Defense

By Steve Trimble
A proposal for a new DARPA program would fund four new flight tests of a scramjet-powered cruise missile to build on lessons learned from the ongoing Hypersonic Air-breathing Weapon Concept, the agency says in budget planning documents.
Missile Defense & Weapons

By Mark Carreau
Axiom Space has signed an agreement to provide a United Arab Emirates professional astronaut with a six-month tour of duty aboard the International Space Station.
Space

By Steve Trimble
DARPA has secretly tested a hypersonic Tactical Boost Glide system as a risk-reduction effort for the U.S. Air Force’s Air-launched Rapid Response Weapon.
Missile Defense & Weapons

By Mark Carreau
During an April 28 spacewalk, Russian cosmonauts Oleg Artemyev and Denis Matveev enabled the first motion of the European Space Agency’s 37-ft. robot arm, a multipurpose manipulator that was launched to the International Space Station in July 2021 as part of the Russian Nauka Multipurpose Laboratory Module.
Space

By Steve Trimble
A glide bomb equipped with a new seeker destroyed a full-scale ship in the Gulf of Mexico test range for the second time on April 28, moving a technology for a new class of air-launched weapons closer to fielding, the U.S. Air Force Research Laboratory says.
Missile Defense & Weapons

By Jen DiMascio, Steve Trimble, Brian Everstine
Aviation Week editors make sense of recommended reductions to the number of F-35 and F-15EX fighters the U.S. Air Force plan to buy in the coming years.
Defense

By Guy Norris, Jens Flottau
The OEM says longer certification timelines are a new fact of life as development woes and fixed-price contracts force first-quarter losses.
Manufacturing & Supply Chain

By Steve Trimble, Brian Everstine
F-35 and F-15EX programs face near-term cuts as U.S. Air Force makes new push for Next-Generation Air Dominance.
Defense

By Graham Warwick
Our roundup of the main aerospace and defense stories making the news this week.
Aerospace

By Brian Everstine
The F-35 program is struggling to find enough funding to fully stand up and resource the jet’s depots because the Pentagon’s habit of underfunding the maintenance facilities while expecting cost reductions in contract negotiations is not playing out as expected, the program executive says.
Budget, Policy & Operations

By Michael Bruno
Northrop Grumman is progressing on workforce absenteeism issues that plagued its F-35 program over the winter, and otherwise does not see particular problems elsewhere in its portfolio due to ongoing inflation, labor, pandemic or war-related issues, the large prime’s chief executive said April 28.
Budget, Policy & Operations

BOEING unveiled the first T-7A Red Hawk advanced trainer jet to be delivered to USAF, which plans to acquire 351.
Defense

By Brian Everstine
Boeing on April 28 unveiled the first T-7A Red Hawk trainer for the U.S. Air Force, though the aircraft will remain at the company’s St. Louis facility for more ground and flight tests before being handed over to the service.
Light Attack and Advanced Training

By Garrett Reim
Firefly Aerospace has completed the integration readiness review of its Blue Ghost M1 lunar lander.
Advanced Air Mobility

By Brian Everstine
President Joe Biden on April 28 requested $33 billion from Congress for aid to Ukraine, a dramatic increase from ongoing spending to support Kyiv in its fight against Russia, and specifically highlights a need for anti-aircraft and advanced air defense systems.
Budget, Policy & Operations

By Guy Norris
Science missions using the Boeing 747SP-based Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy airborne observatory will end in September 2022 after the U.S. National Academies assessed the science output no longer justifies its operating costs.
Space

By Molly McMillin
Despite the Russia-Ukraine war and volatility in the stock market, business aircraft activity at Textron Aviation has remained strong during the first quarter of 2022, company officials say.
Aircraft & Propulsion

By Michael Bruno
Fresh off comments about problems with rocket motor supply and the need to make small, strategic acquisitions for advanced aerospace technology, Raytheon Technologies has invested in custom-made rocket engine-maker Firehawk Aerospace.
Missile Defense & Weapons

By Tony Osborne
The U.S. Air Force has ended more than 40 years of operating the F-15C/D Eagle in Europe with the departure of the type from RAF Lakenheath, England.
Budget, Policy & Operations

By Tony Osborne
Aircraft Industries, the manufacturer of the Let family of turboprop regional aircraft, is now back in Czech hands after being acquired from its Russian owners.
Manufacturing & Supply Chain

By Chen Chuanren
South Korea’s Defense Acquisition Program Promotion Committee has greenlit the KRW760 billion ($600 million) purchase of Raytheon SM-6 missiles for the navy’s new KDX III Batch II destroyers.
Missile Defense & Weapons

By Chen Chuanren
The Japan Air Self Defense Force has confirmed that it is currently conducting air-to-air refueling compatibility tests with the Royal Australian Air Force.
Budget, Policy & Operations

By Jen DiMascio
Taiwan’s new hypersonic R&D office; North Korean nuke pledge; Capella Space raises cash for analysis; and Lockheed’s radar upgrades.
Missile Defense & Weapons

By Brian Everstine
737-based E-7A, originally designed for Australia, to serve airborne warning and control mission.
Aircraft & Propulsion

USAF identified Boeing's E-7 Wedgetail, based on the 737NG and developed for Australia, as solution to replace 15 of 31 E-3 AWACS aircraft; contract
Defense