Aviation Week & Space Technology

Japan's defense ministry says it will “acquire high-autonomy technology to realize an unmanned wingman for the F-3 in 15 to 20 years.”

Bell has unveiled the smaller V-247 Vigilant tiltrotor, aimed at an emerging U.S. Marine Corps requirement for a ship-based expeditionary, endurance unmanned aircraft system.

A jet trainer free from International Traffic in Arms Regulations could grab a significant chunk of that market.

What goes up must come down, but in the UAV market, looks can be deceiving.

New Aero Vodochody CEO Giuseppe Giordo charts path to aircraft production.

As NASA widens its search for ultra-efficient X-plane demonstrators, little-known design house Dzyne Technologies unveils its proposal for a blended wing-body business jet and small airliner.

In this week’s roundup, a South Korean company agrees to market Israeli-made loitering munitions in the Pacific nation; the Argentinian air force buys a handful of training aircraft; BAE Systems advances microchip technology; and Orbital ATK shows off an extended-range version of the Advanced Anti-Radiation Guided Missile.

New head of Germany’s DLR space agency and her colleagues across Europe lobby for money to fund future projects.

Reaction Engines is firming up plans to build a fighter engine-size ground demonstrator of its reusable hypersonic propulsion system.

The recent accident that destroyed a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket offers competing launch service providers an opportunity to tout their relative strengths.

United Launch Alliance is taking the first steps along an alternate path involving recovery of only the first-stage engines.

Despite its location in the busiest section of airspace in East Asia, Taiwan’s CAA has had no direct access to ICAO for the past 40 years and has only indirectly gained information.

With little more than a year until the FAA’s authorization runs out, debates over whether air traffic control should be handed to the private sector are raging.

Risk of injury from drones falling on people’s heads appears to be less than expected, but a small UAS hitting an aircraft will not be the same as a birdstrike, initial research indicates.

U.S. Air Force Secretary Deborah James says the new bomber will be called the Raider, in honor of the Doolittle Raiders that fought Japan during World War II.

Israel’s ducted-rotor cargo UAS; distributed flaps improve efficiency; submarine-launched drone tested; Prodrone’s grasping, clinging UAS; DARPA’s counter-UAS Dragnet.

From full speed ahead to slamming on the brakes: The Civil Aviation Administration of China (CAAC) has formally tightened rules on setting up airlines, around five months after it suspended authorizations, unannounced.

Lower cost is key for Europe’s future launchers.

Bell Helicopter plans to offer tiltrotors for almost every anticipated U.S. military requirement as its V-280 Valor prototype comes together in Amarillo, Texas.

Singapore Airlines is not extending the lease for its first Airbus A380, another blow for the manufacturer and the struggling program.

From meager beginnings, this small Miami-based avionics is fast becoming a global powerhouse to supply the backbone for aircraft connectivity.

While Iridium has been able to raise the $3 billion needed to build and orbit the new system, which includes spares for backup, getting back to space has been a challenge.

In this week’s Washington Outlook, the U.S. will provide $38 billion in military to Israel over the next 10 years; business groups want to restore Ex-Im bank’s ability to approve major deals; and the Air Force needs more time to upgrade its air traffic avionics systems.

Eric Dautriat has retired as executive director of Clean Sky after seven years leading Europe’s major public-private partnership for civil aeronautics research.

Boeing is taking no chances on the U.S. Air Force’s T-X trainer competition, which may save its St. Louis factory when F-15 and F/A-18 production ends.