Aerospace & Defense Roundup: September 27

First Portuguese KC-390 Powered Up

The first Embraer KC-390 Millennium airlifter destined for the Portuguese Air Force has been powered on for the first time. Credit: Portuguese Air Force

Blue Origin Sets Next Crewed Flight For Oct. 12

Blue Origin plans to fly its second group of passengers to suborbital space on Oct. 12. Passengers will include Chris Boshuizen, a former NASA engineer who co-founded Planet Labs in 2011 following a NASA project to send an iPhone into orbit. Planet builds and operates constellations of Earth-imaging cubesats and smallsats. It currently has more than 200 spacecraft in orbit. Credit: Blue Origin

The Weekly Debrief: Production Smoothing Plan Redefines F-35 Production Ceiling

Lockheed Martin needed nearly 15 years to deliver the first 700 operational F-35s, including the 700th example set to be handed over by the end of September. Credit: Lockheed Martin

Strategy Calls For UK To Be ‘Front Rank’ Space Nation

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has set out a long-term strategy for the UK to become a leading nation in space. In the long-awaited National Space Strategy, published Sept. 27, Johnson says the UK has “long failed to properly embrace the opportunities that the space industry offers” and too often “contributed to the work of others rather than taking the lead ourselves.” Credit: Foreign and Commonwealth Office.

Roll-Royce To Sell ITP Aero To Spanish Consortium

Rolls-Royce is to dispose of Spanish aero-engine company ITP Aero to a Bain Capital Private Equity-led consortium for €1.7 billion ($2 billion). Credit: Cristina Arias/Cover/Getty Images

Astraius Plans C-17-Based Satellite Launch From Scotland

Plans for a horizontal-launch spaceport at Scotland’s Prestwick Airport have been given new momentum after the signing of an agreement with UK startup Astraius. Credit: Getty Images/rancho_runner

Seraphim Space, AEI HorizonX Boost Isotropic Systems With $37M

Isotropic Systems, a British flat-panel satellite antenna systems maker backed by Boeing and venture capitalists, says it has landed $37 million in fresh funding, enough to fully fund development of its multibeam ground antenna through expected product launch in 2022. Credit: Isotropic Systems

Landsat 9 Launches To Advance Earth Observation

Landsat 9, the latest satellite in a long-running Earth observation collaboration between NASA and the U.S. Department of Interior’s U.S. Geological Survey, was successfully launched on Sept. 27 from a foggy Vandenberg Space Force Station, California. Credit: NASA

Space Force Adds Rocket Lab For NSSL Tech Demos

The U.S. Space Force is investing $24.35 million in Rocket Lab’s new medium-lift Neutron booster, with emphasis on the rocket’s upper stage for possible use in the National Security Space Launch (NSSL) program. Credit: Rocket Lab

First Operational CH-53K, F/A-18F Block III Delivered To DOD

The U.S. Defense Department has received the first operational Sikorsky CH-53K and F/A-18F Block III fighter over the past four days. Credit: CH-53K Delivery Ceremony: Lockheed Martin

Terran Orbital Plans High-Capacity Satellite Factory In Florida

Privately owned Terran Orbital plans to invest $300 million to build a factory at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) capable of producing 1,000 small satellites per year. Space Florida, a state-backed aerospace business development agency, arranged financing for the project, which was announced Sept. 27. Credit: Terran Orbital rendering.