Aerospace & Defense Roundup: Jun. 03

Airbus has secured the long-awaited certification for the simultaneous dispatch of paratroopers from the side doors of the A400M airlifter. The approval, announced June 2, means that air forces now will be able to use the full capacity of the aircraft to drop up to 116 paratroopers from the paratroop doors, with 58 jumping from each side.

An extended-range anti-radiation missile developed by the U.S. Navy performed a captive-carry test on June 1, paving the way for flight testing to begin, Naval Air Systems Command (NAVAIR) announced June 2.

The District of Columbia National Guard is investigating “low-flying maneuvers” conducted by helicopter pilots over the city’s downtown June 1 after President Donald Trump ordered the Guard to respond to protests.

The U.S. arm of Japanese satellite servicing startup Astroscale is expanding into geostationary orbit (GEO) by acquiring the assets of Israeli company Effective Space Solutions (ESS).

Bye Aerospace is approaching the critical design review for its eFlyer 2 two-seat electric training aircraft and has revealed plans to develop an all-electric six- to nine-seater in addition to the already announced four-seat eFlyer 4.

Airbus Helicopters has delivered its first helicopters using an e-delivery process negating the need for the customer to travel to collect the aircraft in light of the travel restrictions caused by the novel coronavirus pandemic.

A nearly year-long setback for the Tactical Boost Glide (TBG) program will cause a similar delay for the U.S. Air Force’s AGM-183A Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon (ARRW), the U.S. Government Accountability Office said in a June 3 report.

Several U.S. airlines are among 69 signatories of a letter supporting a stay, or halt, of an order granting Ligado Networks access to mobile satellite services bands for a ground-based 5G network. Alaska Airlines, American Airlines, Atlas Air Worldwide, Delta Air Lines, FedEx, Frontier Airlines, JetBlue Airways, Polar Air Cargo, Southwest Airlines, United Airlines and UPS have signed the June 3 letter to the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) endorsing a stay of its Ligado order.

Taxi testing has begun for the first prototype of Taiwan’s new advanced trainer, the Aerospace Industrial Development Corp. (AIDC) AT-5, ahead of a first flight planned for the second half of June.

The 10-km (six-mile) wide Near Earth Object that struck the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico 66 million years ago may not have only led to the extinction of the dinosaurs, but also made a long-lasting contribution to the rise of microbial life on Earth, according to research.

The U.S. Air Force has awarded contracts to 28 companies worth up to $950 million each to support the Advanced Battle Management System (ABMS) program. The awards create a pool of contractors now eligible to compete for a rolling series of task orders as the Air Force stages “on ramp” demonstrations for new ABMS technologies every four months, Preston Dunlap, the Air Force’s chief architect for ABMS, told Aerospace DAILY in an emailed statement June 3.