Aircraft & Propulsion

The company, called Bell Textron Ukraine, will be the hub of the manufacturer’s future activities in the country.

The Boeing 747 donated by the government of Qatar to serve as a future Air Force One for President Trump has begun flight testing, the U.S. Air Force confirms.

The U.S. Navy is gearing up for the first procurement of dual-band decoys for Boeing F/A-18E/Fs to boost the fighter’s self-protection capability.

The U.S. Air Force kicked off testing for the Anduril YFQ-44A prototypes assigned to the Experimental Operations Unit to help learn tactics and procedures for a new class of Collaborative Combat Aircraft now in development.

Joby Aviation has begun transition testing with the S4-T hybrid-electric uncrewed aircraft derivative of its S4 piloted tiltprop eVTOL.

The U.S. Army is looking at ways to do its own aerial refueling and get more training for its special operations helicopter crews, as it works to bring on modified MV-75 Cheyenne IIs for them.

Our roundup of the main aerospace and defense stories making the news this week.

Bell on April 15 rolled out a new model of its MV-75 Cheyenne II tiltrotor the same day the aircraft got its name, showing the design has evolved and is largely set as manufacturing begins.

The UK’s Military Flying Training System wants to further grow its Beechcraft T-6 Texan II fleet because of shortfalls in availability, ministers have revealed.

Bosnia and Herzegovina is proceeding with the acquisition of Leonardo AW119 single-engine helicopters for the country’s military.

The French Defense Ministry plans to introduce a counter-drone capability using laser-guided rockets on the Dassault Rafale by the summer.

Australia has outlined new aerospace capability priorities in its updated National Defense Strategy, including air-launched hypersonic weapons.

The production model of the Korea Aerospace Industries KF-21 Boramae successfully completed its maiden flight on April 15.

Rep. Mary Gay Scanlon (D-Pa.) revealed the Army’s fiscal 2027 budget excludes funding for the program.

Transcendent Aerospace is reviving its very light jet as a cost-effective, optionally piloted drone interceptor, targeting interest from the Middle East and India.

GE Aerospace has expedited T901 engine development for the U.S. Army and reduced costs despite program uncertainty.

The Pentagon's budget largely excludes Army aviation, raising concerns amidst broader defense spending increases.

The U.S. Air Force is now looking at options for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance uncrewed aircraft in the “attritable” cost category.

The UK says the package will be critical to Ukraine’s counterstrike and defenses against Russian attacks, as well as bolstering the UK’s UAS capabilities.

The MV-75 plan is a “success-oriented schedule,” with as much flexibility taken out as possible to meet the demands of top Army leaders, officials say.

A Finnish startup developing autonomous airships has secured funding from NATO’s Innovation Fund.

Norway has donated to Ukraine six of its now-retired Lockheed Martin F-16s, which are undergoing refurbishment, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre says.

Israeli electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing startup AIR has flown its first production heavy lift uncrewed cargo aircraft.

Airbus recently conducted a test flight of the autonomous H145 it is developing for the U.S. Marine Corps that for the first time integrated autonomy and edge computing from partner companies.

Sikorsky says it is now offering production-ready kits for its Black Hawks should the helicopter's customers decide to arm their choppers from the factory.