Advanced Air Mobility

Wireless charging system developer WiBotic on Aug. 6 announced Federal Communications Commission (FCC) authorization of its line of transmitters and receivers for charging drones, mobile robots and industrial automation devices.

Hypersonic Air Force One; High-performance missile fuel; MTU/DLR team on fuel cells; Opportunities for hydrogen; and UK advances UTM.

NRO’s new approach to satellites; Russia’s S-70 acceleration; defining “Attritable” in dollar terms; Collins’ training device.

How the Air Force Research Laboratory has put autonomous technology at the forefront of future air warfare since 2017.

Airline MRO Barfield now repairs unmanned aircraft systems components at its facility in Louisville, Kentucky.

The FAA does not plan to extend the UAS Integration Partnership Program after October.

Swiss eVTOL demo; EASA advances AI; suborbital spaceplane; AeroTEC advances electric; EHang expands; and Sunglider flies higher.

China’s EHang has launched an unmanned aerial firefighting version of its two-seat autonomous electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing air taxi, demonstrating its ability to fight fires in high-rise buildings.

Chinese urban air taxi developer EHang is to expand its production capacity for autonomous air vehicles as it works to develop domestic and international markets for the passenger-capable aircraft.

The HAPSMobile venture involving Japan’s SoftBank and AeroVironment has completed a fourth test flight of its solar-powered stratospheric unmanned aircraft, flying for longer and reaching a higher altitude than previous tests.

Switzerland’s Dufour Aerospace has completed 550 flights of a large-scale technology demonstrator in an initial phase of testing for its tilt-wing electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing air taxi.

Israel Aerospace Industries (IAI) has completed the first flight of a Heron TP medium-altitude, long-endurance unmanned air system to be operated by Germany.

Without naming them, Boeing says many military aviation services are contacting it about the ATS—all wanting to add mass to air battles.

EmbraerX has begun “flights” of an engineering simulator for its electric vertical-takeoff-and-landing air taxi.

Swift Engineering has flown the first in a planned family of commercial persistent stratospheric unmanned aircraft.

Four companies have been selected to build prototypes for the Skyborg family of autonomous and attritable unmanned aircraft systems, the Air Force Research Laboratory announced on July 23.

This webinar took place July 22, 2020 and was sponsored by Raytheon Technologies. Prototypes are flying, operational trials are beginning, financing

British defense firm Qinetiq says it has carried out the UK’s first manned/unmanned teaming demonstration, operating a semi-autonomous multicopter unmanned aircraft system from an Airbus H125 light helicopter.

The U.S. Army is testing two quadcopters at Fort Benning, Georgia, with the aim of selecting one later this year as its Short-Range Reconnaissance (SSR) drone.

UK electric regional; supersonic opposition; EHang flies tourists; Indra tests Targus OPV; ANA’s delivery drone; and eVTOL down under.

U.S. manufacturer Skydio eyes commercial and military customers, claiming its autonomy technology is unrivaled.

Drone logistics system developer Matternet on July 14 announced the start of a second hospital delivery operation with UPS Flight Forward in North Carolina.

U.S. small drone manufacturer Skydio said it has raised $100 million in venture capital, which the company will use to accelerate product development and expand into the commercial and public-sector markets.

ANA Holdings, parent company of All Nippon Airways, is cooperating with Japanese startup Aeronext on the development of delivery drones with the goal of beginning commercial operations in 2022-23.

Drone delivery company Volansi is to partner with U.S. Special Operations Command to demonstrate its Voly M20 long-range cargo unmanned aircraft under a small business contract awarded by the U.S. Air Force.