Aerospace Daily & Defense Report

UK orders Skyhammer interceptors from Cambridge Aerospace to counter drones and low-speed threats, with deliveries starting in May.

Lockheed Martin received an undefinitized contract for $4.7 billion to kick-start a significant acceleration of production for PAC-3 MSE interceptors.

Portuguese Air Force selects Tecnam P-Mentor to replace Chipmunks.

Zelenskyy says some of his country’s counter-drone specialists deployed to the Middle East aided in shooting down Iranian Shahed-type drones in the region.

Leonardo’s Michelangelo Dome effort to build an expansive air and missile defense network has claimed its first target: company CEO Roberto Cingolani.

The long-planned integration of the BAE Systems Sting Ray Mod 1 torpedo onto the UK’s Boeing P-8A Poseidon sub-hunting aircraft is set to finally move forward.

News in brief.

ISS NATIONAL LAB launches 2026 Orbital Edge... FRENCH NAVY orders more Camcopters... New board chairman for KUVA SPACE...

Artemis II nears splashdown after a record-setting Moon mission as NASA tests reentry systems and the crew prepares for recovery in the Pacific.

Aevex expands with 4,800 UAS orders under the Deep Strike program, fueling growth as Phoenix Ghost deliveries continue in EUCOM area.

USAF ferries MQ-9s across the Atlantic bypassing dismantling to save time, revealing stretched airlift capacity and operational urgency.

Bahraini F-16 Block 70 achieves first air-to-air kill, intercepting Iranian drones amid regional tensions and missile attacks.

France boosts defense spending to strengthen air defense, munitions, drones and space capabilities amid shifting global dynamics.

Royal Air Force Boeing P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft have supported a UK-led operation to monitor three Russian submarines.

North Korea said on April 9 it had completed a three-day missile test campaign that included a variant of the Hwasong-11 Ka, an “electromagnetic weapon system,” and a short-range SAM.

Portal Space Systems has raised $50 million in Series A funding to continue developing maneuverable satellites for multiple orbits, the company says.

Propulsion startup Beehive Industries is advancing development of its Frenzy engine family after receiving a $29.7 million U.S. Air Force contract.

The U.S. Space Force has picked 14 vendors to build space domain awareness satellites over the next decade for a new constellation in geosynchronous orbit.

News in brief.

X-BOW making RATO kits for AEVEX... BOEING gets Saudi AH-6 support award... VOYAGER TECHNOLOGIES hires new national security chief...

NASA seeks ideas for rapid X-plane experiments to push the boundaries in airframe design and propulsion, aiming for flight tests within three years.

U.S. Space Force helped to make sure Artemis II's trajectory was clear using one of its newest space domain awareness systems—the Advanced Tracking and Launch Analysis System, or ATLAS.

Artemis II astronauts test spacesuits and manual piloting as Orion prepares for splashdown, advancing human deep-space travel capabilities.

Babcock extends UK military flight training contract to 2030 while Project Telum prepares to launch a new light training platform tender this October.

Kongsberg teams with SpinLaunch to develop LEO satellite systems, offering faster deployment and sovereign control for allied governments.