Aerospace Daily & Defense Report

Airbus and British academia are studying the potential of very large satellite communication antennas to be placed in orbit.

Aerospace and defense supplier Heico is buying its way into the silicone manufacturing industry.

Progress to finalize a new rebaselined contract between the development partners for the A400M airlifter looks likely to be delayed into 2019.

Dawn, NASA’s 11-year mission to the asteroid belt, may finally have reached its sunset.

General Atomics Aeronautics Systems is operating two company-owned MQ-9 Reaper unmanned aircraft systems in support of the U.S. Marine Corps in Afghanistan.

The UK’s University of Nottingham is to develop a facility for ground testing of high-speed, high-power electric propulsion systems for aircraft.

Israel’s Elbit Systems is to provide surveillance services to European nations via the European Maritime Safety Agency using its Hermes 900 UAS.

Roscosmos is preparing to resume crew launches to the ISS on Dec. 3 following the conclusion of a probe into last month’s Soyuz MS-10 launch abort.

The U.S. Air Force urgently needs to acquire multiple emitters that emulate a range of advanced surface-to-air missile (SAM) threats.

LATVIA has received STINGER missiles from DENMARK based on a bilateral agreement between the two nations that was signed last year.

The U.S. Navy has awarded JLL-Midnight Sun IFMS, LLC, Kotzebue, Alaska, a $30,408,548 indefinite-delivery/indefinite-quantity contract.

Maxar Technologies will decide over the next two months what to do with its geostationary communications satellite manufacturing business.

Aerojet Rocketdyne continued its quiet but steady financial improvement in the third quarter of 2018.

Five potential suppliers have about eight weeks to respond to a draft copy of an RFP for Canada’s $15-19 billion Future Fighter Capability contract.

The last U.S. Marine Corps squadron operating the Northrop Grumman EA-6B Prowler will return from its final deployment in early November, the service says.

UTC Aerospace Systems has developed the world’s highest resolution indium gallium arsenide near infrared/shortwave infrared camera for the U.S. Navy.

After signing accords to jointly develop a future fighter, French and German officials have reportedly had a falling-out over potential aircraft exports.

British smallsat launcher firm Skyrora is planning to use additive manufactured engines for its Skyrora XL smallsat launcher.

India’s state-run space agency has successfully conducted a test of Vikram, the lander for the country’s second lunar mission planned for early next year.

Senior British officials say there is “great interest” from potential international partners in the UK’s vision to develop a sixth-generation fighter.

The SkyPerfect JSAT Corp. has awarded Kratos Defense & Security Solutions a contract to deliver Ka-band gateways for JCSAT’s 18-satellite constellation.

The U.S. Navy has awarded Huntington Ingalls Industries San Diego Shipyard Inc., San Diego, a $44,779,160 firm-fixed-price contract.

U.S. Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. David Goldfein said Oct. 26 that a new strategy to shift the task of screening raw intelligence data from humans to machines will face internal opposition.

Contitech USA Inc., Fairlawn, Ohio, has been awarded a maximum $20,151,800 firm-fixed-price contract for M109 vehicle tracks.

Embattled General Electric's aerospace engine-making division remains a bright spot.