On Aug. 18, the Pentagon conducted a successful flight test of a ground-launched conventional cruise missile with a range of more than 500 km (300 mi.)—a weapon previously banned under the now-defunct Intermediate Range Nuclear Forces Treaty.
Japan has formally selected the Lockheed Martin F-35B Lightning for an acquisition program for 42 short-takeoff-and-vertical-landing fighters, going through the motions of acquisition procedures even though it had no alternative.
“After successfully performing the crucial maneuver, Chandrayaan-2 has left for the Moon. If all goes well, it will reach the Moon’s orbit by Aug. 20,” says a senior scientist at the Indian Space Research Organization.
Announced on Aug. 19, the agreement calls for Collins to provide local field service engineers and test capabilities at locations in Soesterberg and at Woensdrecht Air Base, including establishment of an F-35 pilot readiness center.
As part of an ongoing expansion programme, Djibouti’s small air arm, the Force Aérienne du Djibouti (FAdD, Djibouti Air Force), has taken delivery of four newly refurbished AS365N Dauphins.
Arriving late to the party, Japan finds that it has the second-biggest acquisition plan in the F-35 Lightning program but very little industrial participation.
Senior U.S. lawmakers are praising the Trump administration for green lighting the proposed sale of new F-16 fighter jets to Taiwan after the White House informally notified Congress of the $8 billion deal.
NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama will lead efforts to develop a three-component human Moon lander system under assignments announced Aug. 16 by agency Administrator Jim Bridenstine.
The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps warn that reductions to the Lockheed Martin F-35C would delay establishing a second Marine squadron by up to one year and cuts to the Northrop Grumman E-2D Advanced Hawkeye would prevent using the aircraft in high-threat environments.
Lockheed Martin displayed a rarely-seen F-35 model loaded with four Cuda air-to-air missiles at a large missile defense conference in Alabama last week, but there is no link between Cuda and a missile defense application, the company says.
Russia is reporting progress with two aircraft programs that are key to its efforts to reduce its dependence on imported products: the Ilyushin-designed Il-112V light military transport and Il-114-300 regional turboprop.
The U.S. Navy’s Ford-class aircraft carrier Advanced Arresting Gear system has been approved to recover all “props and jets,” an aircraft recovery bulletin says.
Taiwan’s defense technology agency has raised performance in a second version of its Teng Yun surveillance drone, bringing the developmental aircraft close to a likely service standard, a program official said.
Virgin Galactic has declared its new base at Spaceport America operationally ready as the company sets its sights on the long-anticipated start of commercial suborbital spaceflights from the New Mexico facility in 2020.
Bell has secured its single-engine Instrument Flight Rules spurs for its Model 407GXi helicopter, paving the way for the aircraft to compete in the U.S. Navy’s rotary-wing trainer competition.
The U.S. Navy and Marine Corps are forewarning Congress that reductions to aviation readiness budget line items in fiscal 2020 would have major implications.
Dzyne Technologies and the USAF Research Lab have completed the first flight of an aircraft converted to unmanned operation using a removable robotic pilot.
NASA is making progress in overcoming the cost and tech challenges in the development of the Space Launch System, agency Administrator Jim Bridenstine says.
Planning an enlarged acquisition of Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightnings, the Japanese defense ministry hopes local industry can gain a larger share of manufacturing in the program, though not with government investment.
The first prototype of Taiwan’s next trainer aircraft will be rolled out in September and flown in June 2020, manufacturer Aerospace Industry Development Corp. (AIDC) said.
An FAA proposal to streamline and facilitate space launch and re-entry licensing for the new-space era has garnered 23 substantive comments days before public commentary is slated to close.
With much hypersonic defense work focused on boosted glide vehicles, a U.S. Air Force scramjet test shows air-breathing technology is quickly closing the gap.
On the eve of International Aviation and Space Salon MAKS 2019, the Russian aircraft industry is looking for ways to boost production, including exports.
The U.S. Marine Corps is pleading with lawmakers to not cut nearly 40% of its fiscal 2020 purchase for its only counter-unmanned aerial system program of record.
The Sea-based X-band radar (SBX-1) is now receiving repairs and capability upgrades at its unofficial operating hub at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam in Hawaii.
