Aerospace Daily & Defense Report

By Lee Hudson
In the latest rendition of Pentagon musical chairs, the White House announced April 24 the intent to nominate Shon Manasco to serve as Air Force under
Budget, Policy & Operations

By Steve Trimble
The release of the second draft on April 24 by the Air Force Lifecycle Management Center moves the competition closer to a formal bidding phase scheduled to begin later this year.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Lee Hudson
The world’s largest defense contractor has issued another round of accelerated progress payments to its supply chain.
Supply Chain

By Bill Carey
The police department of Westport, Connecticut, has decided that it will not test a “pandemic drone” designed to sense symptoms of COVID-19 after the
Advanced Air Mobility

By Steve Trimble
The handover to the military came after six months of ground and flight trials performed by UAC employees at the Kazan Aviation Plant.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Steve Trimble
The Grumman C-2A has entered a planned fleet retirement process, beginning with the last flight in March.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Steve Trimble
The delivery completes a 15-year, 608-aircraft production run.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Kim Minseok, Bradley Perrett
For KAI’s KUH-1 Surion helicopter program specifically, the delivery schedule and planned production quantities remain unchanged, a spokesperson says.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Kim Minseok, Bradley Perrett
Underpayment by Indonesia toward development of the Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) KF-X has prompted urgent discussions in South Korea, media there report.
Aircraft & Propulsion

Brief news items of interest to aerospace & defense professionals.

Amergint Technologies has reached a definitive agreement to acquire Raytheon Technologies’ space-based precision optics business based in Danbury

Defense

By Lee Hudson
The U.S. Army does not anticipate fielding delays for any new major weapons systems because of the spread of the novel coronavirus even though two prime contractors, BAE Systems and Boeing, have shuttered facilities.
Budget, Policy & Operations

By Sean Broderick
Boeing has tapped Mark Jenks to lead a new Airplane Programs organization that the company expects to ensure both consistency and efficiency throughout its core commercial aircraft production efforts—one of several changes announced by the company’s leadership aimed at aligning similar businesses.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Maxim Pyadushkin
Russia’s S7 Group has shelved its Sea Launch space program, the group’s owner Vladislav Filev confirmed.
Space

By Irene Klotz
Encouraged by progress in the Commercial Crew program, NASA should nonetheless expand planning for staffing the International Space Station long-term to provide options, NASA’s safety oversight panel said on April 23.
Space Symposium

By Steve Trimble
The U.S. Air Force completed a second round of Skyborg tests in March on a new flying testbed aircraft, but further flights are on hold due to schedule disruption caused by the response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the service announced on April 22.
Sensors & Electronic Warfare

By Michael Bruno
Gurit, a Swiss-based provider of prepreg composite materials for aerospace, announced April 23 that its longtime CEO Rudolf Hadorn will step down at the end of March 2021 but could eventually become chairman of the board of directors.
Manufacturing & Supply Chain

By Tony Osborne
An order for U.S.-made Super Hornet fighters by Germany could lead to “massive, lasting harm,” to the German defense industry, Airbus has warned.
Budget, Policy & Operations

By Steve Trimble
The chief of staff of the U.S. Air Force was misinformed in his April 22 criticism of a harsh assessment by the U.S. Government Accountability Office about the acquisition strategy for the Advanced Battle Management System, a senior GAO official said on April 23.
Budget, Policy & Operations

By Tony Osborne
Britain’s Royal Navy is postponing the sailing of the HMS Queen Elizabeth carrier for a planned training deployment so that its crew can be tested for COVID-19.
Budget, Policy & Operations

By Graham Warwick
A team led by Slovenia’s Pipistrel Vertical Solutions has completed wind-tunnel tests to investigate and mitigate noise from distributed electric propulsion systems.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Lee Hudson
The U.S. Navy has been forced to delay work on two multibillion-dollar aircraft carriers to focus on ensuring that the USS John F. Kennedy can accommodate the F-35 Joint Strike Fighter when the warship is delivered.
Budget, Policy & Operations

By Graham Warwick
China’s EHang has partnered with the city of Hezhou in Guangxi province to build the first dedicated vertiport for its autonomous air vehicles.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Steve Trimble
A Northrop Grumman-supplied cockpit upgrade for the U.S. Army’s UH-60 fleet has passed a key testing milestone ahead of a planned full-rate production decision, the company announced on April 22.
Budget, Policy & Operations