Kitty Hawk has completed its first operational exercise with the U.S. Air Force’s AFWerx innovation unit assessing the ability of the company’s Heaviside electric vertical-takeoff aircraft to perform medical evacuation, personnel recovery and logistics.
The U.S. Air Force has a preferred bomber fleet strategy that leaves room for up to 149 Northrop Grumman B-21s, a nominal 50% increase over the previously stated procurement objective of more than 100.
Airbus Helicopters is to acquire a key supplier of dynamic components in a move that appears to mirror a strategy adopted by the company’s commercial airliner business.
The event marks another key step in the technological evolution of autonomous aerial refueling and helps smooth the MQ-25’s path into operational service in fiscal 2025.
An early funding stream to support a Boeing C-32A replacement for the U.S. Air Force could be shut down, with the remaining balance of funds transferred to another program supporting development of commercial supersonic transports.
The U.S. Air Force is seeking $4.2 billion to pay for unfunded requirements in the fiscal 2022 budget request, including aircraft procurement dollars for 12 F-15EX jets, according to a document obtained by Aerospace DAILY.
The Brazilian Air Force says it may reduce the number of KC-390 airlifters it plans to purchase because of the affect of the coronavirus pandemic on the country’s defense budget.
The 2.8-metric-ton-class aircraft would be a clean-sheet design aimed at meeting the UK Ministry of Defense’s rotary-wing unmanned air system (RWUAS) requirements.