Aerospace Daily & Defense Report

By Tony Osborne
The UK’s defense equipment plans continue to be unaffordable, auditors have warned, with estimates suggesting a shortfall of up to more than £17 billion ($23.1 billion) over the next 10 years.
Budget, Policy & Operations

By Tony Osborne
Rolls-Royce will study the potential of nuclear power for future space exploration under a new contract with the UK Space Agency.
Space

By Lindsay Bjerregaard
General Motors’ urban air mobility aspirations have been confirmed following CEO Mary Barra’s keynote on Jan. 12 at CES 2021.
Advanced Air Mobility

By Tony Osborne
Leonardo’s AW139 twin-engine medium helicopter has been ordered by Colombia’s air force for VVIP duties.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Mark Carreau
After a one-day weather delay, SpaceX’s upgraded Dragon resupply capsule departed the International Space Station early Jan. 12 for a first-ever commercial atmospheric re-entry and parachute descent off the Florida coast with a 4,400-lb. scientific and equipment return payload.
Commercial Space

By Tony Osborne
France has lifted the lid on the development of a hybrid inertial navigation system that can take star readings in daylight.
Sensors & Electronic Warfare

By Graham Warwick
Archer said the agreement supports its vision of being a leader in the first wave of urban air mobility providers with the goal of beginning passenger services by 2024.
Advanced Air Mobility

Brief news items of interest to aerospace & defense professionals.
Defense

By Jen DiMascio
MHI is forming an F-X development team at its Aichi plant, several unnamed Japanese government sources tell the Kyodo newswire.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Steve Trimble
The first program under JCO’s new architecture is now about to be launched by the Air Force.
Missile Defense & Weapons

By Irene Klotz
The first set of six new solar arrays for the International Space Station is being prepared for launch in May, setting the stage for a 20-30% jump in power generation for commercial and research activities aboard the orbital outpost.
Space

By Mark Carreau
Adverse weather Jan. 11 prompted SpaceX to delay the first-ever attempt by a NASA-contracted commercial International Space Station resupply mission to return to Earth for an Atlantic Ocean splashdown off Florida’s east coast with a 5,200-lb. cargo that includes science experiments.
Commercial Space

By Steve Trimble
The U.S. Army’s Combat Capabilities Development Command Armaments Center is funding GA-EMS to develop another set of hypersonic projectiles fired from a railgun, along with the necessary guidance and control electronics.
Missile Defense & Weapons

By Mark Carreau
NASA’s Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization and Ices Explorer, or SPHEREx, space telescope has completed its Phase C preliminary design review, clearing the way for detailed design work as well as hardware and software development.
Space

By Kim Minseok
North Korea is planning an active year of military technology research, including plans to build a prototype hypersonic glide vehicle, begin production of a military reconnaissance satellite and develop a new UAV, according to North Korean state media.
Missile Defense & Weapons

By Michael Bruno
FAA and NASA have pledged to coordinate their standards and to work together on commercial space launch and re-entry, point-to-point suborbital transportation, spaceports, airspace design and a host of other issues now that the era of commercially licensed human spaceflight has begun.
Program Management

By Steve Trimble
Deliveries to the Raytheon division should begin this year under the order, according to a CPI news release.
Missile Defense & Weapons

By Guy Norris
Virgin Orbit will make a second attempt to reach orbit with the LauncherOne small satellite rocket on Jan. 13, with backup launch windows available later in the month in the event of a delay.
Commercial Space

By Sean Broderick
The settlement between Boeing and the U.S. Justice Department (DOJ) is not likely to generate many positive reactions from outside the two organizations.
Safety, Ops & Regulation

By Steve Trimble
As calls grow for President Donald Trump to resign or be removed, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi discussed with Gen. Mark Milley how to prevent Trump from gaining access to the authentication codes required for launching nuclear weapons.
Budget, Policy & Operations

By Tony Osborne
The first of 55 modernized Dassault Mirage 2000Ds has been delivered to the French Air Force.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Irene Klotz
Following its record-setting 26 launches in 2020, SpaceX kicked off the new year with delivery of the Turksat 5A broadband satellite into orbit on Jan. 7.
Space

By Thierry Dubois
Arianespace is willing to operate microlaunchers if the opportunity arises, either as a way to meet demand or as proof of concepts for heavier launchers, CEO Stephane Israel said.
Commercial Space

By Mark Carreau
A new bipartisan authorization bill is critical to NASA’s path forward under the Joe Biden administration, according to former U.S. Rep. Kendra Horn, the Oklahoma Democrat who chaired the U.S. House space and aeronautics subcommittee until her re-election defeat and the swearing in of a new Congress earlier this week.
Space

By Irene Klotz
NASA Associate Administrator Stephen Jurczyk, the agency’s highest-ranking civil servant, will take on the role of acting administrator following the departure of NASA chief Jim Bridenstine on Jan. 20.
Space