Aerospace & Defense Roundup: Oct, 24

Taiwanese Company Aims At Launch Costs 10% Of Competitors’

A Taiwanese company plans to enter the market for light space launches with what it says will be 10% of the costs of current major operators.

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SpaceShipTwo

MHI Assembles H3 Second Stage, Ready For Captive Testing

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (MHI) has assembled the second stage of the first H3 medium-lift space launcher, preparing for captive firing tests in a few months.

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French Navy Gears Up For Maritime Patrol ATL2 Introduction

The first two upgraded Atlantique 2 (ATL2) maritime patrol aircraft were delivered this past summer to the French Navy’s Lann-Bihoue air base where they are undergoing “operational experimentation”.

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B-21 Program On Track, But Facing Schedule Pressure

The first stealth bomber has entered production inside Northrop Grumman’s Site 4 facility at Plant 42 in Palmdale, California. But the pressure on the development program is rising ahead of a scheduled first flight milestone in December 2021. 

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NASA, Boeing Set Dec. 17 For Starliner Debut Flight

Boeing aims to fly its CST-100 Starliner commercial space taxi on a long-awaited trial run to the International Space Station (ISS) on Dec. 17, setting the stage for a crewed flight test as early as March 2020.

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Germany Becomes Naval NH90 Operator

Germany looks set to have the largest NH90 helicopter fleet in the world as it gears up to equip its naval air arm with an all-NH90 force by the late 2020s.

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JAXA In Detail Design Of HTV-X Cargo Spacecraft

The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) is working on detail design of its new HTV-X cargo spacecraft, aiming at a first launch in 2022.