Aerospace Daily & Defense Report

Baykar’s Kizilelma uncrewed combat air vehicle (UCAV) has completed its first weapon releases just days after beginning carriage tests.

The UK government-sponsored Future Flight Challenge officially came to an end in 2024, but on Sept. 29 the follow-on Future Flight Program announced a £4.4 million slate of awards.

L3Harris will offer airborne and electronic warfare variants of the ground-based Vampire counter-UAS now fielded in Ukraine, company executives say.

Taiwan is doubling down on efforts to build a multifaceted uncrewed systems ecosystem, the defense ministry says in a new report.

Dark, a French startup developing a vehicle for the capture of low-Earth-orbit objects, has ceased operations, the company announced Oct. 8.

Washington is determined to reduce its dependency on China for critical minerals essential for defense systems, even if it means sourcing from conflict zones.

News in brief.

STOKE SPACE closes Series D funding round... RED CAT introduces new FPV drone line... SPACE OCEAN to test 10-kW satellite nuclear reactor...

The U.S. Space Force has seen its foreign military sales cases grow exponentially in the past four years.

Ireland has taken delivery of a dedicated transport variant of the Airbus C295 airlifter, giving the country a dedicated tactical airlifter for the first time.

German lawmakers have approved spending on an additional top-up order for Eurofighter combat aircraft and a crucial upgrade path for the fighter.

Hoverfly Technologies, a manufacturer of tethered drone systems for the defense sector, has secured $20 million in a Series B funding round.

The U.S. Space Force has awarded space remote sensing company Muon Space a multi-million-dollar weather monitoring contract.

Every year a consultancy publishes a new 10-year forecast of satellite launches, and the estimate grows to previously unbelievable totals.

Russian uncrewed aircraft maker Geoscan has revealed plans to launch satellite constellations for Earth mapping and communication services.

Liftoff of New Shepard with six international crewmembers took place under a partly cloudy sky at Launch Site One near Van Horn in West Texas at 9:40 a.m. EDT.

Lockheed Martin is exploring ways to bring autonomy into the cockpit of its venerable C-130 fleet to reduce pilot workload.

U.S. startup Tidal Flight has been awarded an Air Force AFWERX contract to further develop its hybrid-electric Polaris seaplane.

A new uptick in aircraft activity indicates Boeing may be entering the final stretch of certification tests for the long-delayed pair of MAX family derivatives.

Blue Origin will build a new payload processing facility at Cape Canaveral SFS, Florida, under a U.S. Space Force contract announced Oct. 7.

Intuitive Machines, Inc. has been appraised at Capability Maturity Model Integration Institute Maturity Level 3 for software development.

The U.S. Department of Defense has invested a total of $79 million in two companies mining critical minerals in Alaska.

ArkEdge Space was contracted by JAXA to study key technologies needed for a dedicated positioning, navigation and timing (PNT) satellite constellation.

Anduril said Oct. 7 that it has tested successfully on the ground a new propellant technology that aims to extend the range of solid rocket motors for air-to-air missiles.

Apex officially opened its new “Factory One” production facility in Los Angeles on Oct. 6.