In Pictures: Top Aerospace & Defense Stories, Nov. 01 2022
November 02, 2022
U.S. AFRL Explores Swappable Modular Propulsion For Small Satellites
Credit: NASA. The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory is exploring modular propulsion for small satellites, with the aim of demonstrating the concept on orbit within a few years.
Air Forces In Focus: U.S. Navy
Even excluding the air power component of the U.S. Marine Corps, the U.S. Navy operates more aircraft than the vast majority of global air forces.
UPS Plans Test Of Beta eVTOL’s Delivery Potential
Credit: Beta Technologies. UPS Flight Forward, the package carrier’s uncrewed aircraft division, is looking ahead to a vertical takeoff and landing demonstration flight direct to a UPS center using Beta Technologies’ Alia-250.
Kendall: USAF Ready To Commit To Collaborative Combat Aircraft
Credit: USAF. The U.S. Air Force is ready to make a commitment to fielding a Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA)—a loyal wingman-type drone to fly alongside future fighters—after reviews found the service could field a “meaningful capability” over the next several years, the service’s top official says.
NASA Addressing ISS Transition Challenge
Credit: NASA. As NASA presses ahead to transition International Space Station (ISS) operations to multiple commercial free-flying platforms, the agency is also working to retain its international and U.S. National Laboratory partners, according to two days of testimony provided to the NASA Advisory Council’s Human Exploration and Operations Committee.
Spire Wins DARPA Design Contract For VLEO Sat To Measure Ionosphere
Credit: DARPA. Spire Global has won a contract from DARPA to design a satellite that would carry sensors to very low Earth orbit to study the ionosphere.
Falcon Heavy Back For SpaceX’s First Direct-To-GEO Mission
Credit: SpaceX. A triple-core Falcon Heavy, currently the most powerful rocket operating today, lifted off from a fog-shrouded Kennedy Space Center on Nov. 1 on a challenging and classified mission for the U.S. Space Force.
Sweden To Decide On Future Combat Aircraft By 2030
Credit: Saab. Sweden should make decisions on the development of future combat aircraft no later than 2030, proposals for development of the country’s armed forces have suggested.
Indonesia’s A400M Contract Becomes Effective In November
Credit: Airbus. JAKARTA, Indonesia–Airbus is expecting a contract for two Indonesian A400Ms to go into full effect in November and has already secured production slots for the aircraft, a company official says.
Skeldar UAV Tests European Detect-And-Avoid System
Credit: UMS Skeldar. Flights of UMS Skeldar’s V-200 rotary-wing uncrewed aircraft have demonstrated a detect-and-avoid (DAA) system capable of automatically maneuvering a UAV around intruder aircraft.
Australia Goes Low Risk With C-130J Recapitalization
Credit: Australia defense department. Australia’s department of defense is sticking with the Lockheed Martin C-130J to replace and expand the Royal Australian Air Force’s (RAAF) fleet of 12 C-130Js under its medium air mobility replacement program.
Volocopter Now Funded Through eVTOL Certification
Credit: Volocopter. German urban air mobility (UAM) startup Volocopter has secured an additional $182 million in funding, with Saudi Arabian smart city Neom and Hong Kong-based GLy Capital Management as new investors.
Sweden Proposing Early Retirement Of NH90 Fleet
Credit: NHIndustries. Sweden is proposing to follow Australia and Norway and decommission its NH90 fleet earlier than planned after struggling with availability issues.
NASA’s Recovered Capstone Mission Nears Lunar Orbit
Capstone
UK Royal Air Force Revives LANCA Development Effort
Credit: RAF. The UK Royal Air Force (RAF) is emphasizing low-cost capability as it begins to re-explore its Lightweight Affordable Novel Combat Aircraft (LANCA) work.
Italy To Build 24 F-35s For Switzerland At Cameri
Credit: PJF Military Collection/Alamy Stock Photo. Switzerland will have 24 of its 36 F-35A Joint Strike Fighters built in Italy, the Swiss Defense Ministry has confirmed.
Orbex To Build Sutherland Space Hub Launch Site
Credit: Orbex. British satellite launcher start-up Orbex is to take the lead in the development and construction of the Sutherland Space Hub in Scotland.
Poland Takes Delivery Of Bayraktar TB2 Drones
Credit: Polish Defense Ministry. Poland has taken delivery of its first batch of Baykar Bayraktar TB2 armed uncrewed aircraft systems, becoming the first NATO export customer for the Turkish-developed system.
Satellite Imagery Exposes China’s Space-Jammer Buildup
Credit: U.S. Air Force. A U.S.-based analyst has identified a severalfold increase since 2020 in the Chinese military’s ground-based jammers potentially being aimed at the most distant and powerful communications satellites. It is a development that poses an expanded threat to a critical enabler of modern military operations.
U.S. AFRL Explores Swappable Modular Propulsion For Small Satellites
Credit: NASA. The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory is exploring modular propulsion for small satellites, with the aim of demonstrating the concept on orbit within a few years.
Air Forces In Focus: U.S. Navy
Even excluding the air power component of the U.S. Marine Corps, the U.S. Navy operates more aircraft than the vast majority of global air forces.
UPS Plans Test Of Beta eVTOL’s Delivery Potential
Credit: Beta Technologies. UPS Flight Forward, the package carrier’s uncrewed aircraft division, is looking ahead to a vertical takeoff and landing demonstration flight direct to a UPS center using Beta Technologies’ Alia-250.
Kendall: USAF Ready To Commit To Collaborative Combat Aircraft
Credit: USAF. The U.S. Air Force is ready to make a commitment to fielding a Collaborative Combat Aircraft (CCA)—a loyal wingman-type drone to fly alongside future fighters—after reviews found the service could field a “meaningful capability” over the next several years, the service’s top official says.
NASA Addressing ISS Transition Challenge
Credit: NASA. As NASA presses ahead to transition International Space Station (ISS) operations to multiple commercial free-flying platforms, the agency is also working to retain its international and U.S. National Laboratory partners, according to two days of testimony provided to the NASA Advisory Council’s Human Exploration and Operations Committee.
Spire Wins DARPA Design Contract For VLEO Sat To Measure Ionosphere
Credit: DARPA. Spire Global has won a contract from DARPA to design a satellite that would carry sensors to very low Earth orbit to study the ionosphere.
Falcon Heavy Back For SpaceX’s First Direct-To-GEO Mission
Credit: SpaceX. A triple-core Falcon Heavy, currently the most powerful rocket operating today, lifted off from a fog-shrouded Kennedy Space Center on Nov. 1 on a challenging and classified mission for the U.S. Space Force.
Sweden To Decide On Future Combat Aircraft By 2030
Credit: Saab. Sweden should make decisions on the development of future combat aircraft no later than 2030, proposals for development of the country’s armed forces have suggested.
Indonesia’s A400M Contract Becomes Effective In November
Credit: Airbus. JAKARTA, Indonesia–Airbus is expecting a contract for two Indonesian A400Ms to go into full effect in November and has already secured production slots for the aircraft, a company official says.
Skeldar UAV Tests European Detect-And-Avoid System
Credit: UMS Skeldar. Flights of UMS Skeldar’s V-200 rotary-wing uncrewed aircraft have demonstrated a detect-and-avoid (DAA) system capable of automatically maneuvering a UAV around intruder aircraft.
Australia Goes Low Risk With C-130J Recapitalization
Credit: Australia defense department. Australia’s department of defense is sticking with the Lockheed Martin C-130J to replace and expand the Royal Australian Air Force’s (RAAF) fleet of 12 C-130Js under its medium air mobility replacement program.
Volocopter Now Funded Through eVTOL Certification
Credit: Volocopter. German urban air mobility (UAM) startup Volocopter has secured an additional $182 million in funding, with Saudi Arabian smart city Neom and Hong Kong-based GLy Capital Management as new investors.
Sweden Proposing Early Retirement Of NH90 Fleet
Credit: NHIndustries. Sweden is proposing to follow Australia and Norway and decommission its NH90 fleet earlier than planned after struggling with availability issues.
NASA’s Recovered Capstone Mission Nears Lunar Orbit
Capstone
UK Royal Air Force Revives LANCA Development Effort
Credit: RAF. The UK Royal Air Force (RAF) is emphasizing low-cost capability as it begins to re-explore its Lightweight Affordable Novel Combat Aircraft (LANCA) work.
Italy To Build 24 F-35s For Switzerland At Cameri
Credit: PJF Military Collection/Alamy Stock Photo. Switzerland will have 24 of its 36 F-35A Joint Strike Fighters built in Italy, the Swiss Defense Ministry has confirmed.
Orbex To Build Sutherland Space Hub Launch Site
Credit: Orbex. British satellite launcher start-up Orbex is to take the lead in the development and construction of the Sutherland Space Hub in Scotland.
Poland Takes Delivery Of Bayraktar TB2 Drones
Credit: Polish Defense Ministry. Poland has taken delivery of its first batch of Baykar Bayraktar TB2 armed uncrewed aircraft systems, becoming the first NATO export customer for the Turkish-developed system.
Satellite Imagery Exposes China’s Space-Jammer Buildup
Credit: U.S. Air Force. A U.S.-based analyst has identified a severalfold increase since 2020 in the Chinese military’s ground-based jammers potentially being aimed at the most distant and powerful communications satellites. It is a development that poses an expanded threat to a critical enabler of modern military operations.
U.S. AFRL Explores Swappable Modular Propulsion For Small Satellites
Credit: NASA. The U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory is exploring modular propulsion for small satellites, with the aim of demonstrating the concept on orbit within a few years.
NASA’s recovered capstone mission nears lunar orbit and Sweden proposing early retirement of NH90 fleet. Take a look at these and more in our daily roundup of aerospace & defense news.
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