Defense and Space

The U.S. Space Force is investing in new offensive capabilities in space.

The U.S. Air Force is again asking for permission from Congress to retire hundreds of aircraft.

The U.S. Air Force wants to increase its buy of Boeing F-15EXs above what was previously planned.

The U.S. Air Force will not go ahead with a full engine replacement for its Lockheed Martin F-35A.

The UK is to raise its defense spending by £5 billion over the next two years, reflecting concerns about threats from Russia and the rise of China.

Iran could receive its first newly built fighter imports in over 30 years.

French President Emmanuel Macron and British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak committed to the advancement of the Future Cruise and Anti-Ship Weapon (FC/ASW) program.

The Crew-5 Dragon Endurance capsule splashed down autonomously at 9:02 p.m. EST on March 11.

Kazakhstan has taken control of Russian assets on Baikonur spaceport, local KZ24 media reported on March 7, citing the country’s court bailiff service.

Beyond the military realm, the move sets up direct and fierce competition with America’s own commercial space economy.

Magellan Aerospace has won a $15.8 million contract from the Canadian government to design, build, launch and operate a microsatellite.

OneWeb is set to complete its first-generation global broadband network in low Earth orbit with one more flight, slated for later this month.

The UK and France will advance work on the development of a new-generation cruise missile and anti-ship missile.

Spain looks set to become Europe’s largest operator of the Pilatus PC-21 turboprop trainer after placing a top-up order for another 16 aircraft.

Lockheed Martin on March 10 formally rolled out the first new F-16 for Bahrain after a four-year hiatus.

The joint RAF squadron was formed as part of the UK’s Qatar Air Program connected to its sale of Eurofighter Typhoons to the Qatar Emiri Air Force.

The Vulcan Centaur rocket was transported on rails from United Launch Alliance’s Vertical Integration Facility (VIF) to Space Launch Complex-41.

Next-Generation Air Dominance to be approximately a one-for-one F-22 replacement, bolstered by collaborative combat aircraft.

Officials call for clean-sheet designs, saying commercial-derivative refuelers are not survivable.

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

LEONARDO was selected by Armaereo to supply avionics upgrades for up to 12 C-27J Spartans for Italian Air Force.

INTERNATIONAL DEFENSE & AEROSPACE GROUP, Atlanta acquired ACE AERONAUTICS, AL (UH-60 upgrades).

Ispace, which has a lander en route to the Moon, plans to list its shares on the Tokyo Stock Exchange Growth Market on April 12.

The Air National Guard has increased the numbers of F-15s it flies, and keeping them in the air has taken creative fleet management and intensive maintenance.

The U.S. Air Force recently deployed F-22s to a tiny, bare base in the Pacific for the first in a significant demonstration of its new agile operating concept.