Aircraft & Propulsion

Leonardo’s AW149 super-medium military rotorcraft has scored its third export contract with an order from Poland.

Initial ground tests to integrate Stratolaunch’s Roc carrier aircraft with the company’s first captive-carry version of the Talon A hypersonic test vehicle have begun in Mojave, California, marking a major milestone toward a key drop test planned for later this year.

An Indian-made demonstrator for a future flying wing autonomous aircraft completed a first flight on July 1 at the Aeronautical Test Range in southern India.

Greece has submitted a request to purchase Lockheed Martin’s F-35 Joint Strike Fighter, Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis has confirmed.

The first Airbus A330 multirole tanker transport upgraded with an automatic refueling system will be delivered to the Republic of Singapore Air Force by year’s end, becoming the first air arm to possess such technology.

NASA has launched its hunt for a large-scale experimental aircraft to demonstrate the airframe configuration and technologies for a sustainable single-aisle-class airliner that could enter service by the mid-2030s.

Efforts will also support early iterations of UK’s Tempest.

USAF’s latest tanker plan; KF-21 on verge of first flight; U.S. Army’s TITAN contenders; and deconflicting ISR satellite ownership.

A senior Biden administration official has endorsed Turkey’s plans to modernize its large fleet of Lockheed Martin F-16s.

A closer relationship with Japan could mean the UK-led Tempest FCAS becomes an affordable program for the partner nations.

The RAF’s Rapid Capabilities Office has been developed to learn and move innovative capability enhancements forward speedily.

The U.S. Air Force wants to modify its Boeing KC-135s and KC-46s in a new effort that the service says is independent of the KC-Y “bridge tanker” program it started last year, but now says is looking less likely to become a competition.

Korea Aerospace Industries has completed a range of ground tests for its KF-21 Boramae fighter aircraft, paving the way for its first flight in July.

NGAD development may be risky and costly, but if the F-111 is any guide, it will be a successful enhancement to the U.S. arsenal.

The U.S. Army on June 27 awarded Sikorsky a $2.28 billion contract for 120 H-60M Black Hawks, the 10th and final multiyear contract for the helicopters.

The U.S. Defense Department has proposed launching a large-scale prototyping effort for a blended wing body aircraft that will be evaluated as a future tanker, airlifter and bomber.

The UK Royal Air Force’s Rapid Capability Office has decided not to proceed with the build and flight trials of its £30 million ($37 million) Mosquito Lightweight Affordable Novel Combat Aircraft demonstrator.

Europe’s Eurofighter fleet grows; Will the Pentagon’s budget jump $37 billion? Aurora’s Army contract; and a new space acquisition chief.

Cyprus has joined the growing list of customers for the military version of Airbus’ H145 twin-engine light helicopters.

German defense officials have reiterated that the country’s purchase of Boeing’s P-8 Poseidon maritime patroller is an interim effort, with the country still aiming to participate in the Franco-German Maritime Airborne Warfare System program.

A secret contract award to Israel Aerospace industries on June 13 starts a three-year program to field “Standoff In” capabilities.

Although many large-number fighter competitions have already been decided, some countries are still on the hunt for new aircraft.

Airbus Helicopters has established an industry team to offer the company’s H145M twin-engine light rotorcraft to meet a German requirement for a Light Utility Helicopter.

The U.S. Army has tapped Aurora Flight Sciences to serve as an integrator for at least six Air Launched Effects systems onto Boeing AH-64 helicopters and General Atomics Aeronautical Systems MQ-1C UAS.

The four-nation Eurofighter program has secured a further 20 orders for the combat aircraft after Spain signed its Halcon contract.