffic management (ATM) system jeopardize America's future position in the growing world commercial aviation market, according to a panel of experts testifying before the House space and aeronautics subcommittee. Aerospace R&D spending across government and industry has been cut in half since 1985, according to Rich Golaszewski, executive vice president of GRA Inc.
