Aviation Week & Space Technology

Directed energy an MDA priority; states filling void on UAV rules; FAA modernizes rules for amateur rockets and increased costs for a GPS system.

Minimum fleet size, including minimum aircraft ownership, is one of the regulations already on the books the Ministry of Transport will begin enforcing more strongly.

Sept. 19-22—World Routes 2015. Durban International Convention Center. Durban, South Africa. See routesonline.com/events/175/world-routes Sept. 22-23—JEC Forums 2015. Boston Convention & Exhibition Center. Boston. See jeccomposites.com/events/jec-forums-boston-2015 Sept. 22-24—AHS International Conference on Environmental Sustainability in Air Vehicle Design and Operations of Helicopters and Airplanes. Hotel Bonaventure. Montreal. See vtol.org/events/sustainability-2015

If the consequences of a collision with a UAS could be detailed, that could be a powerful disincentive to irresponsible behavior.

Layoffs at Lockheed; Global Hawk deployment; Slovakia buys Black Hawks and new pilot training facility.

New simulator system will allow for fewer live flights for fighter pilot training, saving costs and aircraft wear.

Though new bomber will replace the B-52 and B-1, today’s fleet needs incremental upgrades to stay in the fight.

The new shape of the Air Force’s bomber fleet relies on the outcome of a secretive project to lay the foundation for a new generation of U.S. stealth aircraft.

What is a company to do if it can’t get rights to a competitor’s coveted product? If you are Aerojet, just offer to buy that competitor.

An international fleet of spacecraft is providing scientists and weather forecasters with new insight into precipitation, its effects, and its causes.

The new rocket, based largely on an upgrade of the Falcon 9 v1.1, will launch four missions next year, including two for commercial customers.

Science experiments may help extend the life of satellites, evaluate environmental damage and monitor fallout from nuclear disasters.

Fantastic earnings, a large backlog, high entry barriers and fortuitous timing. What isn’t to like about this deal? I have several important concerns.

Airlines around the world are realizing they need to offer Internet access network-wide, not only on long-haul flights.

Hackers are earning top-dollar to find security gaps in computer systems, but companies are slow to patch them, and government protections are uneven.

Sustaining the ISS is an ongoing challenge that creates new problems and spurs creative solutions.

VivaLatinamerica, with two regional carriers already launched, is aiming at Central America as its next Viva brand and looking forward to further expansion.

The Malaysian carrier cuts orders as it struggles to prove the long-haul, low-cost model can be profitable.

People laughed when forecaster Adam Pilarski said that oil prices would collapse. Now he’s warning about an aircraft order bubble.

In this rapidly expanding information-technology-driven environment, the NTSB is adjusting its methods to take advantage of the details of incidents captured by the public on PDAs to enrich their investigations.

Portable laser downs UAV; tethered drones tested; Russia’s advanced concepts; photonic fuel gauging; Sony’s first unmanned aircraft; ScanEagle fights wildfires; Italy demos UAV ATC.

The company behind the Meteor air-to-air missile’s throttleable ducted ram-rocket propulsion, Germany’s Bayern-Chemie, says a feasibility study shows the technology could power a Mach 5-plus lower-tier ballistic-missile interceptor.

Real-time display of shock wave location on the ground will help future commercial supersonic pilots minimize sonic boom impact.

Budget experts begin to worry about a potential government shutdown; the FAA disputes method of finding control tower inefficiencies; and NASA tells lawmakers it is tough on Space X.

Commercial aviation is justifiably proud of its achievement in driving down fuel burn since the dawn of the jet age, but has it done all that it could?