Aerospace & Defense Roundup: Feb. 04

DOD, FAA To Test Trusted Aircraft Autonomy Software

A software framework developed by NASA to ensure autonomous aircraft follow programmed rules of behavior has been delivered to several other agencies for potential application to a range of aircraft, military and civil. Credit: NASA

EU Project Will Test UAM For Emergency Medical Services

A European Union-funded project is researching the use of urban air mobility (UAM) for emergency medical services, with test flights in Finland, Germany and Norway planned for 2023. The three-year AiRMOUR project is coordinated by Finland’s VTT Technical Research Center, leading a consortium of 13 partners including electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing (eVTOL) vehicle developer EHang. Credit: EHang

Firefly Wins NASA Lunar Payload Order

Firefly Aerospace has won a $93.3 million NASA task order to provide 10 science and technology payloads in 2023 to help the space agency prepare for human missions to the Moon. This is the sixth award under NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services initiative for lunar surface delivery. Credit: Firefly Aerospace

Outer Space Treaty Faces Changing Times, Forum Participants Say

Times have changed dramatically since the inception of the 1967 Outer Space Treaty (OST) that has served to prevent military conflict in space, participants in a forum on the treaty say. The virtual forum, The Fate of the Outer Space Treaty, was hosted Feb. 4 by the Space Court Foundation, a U.S. educational nonprofit. It was formed to promote awareness of space law and to help resolve disputes. Credit: NASA

EBACE2021 Live Event Canceled, Virtual Programming Set

Organizers of the European Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (EBACE2021), scheduled for May 18-20, have canceled the live event in Geneva and will host a virtual event, the associations announced Feb. 4. Credit: EBACE Management

Northrop, Ultra Eye Advance Production For MQ-8C ASW Kit

A Northrop Grumman and Ultra team has started working on a production version of a sonobuoy dispenser for the MQ-8C Fire Scout helicopter, a Northrop official said Feb. 4. The corporate team demonstrated a prototype form of the dispenser last October to show off a potential anti-submarine warfare (ASW) role for the U.S. Navy’s long-endurance, unmanned helicopter. Credit: Northrop Grumman

European Rotorcraft Demonstrators Advance To Assembly

Two high-speed rotorcraft demonstrators planned under Europe’s Clean Sky 2 research program are reaching the assembly stage. The Racer compound helicopter, led by Airbus Helicopters, will enter final assembly early this year, while the Next Generation Civil Tiltrotor, led by Leonardo Helicopters, is expected to reach the same stage by year’s end. Credit: Leonardo

UK SkyGuardian Flight Trials Will Include Maritime Missions

Flight trials of General Atomics’ MQ-9B SkyGuardian medium-altitude, long-endurance (MALE) unmanned aircraft system planned in the UK this summer will see the aircraft configured for maritime operations, the manufacturer has confirmed. SkyGuardian will be equipped with a multimode maritime surface-search radar, an automatic identification systems receiver and a high-definition electro-optical camera for demonstrations to European allies, General Atomics said in a Feb. 3 press release. Credit: General Atomics

Orbital Sidekick Fills Out Team For SpaceX Launch Of Constellation

Orbital Sidekick, a San Francisco-based startup aiming to offer satellite-based hyperspectral imaging and data analytics for the energy sector and others, has finalized operation plans for its Global Hyperspectral Observation Satellite (GHOSt) constellation that is set to launch this year on a SpaceX Falcon 9. The constellation will comprise six 100-kg ESPA-class satellites designed and manufactured by Astro Digital. Maverick Space Systems will provide mission integration and management services for the SpaceX launches, Orbital Sidekick said Feb. 4. Credit: Orbital Sidekick

Newly Configured Kopter SH09 Begins Flight Trials

Kopter Group has completed the first flight of its SH09 single-engine light helicopter in its new and final configuration. An extensive modification program to prototype P3 has introduced a new main rotor head design, a new main gearbox with extended mast and a Garmin G3000H avionics suite. Credit: Kopter Group

NASA Looks To Map Martian Ice Deposits With Global Partners

NASA will work with the space agencies of Italy, Canada and Japan to develop a plan for a possible Mars Ice Mapper mission to detect and assess the depth and dimensions of near-surface ice deposits. The initiative aims to advance science objectives including a search for evidence of past life and to identify resources for future human exploration. Credit: NASA

India Boosts Defense Equipment Spending Despite Constraints

Hidden among some fairly stark top-level figures for India’s 2021-22 defense budget is some positive news for suppliers to the country and for the Indian military’s stalled modernization process. At first glance the news seems bleak. Overall defense spending is set to decline by 1.3% for fiscal 2021-2022, representing only the second time that the country has cut the military’s budget since the 1990s. Credit: Dassault

Israel To Demo Urban Drone Networks

Israel plans to conduct simultaneous flights by multiple drones from different manufacturers in managed urban airspace under government-supported pilot programs to improve the country’s transportation options. Credit: Simplex Interactive

SpaceX Launches First Of Dual Starlink Missions

SpaceX on Feb. 4 launched its 18th mission to deliver Starlink broadband satellites into low Earth orbit, with another batch of 60 spacecraft poised for launch on Feb. 5. The dual launch operations kicked off at 1:19 a.m. EST when a Falcon 9 lifted off from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station’s Launch Complex 40. A second rocket at Kennedy Space Center’s Launch Complex 39A is due to fly at 5:14 a.m. on Feb. 5. Credit: SpaceX

Biden Freezes U.S. Troop Withdrawals From Germany

U.S. President Joe Biden announced a broad series of actions that impact national security and foreign policy on Feb. 4, which include reviewing the military’s global force posture and freezing troop withdrawals from Germany. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will spearhead the Global Posture Review in close cooperation with Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, Biden said during his first foreign policy speech at the State Department. Credit: U.S. Government