Defense

The city-state’s air bases are increasingly vulnerable. It obviously sees STOVL as an answer.

Selected U.S. military contracts from the past week

News in brief

Brief news items of interest to aerospace & defense professionals.

NASA has selected privately owned Axiom Space of Houston to provide a commercial habitation module to be attached to the International Space Station.

Two Northrop Grumman MQ-4Cs have officially started the high-altitude UAS' first operational deployment, the U.S. Navy says.

Honeywell has partnered with U.S. startup Jetoptera to explore fluidic propulsion for military cargo and surveillance UAS.

The U.S. Air Force has “walked back” portions of a $30 billion reinvestment strategy based on objections by combatant commanders, chief of staff Gen. David Goldfein said on Jan. 27.

NASA has selected 16 wide-ranging science investigations and technology demonstrations for launch next year as the first payloads to be delivered to the Moon’s surface by two of 14 companies qualified by the agency for lunar missions under NASA’s $2.6 billion, 10-year Commercial Lunar Payload Services programs.

Ad Astra Rocket Co. is poised to bring the company’s Variable Specific Impulse Magnetoplasma Rocket electric propulsion system to a Technical Readiness Level of 6.

Poland’s government will sign a $4.6 billion contract for 32 Lockheed Martin F-35As on Jan. 31, Minister of National Defense Mariusz Błaszczak announced Jan. 27.

The U.S. defense research agency awarded Northrop a $13 million, one-year contract under the Glide Breaker program.

Astronauts on the fourth spacewalk to repair the $2 billion Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer found signs of a leak.

Japan is boosting its space exploration budget.

The whistleblower contends Lockheed Martin has been applying a chemical to seal the C-130J’s integral fuel tank that may have long-term health consequences for those applying it and others nearby.

A U.S. Air Force low-cost unmanned aircraft system demonstrator returned to flight on Jan. 23 after a three-month hiatus caused by a landing mishap.

President/CEO John Holmes talks labor shortages, the MAX crisis, technological enablers and lucrative opportunities.

Huntington Ingalls Industries (HII), one of two large warship manufacturing companies for U.S. naval services, is continuing to make headway in its efforts to diversify its business portfolio with a major new U.S. Air Force contract to support intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR).

Most in industry and government see high-level, multinational efforts as a pipe dream, leaving airlines to fend for themselves.

IPOs, mergers and strategic moves reshuffle industrial landscape for Israeli aerospace.

Following a successful demonstration of Dragon’s launch abort system, SpaceX is in the home stretch for a crewed flight test.

Israel’s precision weapons are sold all over the world, but struggled to break into world’s most lucrative market until recently

Optical sensors have joined Israel’s elaborate and increasingly more powerful air surveillance network

RIP Boeing Phantom Express; UK offloads AWACS aircraft; CMV-22B delivery imminent; UK upgrading training helo requirements.

AVIATION WEEK NETWORK forecasts the world’s fleet of western-designed fighter aircraft will generate $321.6 billion in maintenance, repair and