Defense

Japan’s proposed indigenous fighter would be larger than the Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor and is designed around the carriage of missiles the size of the MBDA Meteor.

The U.S. State Department has approved the possible sale of AH-64E Apaches to the United Arab Emirates and CH-47F Chinooks to Saudi Arabia.

U.S., Canadian and Australian military forces will gain additional satellite communications bandwidth with the Dec. 7 launch of an upgraded Wideband Global Satcom (WGS) spacecraft from Cape Canaveral on a United Launch Alliance Delta IV.

The Russian armed forces have rearmed one brigade with the newest modification of the Buk medium surface-to-air missiles.

Tom Kennedy outlines why he thinks the U.S. Air Force will want the kind of low-risk T-X trainer Raytheon is offering.

In this week’s roundup: Saudi Arabia on the verge of getting highly advanced F-15s, Russia’s land forces take delivery of an upgraded Buk SAM, Chile buys six S-70i Black Hawks and Russia prepares to export its Alligator helicopter.

A spending bill for early 2017 answers some of the Obama administration’s top procurement wishes—including allowing full production of aerial refueling tankers.

Small, agile and responsive, Houston Precision Fasteners (HPF) is one of an estimated 1,200 small businesses scattered across the U.S. that play limited yet significant roles in the development of NASA’s Space Launch System exploration rocket and its primary future payload, the Orion crew capsule.

India has successfully launched Resourcesat 2A—the country’s latest Earth observation satellite.

The Chilean government has signed a contract with Sikorsky to purchase six S-70i International Black Hawks to fulfill a requirement for a new fleet of medium helicopters.

Sikorsky is on pace to begin testing the new-generation HH-60W combat rescue helicopter ahead of schedule.

Beechcraft Corp. has announced enhancements to its King Air 350 special mission platform for higher performance.

An African C-130 Hercules could be completely rebuilt in Portugal. David Oliver looks at the company behind the project.

The U.S. Army is looking for ways to re-engine its General Electric T700-powered Sikorsky UH-60M/Vs and Boeing AH-64E Apaches faster.

NASA picked Space Systems/Loral (SS/L) for a $127 million contract to build the bus for its planned Restore-L spacecraft-refueling mission.

Raytheon CEO Tom Kennedy is adamant that the company’s T-100 offering for the U.S. Air Force’s T-X competition is a must win for the company.

Nothing seems to bring NASA’s many science and technical pursuits together like the search for life beyond Earth, agency chief scientist Ellen Stofan says.

Boeing said late Dec. 6 it has struck a deal to buy Liquid Robotics, which makes autonomous maritime systems and is the developer of the Sharc Wave Glider ocean surface robot.

America’s aerospace trade association said it is preparing for “a challenging policy arena in both Washington D.C. and a rapidly changing global environment.”

The South Korean air force has accumulated 5,000 flights with Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) T-50 family of jets.

Brazilian aerospace manufacturer Embraer and the country’s air force are urging the government to improve export financing to make defense products more attractive to overseas customers.

India plans to launch 83 satellites in a single mission in January—a first of its kind that will set a world record in space technology.

The SB-1 Defiant trails its main rival, the Bell Helicopter V-280 Valor, in terms of air vehicle assembly, but Team Defiant is still hoping to achieve first flight by the end of 2017.

NASA is adjusting astronaut assignments and training for duty aboard the International Space Station (ISS) in 2017.

The South Korean Parliament has refused a defense ministry request to spend 30% more on Lockheed Martin F-35 acquisition in 2017 than originally planned.