Defense and Space

Chang’e 6 was by far the most complex mission in China’s lunar exploration program to date.

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

ENTROL has Chilean Navy order for en-1000x AATD simulator.

VIASAT was selected by Airbus to provide Ku- and Ka-band broadband SATCOM for C295s for Spanish MOD.

EMBRAER delivered the second KC-390 multi-mission aircraft to the PORTUGUESE AIR FORCE as part of order for five.

With a large swath of the region looking to modernize over an array of mission areas, Latin America should prove uniquely fertile to military aircraft manufacturers of at all levels over the coming decade.

Amazon executives formally opened the company’s Project Kuiper internet satellite factory on June 27.

The Government Accountability Office, in a report on NGI released June 26, says the agency is making progress developing the system.

Boeing modifies the Leonardo AW139 for the U.S. Air Force’s crewed Grey Wolf configuration.

Breakup of the RESURS-P1 satellite into an estimated 100 pieces of trackable debris occurred at about 12 p.m. EDT June 26.

The service released another request for information for the Undergraduate Jet Training System on June 26.

The findings, attributed to more than 50 scientists, were published June 26 in the journal Meteoritics & Planetary Science.

Japan is studying a new class of air defense destroyer.

Firefly Aerospace said it plans to expand its launch operations to Europe through an agreement with the Swedish Space Corporation (SSC).

The Swedish government has signed a contract with Saab to acquire a third GlobalEye airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) system aircraft.

North Korean state media KCNA says the country has successfully conducted a multiple independently targetable reentry vehicle ballistic missile test.

Sierra Nevada will provide Finland with two Bombardier Challenger 650 surveillance aircraft, the country’s border guard says.

The Bundestag budget committee has given the green light to funding the new Supersonic Strike Missile—known as 3SM Tyrfing—and acquiring at least two satcoms.

The scheduled July 9 launch kicks off a new era in European space operations.

Despite strong demand for new commercial aircraft, supply chain woes are forcing Airbus to delay rate targets and may make it sell parts of the space business.

U.S. Air Force Secretary Frank Kendall cast doubt on the Next Generation Air Dominance (NGAD) fighter program in an interview with Aviation Week. Listen in as editors Brian Everstine, Steve Trimble and Robert Wall break down what we know—and what we don't know.

NASA is leading the coalition into the new age of exploration.

SpaceX will develop and build a spacecraft to drive the International Space Station out of orbit after it is decommissioned.

The “descope” includes ending an International Space Station spacesuit demonstration that was targeted for 2026, NASA said.

The mission, known as Certification-2 (Cert-2), follows Vulcan’s successful debut on the Cert-1 flight in January.