Defense

Orbital ATK’s eighth NASA-contracted resupply mission to the ISS initiated the ambitious departure phase of a multifaceted, month-long orbital journey on Dec. 5.

Recent predictions of a still-growing $1 trillion global space economy by 2030 may not be out of step, one longtime expert in the field says.

Triumph Group said Dec. 4 it will combine its Aerospace Structures and Precision Components groups into one business unit come Jan. 1, 2018.

The U.S. Air Force planned to resume T-6 Texan II trainer flying operations at Vance AFB, Oklahoma, on Dec. 5 following hypoxia-like events.

Northrop Grumman Mission Systems has been using an experimental airliner to test a low-band radio frequency jamming pod for the U.S. Navy’s EA-18G Growler.

DOD spending on artificial intelligence, so-called Big Data and cloud-based services totaled $7.4 billion in fiscal 2017, a combined 32.4% jump over 2012.

The ICAO sent a state letter to its member countries to protect manned-aircraft operations from drones.

Qinetiq Target Services has completed a demonstration for the Royal Canadian Navy that involved emulating the risk posed to warships by multirotor drones.

Russia Post plans a drone delivery trial in 2018 using a heavy-lift unmanned aircraft developed by Kazan-based ARDN Technologies.

Israel Aerospace Industries is changing its strategy in the U.S. market to better deal with changing conditions.

The aerospace industry hopes to benefit from a four-year, $331.3 million government initiative to make the UK a leader in battery technology.

If the U.S. Air Force proceeds with the J-Stars program, it will be with Northrop Grumman’s radar.

The U.S. Defense Department could conduct “kinetic” intercepts of North Korean or Iranian missiles with the F-35.

Some analysts suspect U.S. defense budgets may be set up for a squeeze play by the early 2020s, while business aviation could feel an effect right away--good or bad.

The next-generation Vulcan Centaur rocket that ULA is developing to succeed its Atlas and Delta platforms will be outfitted with avionics by L3 Technologies.

More-electric systems, engine-airframe integration and flight-deck apps are among new research projects to be backed by almost $73 million in UK government funding.

Research into a new class of materials that promise to “revolutionize aircraft construction” is being funded by the U.S. Air Force Office of Scientific Research.

Airbus has taken a stake in uAvionix, a startup developing miniaturized ADS-B transceivers for detect-and-avoid in UAVs.

The U.S. Marine Corps plans to test an unmanned, disposable glider that can be launched from a transport aircraft to deliver supplies to ground forces.

Slovenia’s Pipistrel Aircraft has created a Chinese company to produce the Alpha Electro and Panthera electric-powered light aircraft.

The possible foreign military sale of ordnance, equipment and services worth $415 million for a Singaporean training detachment of Boeing F-15s in Idaho has been OK'd.

CAPE CANAVERAL—On Tuesday, after a hiatus of 37 years, the quartet of thrusters at the rear of NASA’s Voyager 1 spacecraft successfully fired to test if they could keep the probe oriented with 10-millisecond pulses.

The European Space Agency will invest in a new Vega small satellite launcher and a miniature reusable robotic spaceplane.

Bahrain has formally agreed to purchase 16 new-build Block 70 F-16s.

The U.S. Air Force is moving forward with a plan to give the F-35A a moving target capability in 2018.