Defense

Tensions over the potential workshare within the Franco-German-Spanish FCAS program resurfaced on the second day of the Paris Air Show.

RTX says they have achieved positive thrust with a rotating detonation combustor in a turbine engine in a relevant thrust class for a weapon.

The China Manned Space Engineering Office has completed the first zero-altitude escape flight test of its next-generation Mengzhou crewed spacecraft.

France and Spain have committed to accelerate Airbus A400M purchases in a bid to underpin the long-term production outlook for the military transport.

Diehl says it would expand work with defense electronics specialist Hensoldt to evolve its air and missile defense equipment as battlefield requirements change.

Safran detailed some upgrades it is making to the M88 engine under the T-REX program to boost thrust and address the power needs of the new Dassault Rafale F5.

Airbus is establishing interconnected teams between its defense and commercial business as it looks to establish the A320 family for special missions.

Portugal is accepting its sixth KC-390, with an option for 10 additional aircraft. According to Embraer, the some of the new options may be used in future acquisitions by other NATO members.

With Navy acquisition programs already in a “mess,” the Pentagon is skeptical about adding a second sixth-generation fighter onto a strained defense industry.

Multi-industrial provider Eaton, a key middle-market provider of aerospace parts to airframers, announced June 16 that it will buy Ultra PCS.

MBDA has lifted the lid on a low-cost, long-range, one-way attack drone concept used to saturate an adversary’s air defenses.

Northrop Grumman and the U.S. Navy are in the midst of a series of upgrades to the MQ-4 Triton uncrewed aircraft fleet.

AURA AERO and BABCOCK FRANCE signed MOU to jointly offer and promote INTEGRAL trainer for armed forces.

HONEYWELL was selected by Bell Textron to supply GTCP 36-150 APU and Honeywell Attune thermal management system for US Army's FLRAA.

PORTUGAL ordered a sixth KC-390 and optioned another 10, which may be used in future acquisitions by other European nations/NATO members.

Israeli air strikes have taken out about one-third of Iran’s ballistic missile launcher capacity.

Russia has conducted large-scale trials of new laser systems against UAVs, the country’s government reported June 13.

Boeing’s win of the U.S. Air Force F-47 fighter program may have answered one of the longest-running questions hanging over the aerospace giant.

Baykar’s Akinci uncrewed air system will be assembled in Italy by Piaggio as part of the Turkish company’s new joint venture with Leonardo.

Embraer Defense hosted a demo flight of the KC-390 Millennium, its multi-mission military aircraft, during the 2025 Paris Air Show.

With the Boeing E-7A Wedgetail facing a cancellation threat in the U.S., the AEW&C aircraft has demonstrated a new ability to control multiple uncrewed aircraft systems in flight.

ESA and French space agency CNES have not paused any activities potentially affected by proposed U.S. cuts to NASA’s budget, but are developing backup plans.

Boeing's Steve Parker defended U.S. industry’s ability to launch development of a second sixth-generation fighter at Paris Air Show, contradicting concerns by the Navy’s leader.

Lockheed Martin’s efforts to expand munitions production into Europe benefitting from a “sense of urgency” among governments, a company executive says.

The modern battlefield exposes forces to a rapidly evolving threat scenario, with deadly threats increasing in number and in complexity.